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 Crate??
camille t
Whenever we try to put our dog in the kitchen, (big space, with her bed), and block it off with a baby gate she will tear at the baby gate until she gets out. she is only a 16 lb dog, and she ripped it out of our wall.
We now bought her a excersise pen, for her and her puppies, and she will scratch and bite and pull it every which way. I'm nervous that she is going to pinch one of her puppies in it...
Any reccomendations on how to make her less stressed out when she is gated away from us??
We give her treats, and have tried to make it a happy place, but she is just not interested.
Also, whenever she gets out, she tears up anything that we have out. ie: garbage, toys, paper, really anything.
Answer
Hi. I agree with your answer from "German Shepard." The SIZE of the crate shouldn't be to large because dogs are part of the wolf pack. As such, they are used to "dens" which is exactly what you are doing when you "Crate them."
Go to any petstore...or supply store. Add an attachable water bowl to the inside of the crate.
Add stuffed animals to the inside of the crate.
Add ONE large suffed animal.....this simulates "littermates" and gives her company.
One last suggestion: Place a light blanket OVER the top and three sides of the crate...to create that "den" atsmophere and she should be good to go.
Have a great weekend. Blessings, Patti
Hi. I agree with your answer from "German Shepard." The SIZE of the crate shouldn't be to large because dogs are part of the wolf pack. As such, they are used to "dens" which is exactly what you are doing when you "Crate them."
Go to any petstore...or supply store. Add an attachable water bowl to the inside of the crate.
Add stuffed animals to the inside of the crate.
Add ONE large suffed animal.....this simulates "littermates" and gives her company.
One last suggestion: Place a light blanket OVER the top and three sides of the crate...to create that "den" atsmophere and she should be good to go.
Have a great weekend. Blessings, Patti
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