Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

2 dogs & new baby coming

18 replies

Jadeb1995 · 20/11/2020 16:54

Hi,

I'm after some advice, I have 2 dogs (pug & french bulldog) both aged 6.

My french bulldog is renowned for being a nightmare and destroying my house. When I'm home he's like a different dog but when I go out he will ruin anything he can get his hands on. Before anyone jumps on me, they both get walked daily and are never left alone for excessive amount of time.

With a new baby on the way, we are thinking about getting a crate for the french bulldog (pug is lazy, laidback and doesn't do a lot). Main reason is currently when going out we have to spend 10 minutes dog proofing the house and with a newborn this just isn't going to work as there will obviously be baby things everywhere.

Does anyone have any advise, tips or been in similar situations?

My understanding is that french bulldogs are a bit of a nightmare!!

OP posts:
VioletSunset · 20/11/2020 17:17

I would get him a crate but do it ASAP so he is used to it by the time baby gets here. You can slowly get him used to it, use lots of positive reinforcement. Good luck

Notanothernamechanged101 · 20/11/2020 17:20

So after 6 years you are going to start shutting it in a crate? -that will be very distressing for the poor dog.

thepetshow.com/the-case-against-crate-training/

blowinahoolie · 20/11/2020 17:24

Can you invest in safety gates instead to keep them separate if you need the toilet?

ClassicLego · 20/11/2020 17:37

We have a child gate on our utility room door for our dog to be shut away if needs be. Could you pick a room and do similar?

PollyRoulson · 20/11/2020 17:41

[quote Notanothernamechanged101]So after 6 years you are going to start shutting it in a crate? -that will be very distressing for the poor dog.

thepetshow.com/the-case-against-crate-training/[/quote]
What a ridiculous article and it only discusses crate training use for toilet training.

OP to save yourself a lot of stress, money and heartache for you and the dog I would get in a behaviourist. Your insurance may pay for this.

Unfortunately none of us can say whether a crate would work in this situation however it could be the way to go but could make things worse. A behaviourist can see the situation in rl or by zoom and tailor a plan that would work for your dog and your situation.

I think you are being very sensible to get this sorted before the baby arrives and with good advice should make this situation much easier for your two dogs (and you)

vanillandhoney · 20/11/2020 18:08

You can't just buy a crate and put him in it, you'll need to crate train him first - lots of positive association with the crate etc.

The other option is to dog-proof an area of your home (utility room, for example) or use a pen to give him a little bit of freedom but to stop him destroying anything.

Not all dogs adapt well to crates, especially adult ones who've never used one on a regular basis before. Like a PP said, a behaviourist could help as well and give you advice specifically tailored for your dog - good luck! :)

Original poster
Jadeb1995 · 20/11/2020 18:32

@Notanothernamechanged101 thanks for your opinion but you can keep it 😁 unfortunately baby has to come first.

Yes we are not just going to get a crate and put him in it, we will gradually introduce him to it over the next few months. He would only be put in it when we go out, when I am at home with the baby he is fine.

We live in a modern open plan house so no way of shutting him in a room and to be honest you would need a completely empty room with nothing in, he's even been known to pull up flooring.

Does anyone have any experience with crate training?

OP posts:
Original poster
Jadeb1995 · 20/11/2020 18:39

@PollyRoulson thanks for your suggestion. I don't think UK pet insurance covers things like this unless it's off the back of an incident.

We have however previously had a dog trainer but nothing stuck as he's as good as gold when we're here but it's when we're out, he gets destructive. The last time I spoke with a dog trainer, their advice was a crate to create a safe space which is his as thought the destructive behaviour was from boredom / separation anxiety

OP posts:
vanillandhoney · 20/11/2020 18:40

We live in a modern open plan house so no way of shutting him in a room and to be honest you would need a completely empty room with nothing in, he's even been known to pull up flooring.

TBH, this sounds like separation anxiety and not something that will be solved with crate training. You need to address the anxiety first. If he's still anxious but unable to be destructive, you may find he tries to escape the crate (and injures himself in the process), or simply barks and howls instead.

