Julie
I have an 8-year-old chihuahua, and sometimes I need to leave him alone for an entire day while I'm in school. When I leave, I put him in his crate. His current crate is a plastic crate 19" high, 26" long, and 16" wide.
I'm thinking of getting him a new wire crate that matches my living room better. The new crate comes in two sizes: Medium (19" L X 30" W X 21" H) or Small (18" L X 24" W X 19" H). Because I'm away for long periods of time, I want him to be able to move around a bit if he wants to.
I really can't hire someone to come and take him out every four hours. I live alone and there aren't any other options. If I'm going to be gone longer than ten hours, I hire someone to take him out on a walk and feed him. He is very good at holding everything until I get back, but I'm wondering if it would be better to get him a larger crate and add a potty pad in case he needs to go before then.
All of the doggie daycare centers near me are $20/day, and they aren't open early enough for me to drop him off on my way out. I have a great pet sitter but I can't afford to hire her all the time. He knows that either potty pads or outside are an appropriate place to go to the bathroom, I have used them before without sacrificing housebreaking. I don't have a dog safe room, but I am thinking a slightly larger crate would serve the same purpose. Of course, he always gets a walk immediately before I leave and when I get home. He's never had an accident in the crate, I just want to make sure he's as comfortable as possible while I'm gone.
Answer
The crate should be big enough for the dog to stand up, turn completely around in and lay down in. No bigger than that. Make sure that the dog is well exercise and taken outside to eliminate before going in the crate and after letting it out. The longer period of time the dog will be in the crate, the more it should be exercised before going in and after coming out. Someone will need to come home half way(about four hours after) through the time he will be crated to take him outside so he can eliminate.
Edit: Adding a potty pad will backtrack any house-training you have done. As I said, exercise him before you place him in the crate and after you take him out. The longer he is in the crate, the more exercise he needs before going in. I don't see any reason to buy a bigger crate. If you exercise him a lot before placing him in the crate, he will most likely sleep the whole time.
If you want him to be able to move around more while you're gone- You can either hire a pet sitter or find a reputable doggy day care center near you and leave him there while you are away(It's usually $6-$8 a day) and I'd suggest doing research on each one. That way he gets exercise and is not alone for an extremely long period of time. The other suggestion I'd have is placing him in a 'dog safe' room. It'd have to be extremely clean and only have safe unsupervised toys available though.
Edit2: I honestly understand where you're coming from. Dog safe rooms are hard to actually get/make that is why it was my last suggestion, ha. He'll be perfectly comfortable in the correct size of crate. Potty pads usually do encourage a dog to eliminate inside instead of outside and can just be really confusing for the dog, it seems like you have a smart dog though. Again Honestly, I'd suggest just sticking with the correct size crate for your dog(where he can stand up, turn around and lay down in). Maybe you can make the walk before you leave/after you get home a little longer so he will be more tired/sleep the entire time. This is just my opinion though, it's up to you in the end. The crate is suppose to be the dog's den and the reason it should be a certain size is because dens are suppose to be small or certain size around the dog to provide more security and comfort for the dog. If you get a bigger crate it might make him feel overwhelmed.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do
The crate should be big enough for the dog to stand up, turn completely around in and lay down in. No bigger than that. Make sure that the dog is well exercise and taken outside to eliminate before going in the crate and after letting it out. The longer period of time the dog will be in the crate, the more it should be exercised before going in and after coming out. Someone will need to come home half way(about four hours after) through the time he will be crated to take him outside so he can eliminate.
Edit: Adding a potty pad will backtrack any house-training you have done. As I said, exercise him before you place him in the crate and after you take him out. The longer he is in the crate, the more exercise he needs before going in. I don't see any reason to buy a bigger crate. If you exercise him a lot before placing him in the crate, he will most likely sleep the whole time.
If you want him to be able to move around more while you're gone- You can either hire a pet sitter or find a reputable doggy day care center near you and leave him there while you are away(It's usually $6-$8 a day) and I'd suggest doing research on each one. That way he gets exercise and is not alone for an extremely long period of time. The other suggestion I'd have is placing him in a 'dog safe' room. It'd have to be extremely clean and only have safe unsupervised toys available though.
Edit2: I honestly understand where you're coming from. Dog safe rooms are hard to actually get/make that is why it was my last suggestion, ha. He'll be perfectly comfortable in the correct size of crate. Potty pads usually do encourage a dog to eliminate inside instead of outside and can just be really confusing for the dog, it seems like you have a smart dog though. Again Honestly, I'd suggest just sticking with the correct size crate for your dog(where he can stand up, turn around and lay down in). Maybe you can make the walk before you leave/after you get home a little longer so he will be more tired/sleep the entire time. This is just my opinion though, it's up to you in the end. The crate is suppose to be the dog's den and the reason it should be a certain size is because dens are suppose to be small or certain size around the dog to provide more security and comfort for the dog. If you get a bigger crate it might make him feel overwhelmed.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do
DOG LOVERS *CRATE TRAiNGiNG HELP*?
