Puppies - are crates/cages really that essential ?

[CaptainUnderpants]

We are preparing for a puupy arrival(labrador)and as you do I have ended up reading , internet seraching etc and all the rage at the moment seems to be training by housing in crate / cage .

I would be realy interested from others as to whether this is really essential for toilet / house training and whether you have used one or not .

I was hoping to have a nice cosy bed in a playpen (already have an animal enclosure)and go along those lines initally .

Both my Dh and I has dogs when children and we never had crates.

I get it that dogs see it as a den ,safe place to be etc but dogs have managed without then in the past - is it the new 'in' thing or am just being .

I really am not quite sure at the moment and a bit .

Have to go out but will check in later.

Thanks for any advice.

We used one - but more to keep him in one place when a puppy. It was useful for when people came round - he is a springer and is prone to over excitement and used to do a lot of excitement wees. He slept in at night so at least I knew he was not chewing anything or messing up the house. We have completely dispensed with it now - although when he goes to my friends when we are away she puts him in it at night (for the sake of her cats). If you have a play pen I would think that would suffice.

I always use one. With our recent puppy he has been dry from night one in the crate - we got him at 7 1/2 weeks. He has not weed in the house at all.

Not only does it help with toilet training it gives them a safe place to rest and if used correctly they love them.

I also use mine for training basic self control in the puppy. The puppy learns that he has to sit and wait before he is let out of the crate. Which is a vital training and can be transferred to getting out of the car etc.

If you are going to take you dog away with you they will always settle if you take the crate with you and you can take them anywhere.

Susan Garrett has a great crate games dvd but some of this is shown in this you tube clip.

A play pen will restrict where the puppy can go but it will not help with toilet training as the pup can move away from the area they sleep to wee.

Also it will not be a calming signal. As pups need lots of rest the crate shows the puppy that it is now time to rest whereas in the playpen they can still play and jump around.

It is personal choice but I would always use a crate.

We had a puppy pen for both of ours. They slept in it at night and when we went out. Or when they were going a bit mad and needed to calm down.

I would not want to have a puppy and not have a pen. I agree that it's good to know that they are not chewing anything and weeing all over the place!

We don't use it at all now either.

I was given a crate on loan and used it with great success when our lab puppy arrived. She never soiled or wet in it and was perfectly happy to go in at night. I had to do a bit of work to make it a fun place for her to settle during the day but that didn't take too long.

It became apparent quite early on that despite puppy proofing the kitchen (stair gate, all trailing wires removed etc) that she needed to be put somewhere even more secure when I left the room as she took a liking to chewing the kitchen cabinets.

She eventually got too big for the loaned crate so then I transferred her into the children's playpen with a basket at the back and a rug on the rest of the floor. No accidents in there either, but then we have no accidents in the house anyway. She is very happy to go in there and will go and settle of her own accord no problem.

I have a fabric/mesh travel crate for her that lives in the boot of the car so she is safe when we are travelling and becomes her bed when she goes to stay at my parent's and when we take her camping.

I think they are ace.
I think they are ace

so ace I needed to type it twice

Slubber - Where did you get your fabric/mesh crate?

So basically have the crate early on aand then move on to playpen ? then nothing ?

One article I read was that the door of the crate should not be closed on pup until at least 12 weeks old , then only over night and then very short periods during the day . So before that stage a crate and playpen would be needed, as they have access out of the crate, so would wee in thepen then get back their dry crate .

My Dh doesn't want a crate at all ( he will not be the cleaning up the mess ! ) and I am in two minds .

My lab is now 2. I was reluctant to get a crate when she was a puppy as my parents have had labs all my life and never used crates BUT I am glad I did. For all the reasons others have listed it worked for us and we stopped using it when she got to 18 months.

They are ugly and obviously a lab needs a large one but in my case it was not for ever. She now has a lovely dog bed in the corner of the kitchen. Which she will go to on command.

I would recommend them and I was very sceptical.

Enjoy your pup! Mine is a gem and the love of my life!

So those of you that used crates for your pups did you close the door on night one ? or did you ease into it.

If you did leave door open did you use a pen aswell ?

Thansk

we have one large crate for 2 pups. no idea if its recommended, but last night was their first night here. not a peep from them. dry and clean crate this morning. we will get another crate soon and have them side by side.

few accidents in the house, but letting them explore the garden today and have started going out there as well.

Captainunderpants, we closed the door at night from the first night.

ExitBear - PAH, they are on sale atm £40 for a large one.

Captain, I think most people just stick to a crate and either use it as the dog's bed forever or ditch it for a standard bed when house training and the chewing stages are over.

I would have stayed with a standard crate had I not already had the playpen which was gathering cobwebs in the garage.

I was a giant wuss and kept the door open on the first night and slept beside her on the sofa bed (I did this for a week to let her out in the night). I really don't think I needed to though as after her first day of continually dropping treats in there she was more than happy to settle overnight.

They are more popular now than they used to be, but my family have been using crates for nearly 40 years.
I have observed over this time that when we move the pups into crates at 8 weeks old as opposed to leaving them in pens till they are 12 weeks old they are generally cleaner quicker in the crates. All the dogs grow up seeing their crates as a positive place. Currently we have four dogs and the crate doors are left open all day and they have a choice of these or regular dog beds and often you find dogs asleep in the crates particularly when there are several small people in the house.

I didn't use a crate for either of mine and had no problems in toilet training. One caught on immediately, the other took a little longer but then he is known for not being the brightest :-)

I've heard lots of wonderful things about crates. We've just got another puppy and didn't get a crate in time. As long as the pup has somewhere safe to be alone, I think they will be fine. The housetraining has been v. straightforward. I think they are a good thing, but I don't think they are essential. We don't have dogs bouncing off the walls and they lie about where they like, and get off the furniture when we tell them.