Original poster
Jadeb1995 · 20/11/2020 18:42

@vanillandhoney yes a dog trainer previously advised that french bulldogs are known to have separation issues however it's one of those things, we have to go to work and have to leave the house. Some days he's good as gold other times you pop out for 10 minutes and he's wrecked the sofa 😂

OP posts:
Original poster
Jadeb1995 · 20/11/2020 18:43

Keen to get advice on crate training if possible please

OP posts:
Footballer · 20/11/2020 18:45

[quote Notanothernamechanged101]So after 6 years you are going to start shutting it in a crate? -that will be very distressing for the poor dog.

thepetshow.com/the-case-against-crate-training/[/quote]
I agree but you know dogs come last.

vanillandhoney · 20/11/2020 18:48

@Jadeb1995

Keen to get advice on crate training if possible please
Take it slowly - have the crate out with the door open and put good things in there - ideally yummy high value treats if he's food motivated at all. You'll need to get him happy to go in on his own, then see if you can get him content with the door closed.

Covering the crate can help as it means he can't see/hear as much, or you could try leaving on doggy music or TV in the background - you can get it free on YouTube.

Then it's just a case of slowly increasing the amount of time he's left there. It's definitely best to try leaving him after a good walk and after he's been to the toilet as hopefully he'll be so tired he'll just want to sleep!

PollyRoulson · 20/11/2020 18:52

Yes my thoughts were it was separation anxiety and yes UK insurance can cover behavioural cases.

How long are you planning to leave the dog?

If you do want to try a crate and see if your dog likes it.

  1. Put a crate in a place that your dog chooses to relax (this may not be where you want it to be! But it will help a lot if the dog chooses the location.
  2. Put in a very comfy bed or blanket that your dog likes
  3. Put treats in to the crate at very regular intervals during the day, you can do this without your dog noticing the better.
  4. DO NOT lure or ask you dog to go into the crate at anytime
  5. Feed your dog in the crate always with the door open.
  6. Do this for a week and continue to drop treats into the crate very regularly through the day - the more times the better.
  7. When the dog begins to go into the crate you can then add a cue to go to the crate.
  8. The door at this point has never ever been shut
  9. Do not lock the door when you go out
10. Over time as the dog begins to settle in the crate you can shut the door/ not lock it for a sec at a time. So put the food into the crate shut the door, open the door immediately. 11. Build up the time to do this, never ever ever rush this and never ever lock the dog in the crate if they are worried. This can takes months to get to this stage and for some dogs it may never be right to lock the door.

BUT and a huge BUT if your dog has separation anxiety restricting them in an area when they are worried can make them a 1000 times worse. Think if you are very frightened you may want to run away from the situation and this is what can happen to Separation anxiety dogs when you are trying to help you cause more anxiety for the dogs.

I can not express enough how you need to get a Behaviourist not a trainer in to help with this. It will initially cost but you can waste hours of time and money on things that will make the situation worse.

LittleGungHo · 20/11/2020 21:27

We had a dog pen with a crate inside. Maybe a pen is a friendlier option. We spent a long time playing with the dog in the pen and sitting in there with her.
She loved her pen as she saw it as her space.

MrsJunglelow · 21/11/2020 12:55

I’m a big crate training fan, I certainly don’t think them cruel.
Most dogs love them.
But imo your bulldog sounds like he has bad separation anxiety and a crate won’t fix that.
I mean, it will in terms of him not destroying anything but he’ll still be incredibly distressed.
I’d ask the vet if there’s anything he can take to calm him before you leave

Snackasaurus · 22/11/2020 18:23

I'd definitely get a crate and see how you get on Smile We had a cover over our crate to make it den like and he absolutely hated it! We took the cover off and he loves being in there now Smile

When you go out, do you have a kong to keep him occupied? Smile

Veterinari · 22/11/2020 18:46

@Jadeb1995

You need professional behavioural advice. Your dog is showing classic signs of severe anxiety/phobia around being left alone. This often needs to be medicated and crating is often contraindicated.
There are cases of dogs causing themselves severe trauma and even strangling themselves attempting to break out of crates when suffering separation anxiety.

You need to treat your dog's severe anxiety - it's a huge psychological welfare problem, and not just treat it as an inconvenience for you.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.

Join Mumsnet Log In

This thread is closed and is no longer accepting replies. Click here to start a new thread.

Swipe left for the next trending thread