Is this bed cruel for the dog?

[HopingSomeoneIsAwake]

I have a 9 month old dog who is perfectly house trained and has been for months. The last week or so he has suddenly started pooing in his bed overnight (he is crated because he was when I first got him and it suits him and us too for safety reasons - young children in the house etc). He can be quite anxious at times however he has started new medication (steroids) so that could be the culprit of upsetting his stomach. I know it’s not his fault but it’s actually starting to get me quite down having to do a full load of washing of his bed things every morning to then have to repeat it the day after - would it be cruel for me to take away the bedding in his crate until his stomach issues have resolved? He has never used puppy pads (went straight into the garden when toilet training) and I wouldn’t trust him not to chew them overnight anyway. He has the vets tomorrow and they are going to give him some stomach protection medications so hopefully that helps!

Is this your first dog you've owned as an adult?

I don’t agree with crates because they are often misused and this a prime example.

your dog can not get out to go to the toilet and is forced to shit where he sleeps.

how is that not cruel?

open the door while his tummy is dodgy and deal with the clean up in the morning. Or set an alarm and take him out during the night.

I think crates are cruel too 😓

It is cruel to leave a dog in that state and if you can't see that then I hope you don't have a dog.

You should of thought twice before getting a dog. Shutting him in a crate all night is bad enough but you are not willing to wash his blankets so has to have none in winter?! Shocking. Poor doggy.

It is cruel to leave a dog in that state and if you can't see that then I hope you don't have a dog

I did say it probably wasn't ideal but I don't think it's at cruelty/rehoming level if the dog is otherwise loved and happy.

It would be very cruel.

Animals don't soil their bedding unless they are desperate to evacuate their bowel/bladder. I had similar for five weeks with one of my spaniels after she had had a very bad experience at the vet (we changed vets after that). She was shut in an indoor bed because she had to stay as inactive as possible as she healed. I slept n the settee with her for a fortnight and as soon as she got restless (I'm a light sleeper) I took her out for a poo. Sometimes I was fast enough, sometimes not, and I changed her bed 3 or 4 times a night.

What did help a little was putting her (temporarily) onto a diet of white rice and fresh chicken and giving her a small meal every hour or so rather than her usual breakfast and dinner.

I bought marked down chicken legs/thighs and wings, slow cooked them and shredded a bit of the meat off the bones into the white rice which I cooked in the stock from the chicken. White pasta would probably be as good, as would white fish, but I found frozen white fish worked out quite expensive.

Re: suitability of crates. Our dogs love theirs - they are their "bedrooms". The door was only shut when they were puppies and we were out, to stop them chewing things that could injure them.

A crate is only cruel if you keep a dog in it all day every day - otherwise it's a haven. The kids were always told that when the dog goes to bed you leave him/her alone because they want 5 minutes peace.

Crates aren’t cruel if used correctly. Our dog had his crate closed when a young puppy at night then open as he got older then we got rid of it when he was about 1.

I don’t think it can be very nice for the dog being in a crate when he has an upset stomach. Can’t you have bedding in the crate and leave door open so he doesn’t have to poo where he’s sleeping? It must be distressing for him.

I agree with every word that @LakieLady says and the more you post the less I think that you are fit to have a dog

Dog cages ( crates ) are banned in Sweden and Finland , hopefully they will eventually be banned everywhere . My dog is uncaged and he rarely ends the night within 3/4 ft ( cage size) of where he starts the night because like most dogs that are given an option they get up and move around .

Yes it’s cruel. If it’s a problem maybe review what bedding you have in there. Vet bedding/ fleece blankets/ towels are all easily washable. I’d also try getting up once or twice a night and letting him out to see if he’ll then go in the garden instead. It’s not great but this sort of thing is a normal part of pet ownership

Not sure why you're getting so much abuse for this! The fact that you've been washing his bed on a daily basis shows how much you care.

