How long do you leave dog in crate?

[basily]

I'm thinking of returning to work but worry about leaving the dog for to long in his crate. He's a 8 month old cocker spaniel. Crate trained and toilet trained.

How long do you leave yours?

@DareIask

I wasn't aware all house fires ended up with the house burning down 🙄

Never had a dog who didn't learn over time how to behave or be left.

Well done. You're obviously the superior owner

I don't crate because I'm lucky that mine will curl up on the sofa and sleep. But I know dogs (mainly rescues) or become so upset when left loose that they'll chew cables, eat the furniture or even chew through walls. It's just not safe to leave them loose.

However, put them in a crate and they calm down and fall right to sleep. I know which scenario sounds best.

this thread is hysterical even for MN..

OP asking about how long to leave her dog, so obvioudly an OP who cares wants to do the right thing for her dog and ends up in house fires,vegan and zoos

My dog is a year and we only use his crate at night for his bed as he has done from day one. He happily goes in there after his bedtime wee and sleeps well in there till about 7am with the door closed and a cover. It's open in the day but he tends to sleep on the sofa or his day bed by the patio doors. If I go out in the day I'll close the Lounge door and he has free rein of the kitchen and family room with his day bed in it. I can't remember the last time he went in his Crate in the day. I do WFH though so that's an advantage.

@Blondiney

I've had dogs for 20 years, never needed to put any of them in a cage.

So none of your dogs have ever visited the vets? Cos they will have been put in a cage then. You will have done them no favours by not teaching them to settle in confounded spaces

This thread is beyond ridiculous even for MN standards.
Crates are bit in any way cruel if used correctly. I bet the same people arguing against crates are the same as the ones who never let the dogs off lead! 🙄
I have a 1 year old rescue dog. She is crated overnight every night. She goes in and settles to sleep and sleeps all through the night. She has a very large crate she can stretch out fully bough standing and lying down. She has water. She's in the same room me. If she needs the toilet ect she will wake me and I take her out.

If she is not crates (and yes I have tried) every time she stirs in the night in stead of turning over and going back off she's up exploring, chewing my clothes, in the bins, trying to drink out the loo, pouncing on my other dog. It takes ages to settle her again. And then she's a pain all the next day because none of us have slept well.
She's happy and safe in the crate. She has a lovely big bed. She sleeps well. My older dog can sleep deeply because she knows she won't be pounced on in the night. Why is that cruel?

I also crate the dogs in the car and personally I think all responsible owners do and should. In the event of an accident it's the only way of truly keeping them as safe as possible.

Wow! So many judgemental comments I can't answer your question OP because I haven't left him yet and I won't really need to for long periods, but I can honestly say that since deciding to crate him for sleeps he has been a different dog. Much better rested and happier as a result. Using a crate to ensure your dog has a safe place that's their's is the opposite of cruel You sound like a brill owner and the fact you're on here asking for other's experience goes to show that. I think some of the comments you've had have been very unfair

@TheBodyPiercer Indeed. Also I wonder if all these people harping on about how cruel it is, have had babies who they've "trapped" in cots with bars for similar reasons (it's a safe place, they can't get into trouble / hurt and they need sleep)

I have had working gundogs for thirty years. The first wasn't crated as crates weren't common at the time. The next two were. Overnight is fine but I would leave him in a crate for no more than two to three hours in the daytime while he sleeps. A young dog needs to be able to move around, interact with their owner and the world and he is still little more than a puppy. If you have to leave him for longer than a few hours, I would dogproof the kitchen. Eight months is too young to leave for half a day or longer anyway. No reputable rescue organisation would rehome a dog, even an adult, which was going to be left for more than four hours on a regular basis. Crates are not inherently cruel but they can be used in a cruel way.

If your dog just sleeps why the need for the cage exactly?

You can’t leave them in all day. Mine goes in the crate overnight with the door closed. In the day they voluntarily go in there for naps but the door is always open.

What do people who don’t crate over night do to stop a puppy chewing and destroying stuff while you sleep? We don’t crate in the day though.

Our dog loves his crate... now 6 and it has been his safe space since 8 weeks old.

Totally agree with poster:
f you crate train properly then crates are great.

Our dogs love them, it's their safe place away from us/our child if they need to be, it's dark and warm and cosy, we know they are safe when we are out, it's never used as punishment, they have plenty of room and if they have ever needed to have any medical treatment which requires them to be separate from the others or cage rest they don't freak out as it's their usual thing.

So ... overnight from 10 or 11 pm until - bizarrely - often as late as 10 am... This used to worry me, and I'd open the door and peer in, and he'd ignore me... so sometimes up at 7 or 8 when we start moving but more often stays in until later.

And during the day, he has three sofas plus two dog bags of his own which he cruises between... though often heads back to his crate for a snooze. It's dark and cozy and enclosed, his little dog cave, whereas the others are open - and clearly much more appealing when the sun is shining.

