Is this too long for her to be in the cage? Is there abnother option? Leaving her loose and she poops everywhere and chews things, and outside is too cold. She is about three months old. she is a beagle-basset mix.
2007-01-16 01:49:32 · 18 answers · asked by Chris B 2 in Pets ➔ Dogs
When you first get up in the morning take your dog out to do her business, and then feed her. Then take her out again to do her business, then bring her back in and put her in her crate. When you get home at 12, take her out again to do her business and then play with her for a bit, then take her out again, then put her in her crate and do the same thing when you get home at 5:30. Keep up with this routine, and eventually, you can leave your dog out of her crate when she is old enough to "hold it" for longer periods of time. We do this with our puppies and it really helps. Hope this helps you as well. Good luck! Also, this is not too long to leave a dog in it's crate.
2007-01-16 03:00:10 · answer #1 · answered by mycatjello@yahoo.ca 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Keeping her in one room is too dangerous for a pup that young - it leaves her available to get into trouble. For those of us that have to keep a full time job, a crate is the only solution. It would be nice to hire someone, but let's get real. If you have a retired parent/grandparent or know someone that's willing to keep her as a favor, then that would be a way to go. Just be sure they are on the same page as you when it comes to training methods. I have a 12 week old pup right now and leave her in a crate. She poops in her cage, and I've tried every method know to man to keep her from doing it. The idealogoy that they don't poop where they sleep DOES NOT pertain to ALL dogs! If you have no one, just put her in a crate, she will be okay for that long, I promise. Others may think it's cruel, but she's having a way better life than most dogs - and let's keep in mind, as much as I love my three dogs, they are just dogs. Alot of people get caught up in their pets, and that's fine, but they lose sight of reality, which is we have to work to live. My other two adult dogs were raised in a crate while I was at work and I promise they are totally normal and well-trained pets. Put her in the crate and stop stressing.
2007-01-16 10:03:42 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have a Jack Russell who is now 9 years old and I do not need to crate him anymore. I stopped crating him at about 3 years old due to the fact he calmed down some and just slept when I was gone. When he was a pup to about 3 I crated him for pretty much the same times you said. I would crate him when I went to work about 8:15. I lived about 10 minutes from my job at the time so I came home every day at lunch and got to spend a good 45 minutes playing with him. He did not seem to mind the crate at all. Dogs will tend to think of their crate as a den after a while. Just don't make a big deal when you put him in the crate. Just throw a dog biscuit in the crate and let your dog walk in the crate his self.
I had a friend and his kids loved my Jack Russell so they got one of their own. They did not crate him and when they were gone the puppy chewed up and swallowed a sock and it got stuck in his digestive track and he died. It is safer for a puppy to be crated to prevent things like this from happening.
2007-01-16 10:16:34 · answer #3 · answered by JW 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Wow! Three months old is young to be crated that long. When housebreaking they need to go out more often than that. Do you have a neighbor or friend that could come by and let the little guy out for you in between those times. I would think for housebreaking one extra time would be suffiecient. Once you have housebreaking down the general rule of thumb is one hour for every month of age that they are to be crated. Ex. 5 months old= 5 hours crated that they can handle. Also you could try a confinement area once the housebreaking is taken care. Give them a room with his crate that he can be loose in that he will not destroy. Give him plenty of exercise and mental stimulation and the chewing should stop. Sounds like he is just bored. Plus even if the weather was warmer, you would have a digger on your hands if let alone outside.
2007-01-16 10:03:00 · answer #4 · answered by flutterby 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
4 hours at a time is not unreasonable for crating as long as the dog gets potty and exercize breaks midday. Also make sure the dog gets plenty of exercize once you are home for good. Most pups sleep while they are crated or alone in the house anyway. If your pup can be trusted in a dog proofed gated area then go for it.Realize you may be taking a step backwards with potty training if the dog is left with free roam. Crates provide a safe place for the dog and keep your stuff safe too.
2007-01-16 10:37:21 · answer #5 · answered by W. 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes I would say that is too long to be in a small kennel,,, puppies need room to move around because if you think about it your dog probably spends a minimum of 15 hours in a crate a day, this includes sleeping at night. I went and bought baby gates and baby gated my puppy in the kitchen so if they make a mess it is only in the kitchen. I also have my puppy piddle pad trained so she uses the piddle pad instead of my floor. This way my puppy has more room to move around but they are curtained in the kitchen. Puppies have energy and if they don't get it out they will become more destructive.
2007-01-17 15:54:17 · answer #6 · answered by Linz 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's not too long, as long as the crate is big enough. Bigger crates are more expensive, but spend the money, it will make the dog more comfortable and you will feel better. I've done it with two dogs. When you are home with her though you need to give her lots and lots of attention and wear her out... Make her super tired, so she doens't have a problem sleeping during that time. Dogs are very adaptable.
2007-01-16 10:01:26 · answer #7 · answered by Bec 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If she doesn't poo in the crate then it is not too long of a time for her.They sell puppy pads and they work, but this will encourage them to poo in the crate.Just make it up to her when you are home.Play with her until bedtime and she'll be fine.As she gets older, you may be able to just let her roam the house.But the crate is a real good way to go.Hopethis helps...
2007-01-16 13:51:53 · answer #8 · answered by Maw-Maw 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's not long at all, provided the crate is big enough. What we did with our dog is we got one of those folding kennels. Then to keep him from getting out we put a piece of wood on the top and weighed it down. He actually likes going in there because it's like his den and his safe area. He'll actually go hang out in it from time to time even when we're home.
One thing though...don't punish him for going potty in the kennel. He doesn't want to go where he sleeps but he might not be able to hold it. If you punish him for doing it then not only will he continue doing it but he'll 'clean up' after himself so he won't get punished.
2007-01-16 10:43:42 · answer #9 · answered by galinmcmahon 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
crate training is fine. it does help in potty training but the key to getting her trained faster and out of the cage most of the time is to remember that the easiest way to control her output sorta speak is to control he input. Figure a 15 - 20 minute processing time. then let her out to do her thing.
2007-01-16 10:24:38 · answer #10 · answered by Jim7368 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