I agree with others suggesting to get up once in the night to let them out? Although frustrating hopefully it will be temporary. It can be really distressing for dogs to need to toilet in the crate as it's their safe sleeping space as well as horrible for you.

Our dog was crated for his first year and he loved it - got in there on his own accord to sleep! It's people who use it in an abusive manner that give it a bad reputation.

I'm not a dog owner (wish I was,) but I don't think taking his bed away is the answer. You want him to be in comfort. Just thinking, is there a way you could layer his bedding, with easy wash stuff on the top? Does he really need to be locked in? Could you not put some newspapers or puppy pads nearby and leave crate door open?
The steroids might be giving him a bad stomach- have you talked to the vet? Humans usually get given a stomach protector type tablet (like omeprazole or lansoprazole,) when we get steroids.. maybe he just needs something like that?
Good luck hope he feels better soon.

With that mentality you shouldn't own a dog

Vet bedding. Dries super quick and fleecy blankets.
Used these with my elderly incontinent dog.
My puppy also has bedding that can be washed and dried quickly. We've had a couple of times he's had a bad tummy and yes,unfortunately, we've had to tag team taking him outside. It's not fun but comes with dog ownership.
Animals rely completely on us like small children. I wouldn't leave a small child without bedding and would check in with a poorly small child through the night.

Crates (unlocked) are not cruel, they give insecure dogs a feeling of safety.

Yes OP, no bedding all night is cruel.

Jesus, some of these comments really show how crappy mumsnet can be. (bet my comments get deleted, like they always do)

Waterproof cot bedding would be a good idea, plus puppy pads. I wouldn't leave it bare personally as they do get cold. If your puppy goes to bed around 10, you could do their last feed around 5? Should be enough time to toilet. You could also set an alarm 11pm to let pup out? Starve half a day or rice for upsets tums, but as your pup is on steroids, I would speak to a vet as I'm not sure if they have to eat with them.

Well done for sticking to it, routine and training needs to stay constant! I have a cage trained dog too! Best of luck.

we dont like crates much, we choose to bed our dog down in the kitchen/diner which has wooden floors or tile, and nothing for him to chew on (bar the chair legs, which he doesn't touch), so if there ARE any accidents, its easy to clean up.

In this weather he has a huge fluffy bed and 4 blankets to make a nest in.

Crates aren't cruel and can be reassuring and a safe space. However, taking away bedding would be very unkind. Imagine it for yourself - he feels the temperature just like you do and he would feel the hard floor just like you would.
cease the steroids unless they are life saving and ask the vet tomorrow. Address his anxiety and prioritise that over how annoying it is to wash the blankets each morning. Put the time in to him and you'll reap the rewards (and so will he).

A dog sleeping without bedding isn’t cruel if it’s in a warm house. I have three dogs and they can sleep where they choose. There is a choice of 2 dog beds, a couch, a rug, 3 mats or the laminate floor and at this precise moment one is on a dog bed, one half on a mat/half on the floor and one on the floor. They are all perfectly happy and asleep

Could you get a molded plastic bed and line with puppy pads/vet bed? You’ll just have to get through this, it won’t be forever. Wait til he’s elderly and incontinent, that was a fun period of my life with a baby but it’s doable, DDog couldn’t help it. We used a crate to stop 3 year old DD from pestering DPup when it was naptime. We still use it at night, it’s in our bedroom. We try him out of the crate at night but any movement and he jumps on your head thinking it’s time to get up. So I’m very happy with the crate! It’s only at night now he’s an adult. People are so over the top sometimes.

It's so bloody obvious that I'm 😧that the question is even being asked, tbh.

I think it would be cruel to take away the bedding. Could you get a waterproof mattress protector and stuff it with bedding? Then you only have to wash the protector. If you did that and left the heating in in that room overnight, he'd be comfortable.

I'd also start getting up a couple of times a night to let him out, at least until his stomach settles.

Crate the children then co-sleep with the poorly puppy. It will get them used to how it will be when they get V&D.

Yes you are tight. In this weather too. Shame on you