To crate or not to crate at night?

[YoureAllABunchOfBastards]

Pup is coming home in four weeks (eeeep) and so we are getting ready. A friend has loaned us a big crate and we are now debating whether to use it at night.

Would we be stupid to allow him to sleep in our room? Crate will be available for him as a safe space during the day and, eventually, when he is left for half an hour to an hour.

[Kursk]

All our dogs were rescued, all were crate trained. We personally have never crated our dogs because DH hates the idea

[Thesearepearls]

I bought a big crate on the advice of the breeder. Stuck our little puppy in it. He whined and was clearly upset.

I suddenly realised I didn't want my dog in a crate. I realised the dog didn't want to be in a crate. That was the end of the crate

[T00much]

We are getting a puppy in 6 weeks, everyone seems to say crate train but I must admit I don't like the idea either. I think we will put him in the crate at night for safety but as soon as the pup is old enough I plan to get rid of crate

[Summer1986]

We crate trained from 9 weeks onwards until she was around 18 months old.
I now have a dog who I can let have run of the house day and night with no toilet accidents and no destruction. If you choose to crate train be prepared for the crying but it will settle after a couple of nights. We used to get up in the middle of the night to toilet her in the garden then lead her back to her crate. You can make it comfortable with bedding, blankets etc and is reccomend some bedding or a toy that was with your pup and her mom and litter mates so there's something that smells of their first home.

[Wolfiefan]

My dog sleeps in a pen. She's a giant breed and going up and down stairs isn't good for their joints so being in our bedroom isn't an option. She's safe and secure (no chewing anything dangerous or eating a cat)
But I spent three weeks sleeping next to the pen to get her used to it.
Do what suits you. Start as you mean to go on. So dog in your bedroom if that's what you want. Downstairs if you prefer (but sleep nearby to start with.)
Good luck.
Stock up on enzyme cleaner and get a torch for night time wee visits!!

[barneymcgroo]

I crate trained my last dog. She used to take herself off to her crate when she decided it was bed time - it was very sweet. As we used to travel quite a bit with her, it was brilliant as she always knew that that was her space, and hopefully felt comfortable in it. Worth taking time to do it slowly though.

[niknac1]

The crate training will allow your dog to stay in friends or hotels without risk of damage. I think they eventually see it a their personal space and not a punishment.

[AvocadosBeforeMortgages]

I've never crated a dog - they weren't a thing when I had dogs growing up, and as far as I'm aware rescue DDog was never crate trained, and I've never felt the need and we haven't got the space

I can't help but look at them and think of them as dog cages. I understand the logic when the door is open, but when the door is shut... I'm not a fan, because the dog is no longer exercising a choice.

DDog sleeps on my bed (fine by me) and has free roam of the flat, except one room, when I'm out.

That said, crate training does have the advantage that as and when your dog has to have an op it will be more comfortable in the cages at the vets, and if you want to use a crate in the car it will be much easier.

Do what works for you... But I would never feel comfortable with shutting a dog in a crate for a noticeable period of time.

[RandomMess]

Ours is a rescue, she came crate trained. We crate her at night due to the cats - she happily takes her bedtime treat and takes herself to the crate!

Bizarrely we took her and crate on holiday and she wasn't happy whimpered every 45 minutes - she slept with DH for the duration but back home was happy to go into and sleep in the crate again

[Floralnomad]

we crate trained from 9 weeks onwards until she was around 18 months old. I now have a dog who I can let have run of the house day and night with no toilet accidents and no destruction
We didn’t crate train at all , we used a large puppy pen for a couple of weeks and then baby gates to keep our dog in certain rooms , we also have a dog that has the run of the house ( he sleeps on ds bed ) , doesn’t have accidents and doesn’t destroy things , you don’t need to crate train to achieve these things .