MiSS K
P.S. my boyfriend comes home around noon time to let me them out..... his lunch is 30min or more...
I have two mini dachshunds that have torn our kitchen apart. Either from pee or tearing holes in the walls. We have decided to get an Large Crate ( they are only 11lbs each ) and crate them for the day.
Water or food inside?
My girl tends to pee on blankets.. blanket or no blanket?
Toys? Bones???
First time having dogs, help me out dog lovers!
Answer
Your dogs probably have separation anxiety. Since they also pee inside it is probably best to get two crates, one for each dog. The crates should only be big enough for the dog to stand up, turn around, and lie down. Any bigger than that and they will use half of it to sleep in and the other half to pee in. If you already have a large crate that you are using then you can try putting both of them in there but you may just have big messes to clean up at the end of the day.
The key is to get your dogs comfortable in the crate. Start by making their crate positive when you are at home. The dogs should sleep only in their crates and if they are older dogs than you may want to also feed them supper in their crates to make it really positive.
Never let your dog out of the crate when it is barking, digging, or making a fuss. Wait until they are settled to let them out of the crate so they learn that they aren't going to get out every time they bark or whine. If they bark or whine a lot and won't be distracted by food and toys then use a squirt bottle with water and give them a squirt when they bark to discourage the behaviour, then ignore them.
When you leave your dogs in the crate, as long as your house isn't too hot, leaving them without water is fine. I don't put water in my dog's crate because I don't want him to dig in it and spill it everywhere. Your dogs sound like they can be destructive so I would leave them without water (since your boyfriend is at home at lunch anyways to offer them water if they need it). I also wouldn't leave food inside as that can easily be spilled as well. Feed them before you leave and when you get back and they will be fine.
If you have two separate crates I would give the one who doesn't pee on blankets a blanket and I'd put a towel with the girl who does pee on blankets so that she is given the opportunity to have a comfy bed but if she pees on it you can clean it up easily. If she pees on it, then the next day don't give her anything in her crate for a little while until she stops peeing in the crate. If the dogs are in one crate together then I would do the same thing with the first day leaving a blanket and if she pees then go with no blankets or beds because you will be doing too much laundry that it isn't worth it.
I don't usually leave toys for my dog because he eats them and I don't want him to choke or get sick while I'm not home. If your dogs do not eat toys then you can leave them toys if you feel they will use them. If you need something to make the crate positive I would try an appropriately sized Kong, stuffed with peanut butter. This will help distract them when you leave. That is the only thing I ever leave in my dogs crate (besides his bed). I'd be wary of bones as dogs can choke on them and if they choke when you aren't home it can be very dangerous and fatal.
Good luck!
Your dogs probably have separation anxiety. Since they also pee inside it is probably best to get two crates, one for each dog. The crates should only be big enough for the dog to stand up, turn around, and lie down. Any bigger than that and they will use half of it to sleep in and the other half to pee in. If you already have a large crate that you are using then you can try putting both of them in there but you may just have big messes to clean up at the end of the day.
The key is to get your dogs comfortable in the crate. Start by making their crate positive when you are at home. The dogs should sleep only in their crates and if they are older dogs than you may want to also feed them supper in their crates to make it really positive.
Never let your dog out of the crate when it is barking, digging, or making a fuss. Wait until they are settled to let them out of the crate so they learn that they aren't going to get out every time they bark or whine. If they bark or whine a lot and won't be distracted by food and toys then use a squirt bottle with water and give them a squirt when they bark to discourage the behaviour, then ignore them.
When you leave your dogs in the crate, as long as your house isn't too hot, leaving them without water is fine. I don't put water in my dog's crate because I don't want him to dig in it and spill it everywhere. Your dogs sound like they can be destructive so I would leave them without water (since your boyfriend is at home at lunch anyways to offer them water if they need it). I also wouldn't leave food inside as that can easily be spilled as well. Feed them before you leave and when you get back and they will be fine.
If you have two separate crates I would give the one who doesn't pee on blankets a blanket and I'd put a towel with the girl who does pee on blankets so that she is given the opportunity to have a comfy bed but if she pees on it you can clean it up easily. If she pees on it, then the next day don't give her anything in her crate for a little while until she stops peeing in the crate. If the dogs are in one crate together then I would do the same thing with the first day leaving a blanket and if she pees then go with no blankets or beds because you will be doing too much laundry that it isn't worth it.
I don't usually leave toys for my dog because he eats them and I don't want him to choke or get sick while I'm not home. If your dogs do not eat toys then you can leave them toys if you feel they will use them. If you need something to make the crate positive I would try an appropriately sized Kong, stuffed with peanut butter. This will help distract them when you leave. That is the only thing I ever leave in my dogs crate (besides his bed). I'd be wary of bones as dogs can choke on them and if they choke when you aren't home it can be very dangerous and fatal.
Good luck!
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Title Post: Would this crate be too big?
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