Dog crates are cruel

My dog was crate trained as a pup. Is happily toilet and house trained 8 years later. She still sleeps in the crate. She takes herself there when it's bedtime, keeps her toys in there, and lets us know when she wants in and out during the day.
It's not the crate, it's the owner. It's like saying all leads should be banned as some people hit their dogs with them.

Same here.
Its covered with a blanket.. she goes in and out when she likes.

I’m with you OP. I’ve never used a dog crate and never would.

People put babies/toddlers in playpens and cots. No different.

I’ve had dogs all my life and never used a crate.

UNTIL the dog we have now.

A crate was a game changer. She used it all the time until she was just over 12 months old. At nighttime, when we were out of the house and yes, shock horror, when guests were here. Not everyone likes dogs and even people that do like dogs don’t want a massive golden retriever puppy excited to see them, nor do they want to be part of the training of that dog.

It kept her safe when she was alone at night or we were out, it gave her a space to retreat away from the children if she wanted to. It made toilet training a breeze.

The breeder we got her from used crates. The rooms she was in from birth had lots of crates in with no doors. The puppies would come and go from them as they pleased.

As they got older, she would put the doors on and close them for a few minutes at a time.

By the time she let the puppies go at 12 weeks, they would all jump into a crate happily to sleep.

The first thing my dog did when she walked though the front door was see the crate we had set up for her and she happily went in it to have a sniff around. No first night crying, she was happy.

We don’t use the crate anymore. Stoped at just over 12 months when she was fully trained and I knew she wasn’t going to chew anything or hurt herself on something unsupervised.

We so use one when we go on holiday and she goes in happily.

They aren’t cruel at all.

I see it the same way as putting a baby in a cot. You put them in a contained area to keep them safe.

You can say this about anything. People misuse loads of things, but that shouldn’t prevent a responsible owner from having any given item. And I actually think if you have company and an excitable dog that a crate might be the safest place for them until they are trained properly. It’s their den, not a jail.

That man would have been cruel to those dogs with or without a crate. He was an abuser and the crate didn't enable this. We have crate trained our dogs and they absolutely loved their crates, they were kept for many years afterwards as their dens with the doors open and they always chose to snuggle up in them.

We euphemistically call them crates because we don’t like the word ‘cage’ , but cages they are. And like all cages , they need to be used correctly. ( to be clear, I am not a fan)

This is a sad story, but it’s neglect which killed the dogs

When I got my dog as a puppy, she was already crate trained and used to them. It was her safe space.
She broke a leg when she was still a bouncy youngster, and the vet ordered very strict crate rest for a few weeks.
We did get rid of it after that, as her bed became the sofa and our bed.

Crates are not the problem. The dogs would have died anyway with an owner like that.

In many circumstances, crates can be the difference between a dog thriving a surgery and a dog never recovering. Forced bed rest is absolutely essential when recovering from a variety of operations and crates are essential for that. They are also a useful space for dogs to escape to to get away from children in the house until the child is stupid enough to stick it's head in the crate and gets bitten.

What you should be angry about is how terrible this country is when it comes to taking animal abuse seriously. If the warnings had been acted upon, the dogs wouldn't have died.

When I got my rescue dog - her crate was her safe space , it had a blanket over it . She would take herself off to her crate of her own accord. I don’t use it now. But used correctly I think they have there place

It's the feckless and cruel owners who are the problem, not crates per se.

My old labrador absolutely loved his crate from when he was a puppy right up until he was an adult. I didn't even have to actually train him to it. I just put it up with some nice bedding and a few treats/ water inside when I first got it. He was so eager he leapt straight in there and went to sleep. That was it.

He was only closed into it overnight (stopped him from chewing his way through the house) and was always let straight outside early in the morning and was fine. Often still took his time to leave it once I had opened it.

The crate was left open during the day except if I had to go to the supermarket or something and he would almost always take himself in there after we got back from his walk. It was his den and the place where he and my then very young children knew he was to have peace and not be disturbed.

From the age of about two we moved him to a dog bed on the house and just used the crate for safety and control in the car. Around the age of two he was through the real destructive chewing stage of a very young labrador and could be trusted around the house, even on occasions when I had had to pop out, which were never for long.

That is the sort of way a crate should be used, not as a prison.

Crates are not the issue, arseholes are

I have 2 X puppies and a senior dog !
This is the first time I've ever crate trained because I have to !
If I didn't crate train now I'd have littermate syndrome on my hands and I'd have a stressed out senior dog !
I only do enforced naps and this is actually good for their mental and physical health because they grow so quickly they need alot of rest to also process what they have learnt through the day !
My puppies are well behaved and they listen to me when training !
I take them with me when I go out if I'm going to be longer than their 2 hour nap schedule!
People who don't agree with crate training I get it I've never used one before when I've just had 1 puppy !
Nothing is bad if done correctly it's bad dog owners their the reason those dogs died and that's beyond cruel why do people do this I don't know !!!
As an animal lover this is horrific!

I can’t read the story as I would be too upset. It’s like any dog tool, if used incorrectly of course dangerous. Human responsibility obviously!!!. My dog loves her den (crate) and goes in out of choice. She also travels happily and safely in her car crate.

Same here

Those poor dogs, so cruel.

But no, I don't agree crates are always bad. My dog was crate trained as a puppy. She used to sleep in it overnight but hasnt done in years. She sees the crate as a safe space, and if she ever needs to be crated due to surgery/ ill health when she's older she won't be traumatised or upset.

Exactly the same here

I didn't read the story but my dog loves her crate. She will often take herself there throughout the day and at night, puts herself to bed there- the door is never closed but she chooses to sleep there. We cover the top/sides with a blanket and its like a dark, safe den which she loves so no, i dont think its remotely cruel.

This. The issue was that they were abandoned.

My last dog loved his crate- just saw it as a cosy bed. New dog hated the crate so we didn't use one. It's about being sensitive to your dog and using the crate appropriately if you do.

The crate isn’t the reason they died, you muppet. They died because they have cruel owners.

Both mine are crate trained, they're the safest way to transport in a car (where it's a legal requirement to have a dog restrained) and they don't get stressed if they go to the vets and need to stay or need to be rested after an injury etc, they're just their beds to them and their own space. If you ban crates people will still treat dogs badly, it's the people who do it that are the problem, not what they use.

Crates are only acceptable if they're left open at all times and the dog uses it to take himself away. Otherwise they're restrictive and cruel and if you wouldn't put your child in one, you shouldn't be putting your dog in one. In fact I think that people who shut their dogs in crates shouldn't have a dog

I'm not familiar with the story you refer to but no, I don't think crates are fundamentally bad if used the correct way. Our dog struggled to sleep as a pup, our vet recommended we crate train him. Set him up, all cozy with his toys and blankets and he took to it right away. It was his safe/quiet space. It was never used for punishment, he'd just toddle of there when he wanted alone time. He's elderly now and has outgrown the need for a crate but it was a godsend when he was younger.