[amyddss]

I've never put my dog in a crate. Bought one for bringing him home and then never used it. He didn't even want to go in it so I wasn't going to force him. He is 3 now and sleeps on his blanket on the couch every night with his favourite toy and is a happy little soul. If you don't think it works for you or the pup then don't do it.

[ThespianTendencies]

I got my pup at 8 weeks and she went into her crate with out a peep! She rregularly hops in there for some peace (if I'm hoovering etc) and recently, when she was ill with a tummy upset, she stayed in there and rested. I never make her go in there but she likes it. She also sleeps on the settee, on the floor, on my lap etc. but ovenight I do shut the door on the crate just to ensure she doesn;t wake before me and pee on the carpet. I don't want it here as a permanent feature so when she is approaching 1 year I will wean her off of it as it is a bit of a monstrosity in the lounge!

[yikesanotherbooboo]

We had a crate for our pup ( not our dog who came when older). We had builders in the house and needed a safe place for her. We were uneasy as hadn't had the experience with previous family dogs. Maybe we were lucky but after the first few nights in the bedroom with us we popped her in her crate at night and she was fine. In fact she saw it as her safe place and for years afterwards if it appeared( usually after being leant out or when the shed was being tidied) she would pop in and stretch out.i was rather sold on the idea and would use one again with a little puppy.

[saltedliquorice]

I must admit I never liked the idea of a crate. But we have crate trained our dog as told ‘dogs are den animals’.
It worked really well the DC were young when we got our puppy and their attention was relentless. We made it a rule if the puppy went into his crate that was his safe space because he was tired and to leave him alone.
He have a spare piece of vet bed over the top and a towel draped over one side he often takes himself off their for peace during the day or before bed time and he sleeps downstairs in his crate at night. It means we can take him camping in his travel crate and he can go to holiday let’s etc.
Top tip when we got him DH bought a massive crate which we were told to section off part of it until he grew.
We also got him a dog run and outdoor kennel with a hidey space and put a bed in for him but he never liked this as he always wants to be in the house. He much prefers the crate to the kennel and dog run (we know this as he barks relentlessly and never settles. Whereas he settles fine in the crate.
We don’t have the dog upstairs at all when you see how much mess he makes downstairs with hair, saliva and muddy feet on a hard Floor I certainly wouldn’t want the same upstairs. Personally, I also wouldn’t want our dog on our bed or on our children’s beds etc and seeing what he sometimes rolls in, stands in and what he licks etc that is enough.

[SK166]

We crated ours at night from when he first came home, with the full intention of getting rid of it around 6 months. Well he’s having none of that! He loves his crate (it’s at the foot of our bed) and even when we’ve tried to phase it out by first just leaving the door open at night, he moans and won’t settle until we’ve shut it. So I guess the metal monstrosity is a permanent feature now!

Have to say, it’s been great for him. 2 top tips if you do go for it - 1) get a divider for when pup is still little, to restrict the space to just a sleeping area. It’ll make pup feel more secure and also will stop him using one end as a toilet area (they don’t like to mess their sleeping area), which will help with toilet training. 2) make the crate a place of positive things from day 1. Leave the door open all day to let pup come and go as he pleases, but do things like feed him in there, throw treats in for him to find, put fun toys in there and generally make it a happy place.

Oh and cover the top and sides with a blanket to make it more den-like.

[Sofabitch]

My dog loves his crate. I wasn't too sure on it at first and didn't plan to use it for long. But now it's literally the only place he will sleep at night.

I think dogs either love them or hate them

[isthissummer]

Our dog takes himself to his crate if we take too long to get too bed.

[Goldmonday]

Tried crating our older dog and it was a disaster (I don't have the heart for the crying all night long)

Our younger dog was crated by her previous owner but she has slept on the bed with us from the first night we had her.

[ThisMorningWentBadly]

I crate trained badly pup. But did a lot of clicker training for it. Hours and hours I spent making sure she was happy in there.

I think it is useful as keeps them save and stops them developing bad habits.