During the day we will "shut him" in it for two reasons - he's unsettled and needs some calm to settle (too many teenagers rampaging, or just general hullaballoo) - or often when we go out for 1-4 hours ...more often in the evening when he's keenest on it, but often interchangeably with leaving him cruising downstairs. He tends to snooze when we are out and if he needs any help relaxing, the crate is the place.

And yes, I too was horrified by the idea of a crate before we got him - it seemed so cruel - but when we read up about it and saw how happy and calm it made him, we were total converts.

So I think the message is as he grows older is tune into what makes him happiest and what helps calm him... and for now, feel no guilt... so long as he is a happy dog getting enough exercise he is doing great.

And when ours was the same age as yours, we did very occasionally leave him for 4-5 hours snoozing in his crate, knowing he was happiest and calmest there and so long as he was getting his walks and plenty of interaction with us as a family this was the best thing for him.

I used a crate for my pup sleeping in at night until she was 6 months old. It helped with toilet training. But only at night to keep her (and my kitchen) safe. If we were out when she was little we would leave her for a couple of hours max while she napped in it. But I definitely wouldn't leave her for the whole day bar a break at lunch or whatever. She is a working dog though and we are home or around home most of the time so she's either with me or chilling in the house somewhere.

Could you consider a baby gate between the rooms she isn't allowed in? I did one between the kitchen and living room when she couldn't be trusted not to eat my sofa.

I think it's a terrible idea. He isn't a guinea pig.

@m0therofdragons

What do people who don’t crate over night do to stop a puppy chewing and destroying stuff while you sleep? We don’t crate in the day though.

We had ours in the hallway and dog proofed as much as possible , it was fine , once he was reliably house trained he started sleeping upstairs .

@tabulahrasa

A couple of hours max....

They’re for keeping dogs still in the chewy stage safe or dogs who shouldn’t meet people away in their own space... the rest of the time the door is open and they’re just a bed.

This

@Floralnomad I guess it depends on the house layout. So far dpup has destroyed 5 pairs of shoes including dd’s £45 2 week old school shoes (all dc fault leaving them out but I’d not leave dpup out of his crate over night for his own safety.

@m0therofdragons

What do people who don’t crate over night do to stop a puppy chewing and destroying stuff while you sleep? We don’t crate in the day though.

Some puppies are chewier than others, with some if you take away anything obvious and leave them their own stuff to chew then they might have the odd nibble of other stuff but nothing major, some you could leave in a concrete room with nothing but chews and toys in and they’d still make a dent in the concrete.

If you’ve only ever experienced the first type of puppy, then it’s probably hard to imagine how unsafe the second type of puppy is loose in a room.

It is wrong to crate a dog all day. Ours is left in the kitchen where her very comfortable bed is. That way she can get up, stretch, move around the room while we are out and reach her water and food bowls. She is never left all day, but if there was no other option there is a world of difference between leaving them in even one room in the house and leaving them practically immobile in a crate.

Imagine how you would feel op if you were left in a space not much bigger than yourself for several hours. There is a big difference between leaving a dog in a designated room for several hours while you work and leaving it in a space not much bigger than themselves.They need room to move around and stretch Dogs could become stiff and get painful joints through not having any room to move around for several hours.

@shiningstar2

It is wrong to crate a dog all day. Ours is left in the kitchen where her very comfortable bed is. That way she can get up, stretch, move around the room while we are out and reach her water and food bowls. She is never left all day, but if there was no other option there is a world of difference between leaving them in even one room in the house and leaving them practically immobile in a crate.

Imagine how you would feel op if you were left in a space not much bigger than yourself for several hours. There is a big difference between leaving a dog in a designated room for several hours while you work and leaving it in a space not much bigger than themselves.They need room to move around and stretch Dogs could become stiff and get painful joints through not having any room to move around for several hours.

I wouldn't leave mine in the crate all day but there is no way he could be left in the kitchen even for an hour.

First he would cry & try and break through the door. Then he would be in the bin, on the counters (potentially by the gas hob), chewing cuboard doors etc. In no way is that better for him than him having a treat in the crate & falling asleep.

I was against crates before I rescued this dog but until people realise that some dogs are anxious, destructive etc. There will always be a stigma against crates.

OP do what is safest for your pup.

Unless your spaniel is super destructive I'd just shut them in the kitchen with radio on. My spaniel unfortunately goes crazy if someone rings the door bell and so I can't let him have the run of the house anymore. Just as he digs the doormat/ sofa if the door goes. Crates are for toilet training, and so I only used for the first few months, then when I first left him alone,literally first 3 times as a pup. We try not to leave our spaniel more than 4 hours, although if he's been walked he loves a nap. At your dogs age he would of had a good 30 minutes first thing part lead, part off lead in woods, a trip to the park for a wee/sniff/ball/ training at lunchtime and an all off lead walk about 4.30/ 5 Pm. Stimulation is the key to not having an issue with a young dog and they do really live company.

Our sleeps in their crates overnight.

During the day I'm home unless food shopping or popping out, so a few hours max. They just sleep anyway 😂

Never.

@basily Best of luck with the job hunt