Puppy Crate Training Questions

[rincewind]

I'm not sure about crating (always thought that was kind of cruel) but I know that dogs who tear up your house aren't being exercised enough. I hope in addition to the dog walker you are walking the dog in the morning for a good 20 minutes and when you get home for even longer.

It's not cruel - they think of it as their bedroom. My dog will go in her crate and fall asleep while I'm sitting at the computer.

[RedskinsNation]

We have a black lab mix (6+ months)....probably the runt of the litter because he isnt that big - but he does fine in his crate when we arent at home. In the next few weeks we are going to put the baby gate up in the kitchen so that he can roam in that area while we arent there. Fortunatley my fiance is a teacher and she will be home during the summer months so he wont get crated unless she is out.

I personally dont like the idea of crate training (simply cuz i hate seeing him in that cage) but i think its beneficial to us and him and its only going to happen for another few months until we can trust him in the house while we arent there.

[jrockster21]

It's not cruel - they think of it as their bedroom. My dog will go in her crate and fall asleep while I'm sitting at the computer.

I wasn't trying to say it was cruel, only that I never looked into it because personally I think its kind of cruel. But its a pretty common and accepted practice.

[rincewind]

I wasn't trying to say it was cruel, only that I never looked into it because personally I think its kind of cruel. But its a pretty common and accepted practice.

What's nice is that since she thinks of it as her 'bedroom' when she does something bad we can send her to her room.

[DButz65]

Crate training should be done until they are about 2 ( or older) and i tried to

tell my wife this but she wouldnt listen, and let them out in one of our rooms

one day for 1 hour. When she returned they tried to scratch a hole in a wall

next to a electrical outlet. So of course i had to plaster/patch it up, then sand it, then repaint it

If your going to leave your dog unnatended for any period of time, put them in the crate, even for 15 mins. In 3 months our 6 month old puggles are almost totally crate trained because we dont let them have the run of the house and crate them all the time when we arent around.

[DButz65]

We have a black lab mix (6+ months)....probably the runt of the litter because he isnt that big - but he does fine in his crate when we arent at home. In the next few weeks we are going to put the baby gate up in the kitchen so that he can roam in that area while we arent there. Fortunatley my fiance is a teacher and she will be home during the summer months so he wont get crated unless she is out.

I personally dont like the idea of crate training (simply cuz i hate seeing him in that cage) but i think its beneficial to us and him and its only going to happen for another few months until we can trust him in the house while we arent there.

See my post i just put up, DO NOT let the dog in any of the rooms alone until they are older, trust me man! All it takes is a few minutes for them to destroy something. Even if shes just going to change some laundry over for 10 mins, crate them.

[jrockster21]

See my post i just put up, DO NOT let the dog in any of the rooms alone until they are older, trust me man! All it takes is a few minutes for them to destroy something.

If they are destroying stuff, 9 times out of 10 its because they aren't getting enough exercise.

[DButz65]

If they are destroying stuff, 9 times out of 10 its because they aren't getting enough exercise.

Not true, we have almost a acre for a back yard and they are outside running ALL THE TIME NONSTOP, they get way more exercise than the average dog.

I would say out of each day they run about 75% of the time in the yard.

[jrockster21]

Not true, we have almost a acre for a back yard and they are outside running ALL THE TIME NONSTOP, they get way more exercise than the average dog.

I would say out of each day they run about 75% of the time in the yard.

There's a huge difference between running around in the back yard and going for a 30 minute walk with the dogs.

[RedskinsNation]

See my post i just put up, DO NOT let the dog in any of the rooms alone until they are older, trust me man! All it takes is a few minutes for them to destroy something. Even if shes just going to change some laundry over for 10 mins, crate them.

When you say older...u mean like over a year or so?

Thanks.

[techboy]

Also not sure how much longer his teething stage will last for.

This is definitely a breed specific question, and unfortunately, labs generally chew until they are two. Anyone who thinks this is due to lack of exercise has never owned a lab. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

It's actually pretty funny, because my chocolate lab outgrew her chewing at around two, but we still occasionally find shoes and such in "the chewing spot" (an area in the living room where she would take her prizes). They're not damaged at all... It's like she took it there, then changed her mind...

Anyway, there are exceptions (we got our yellow lab when he was 1, and he never chewed anything unauthorized, really. Except pizza ), but generally, labs chew until they're two or so.

*EDIT* I'm talking about destructive (or "unauthorized") chewing, of course. Labs chew their whole lives. Invest in a Kong and some of the plain, sterizilized cow bones, because anything else is destroyed in under 5 minutes. Don't even think about those furry squeaky toys.

[DButz65]

There's a huge difference between running around in the back yard and going for a 30 minute walk with the dogs.

You havent seen our dogs run around, its not the casual trot around the back yard, they run at full speed and play with each other, tackling, biting, more running at full speed chasing each other, etc etc. Sometimes for more than a hour at a time.They get alot more exercise than the average dog in our back yard alone. And they run around like crazy every time they go out.

The one time they scratched the wall up, i was at work that day for 12 hours, my wife came home and let them out in the early afternoon and had to run up the road to a body shop close to our house and was gone for like 1 hour (shes a insurance adjuster) when she came back to let them out again and put them back in the crate and head back to work , is when she found the wall a mess. So yea that 1 day they didnt get their normal exercise, but its very rare no one is home with them and they are in the crate for long periods of time.

We even try and walk them at least 3 times a week no matter what just for a change of scenery on top of all the exercise they get in our back yard.

[RedskinsNation]

This is definitely a breed specific question, and unfortunately, labs generally chew until they are two. Anyone who thinks this is due to lack of exercise has never owned a lab. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

It's actually pretty funny, because my chocolate lab outgrew her chewing at around two, but we still occasionally find shoes and such in "the chewing spot" (an area in the living room where she would take her prizes). They're not damaged at all... It's like she took it there, then changed her mind...

Anyway, there are exceptions (we got our yellow lab when he was 1, and he never chewed anything unauthorized, really. Except pizza ), but generally, labs chew until they're two or so.

*EDIT* I'm talking about destructive (or "unauthorized") chewing, of course. Labs chew their whole lives. Invest in a Kong and some of the plain, sterizilized cow bones, because anything else is destroyed in under 5 minutes. Don't even think about those furry squeaky toys.

Ha!! Yeah we have a Kong...he loves that. He loves tennis balls which is good cuz we have a ton that he can play with and he loves baseballs. Chad Cordero actually flipped me a baseball 2 years ago at RFK and I have decided to part with it and let the little guy play with it. He thinks its the greatest thing ever (and torn it to shreds).

We rescued our dog and he came from a bad place and has a very sad story behind him so we just want him to have the best life possible but want it to beneficial for him and us. He is really a GREAT dog and considering is life prior to being taken away by the animal control people its a miracle he is this way.

[DButz65]

When you say older...u mean like over a year or so?

Thanks.

more like 2 years, according to our trainer, some dogs grow out of biting and chewing stuff earlier than some yes, but he said 2 years is a good #

[rictus58]

Why would you want to put a dog in a cage?

It makes their meat stringy and less tender.

I prefer Free-Range Fido.

[RedskinsNation]

more like 2 years, according to our trainer, some dogs grow out of biting and chewing stuff earlier than some yes, but he said 2 years is a good #

Cool, good to know. This thread has answered so many questions i had. What a great site!!!!!! (and thread).