Can anybody recommend the best place for puppy's crate please? I had initially thought our utility room would be the puppy's room. It's not huge so I couldn't fit a large crate but it has direct access to the garden and we can keep the door open when it's warm enough and when she's older and no longer crated it will be the safest place for her if we go out. We would have to move the cat out in the first instance though!! The other alternative is our kitchen/diner/office! I'm concerned that our utility room is out of the way and wondered whether it would be better for the puppy to be in a busier room, more central to family life. We could fit a bigger crate out here but if the puppy wasn't in her crate it wouldn't be easy to keep dog-proofed because we have so much going on out here! Is it advisable to keep a crate under a desk or not?! Would it be confusing to have a crate in the kitchen and a bed in the utility room, should I just pick one or the other?
Re: Crate location I would put the crate in the busiest area where you are more likely to be around. So pup can see what's going on and be closer to you when you need to confine it. Our utility room is gated off for the cat so that she has a place to escape from Milly when needed plus the litter box is in there where Milly can't get to it. Dogs love the messages cats leave in there gross but true.
Re: Crate location If only I could get my cat to actually use a litter tray - I woke up this morning and put a wet fluffy sock on!! OK, I feel some furniture moving coming on Do you think it's best for the crate to be in a quiet(ish!) corner of the kitchen near the door or right in the middle of it?! We have children and whilst I want the puppy to be central to the household I also want her to have her own retreat if she needs it!
Re: Crate location We had ours just against a wall in the main living kitchen area. In a place that was out of the way but still in the busy loud inhabited area of the house. We have seven kids and our rule was that the crate was Millys area and when she was in there they had to leave her alone. Most of the time though she was more than happy to be in the mix of things. We used the crate more for keeping her away from the kids lol. Those teeth are sharp.
Re: Crate location Tatze's is in the utility room - she's 21 months old now and still loves her crate, but it was in the main kitchen 'till she was five months old, as I wanted it to be her main snooze place to get her used to it.
Re: Crate location Thank you, I guess we will have to be flexible and see what works best - our house isn't exactly huge so the utility room isn't really out of the way but the puppy wouldn't be able to see much of what's going on in there, but she wouldn't be out there all the time anyway obviously, mainly while resting. Now where's my tape measure ...
Re: Crate location I put my pup's crate in the utility room as it is important that a pup has quiet time. He was only in there overnight, or when he wanted to sleep during the day and puppies sleep a lot (thank heaven!) or if we went out for an hour or two.
Re: Crate location Charlie's was in a quiet room off the kitchen. I would work in the kitchen so he could see me. He also had beds in my study, the TV room, OH's study...he was only ever in his crate when he had to be. I found it was better if he couldn't see too much action, he settled better and no noise or fussing when in a crate was important to me. I's say a quiet location is best, but keep the puppy out of a crate and with you as much as possible.
Re: Crate location Yes, I think I'm coming to that conclusion too - crate in the utility room for real rest time but in amongst the action at other times, possibly with other beds! Would you get an actual bed or just some extra pieces of vetbed?
Re: Crate location [quote author=zanacal link=topic=9768.msg141457#msg141457 date=1422981691] Yes, I think I'm coming to that conclusion too - crate in the utility room for real rest time but in amongst the action at other times, possibly with other beds! Would you get an actual bed or just some extra pieces of vetbed? [/quote] We have pieces of vet bed and a plastic bed and several other beds too - I am a dog bed hoarder! ;D This is the best by far - and it comes with two covers. http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00JJJU5NA?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage
Re: Crate location Hiya, I think everyone's different but I keep my pup in the utility room, and I've put an electric heater on timer in there to keep him warm through these cold nights, as it can get quite cold. I've had no house training accidents and I think a lot of that is down to him having a restricted space to start with, and him having time to associate an area as his. Also the utility is right next to the garden so it's less disturbance at night when I take him out. However, this has meant that I've been practically living in the utility room !!! He's allowed to wonder into the kitchen with me and we play there and a bit outside, but when I bring him into the other, carpeted, zones of the house I watch him like a hawk and give him only 10 mins to explore... again no accidents. I'm building this time up slowly each day. Also, there's just so much to chew in the living room it makes it easier for me to keep him mainly in puppy proof area, especially whilst I'm training good manners etc. I don't have kids so it's been easy for me to just stay in the utility room, but this might be a bit more tricky for you. If I have to leave him in his pen for a while he does whine but am doing click for quiet training every day which is helping A LOT! But again if he's in the busier area of your house you might not have this problem. Swings and roundabouts! Whatever you decide I'm sure it'll work out as long as he has a good balance of company and 'quiet time'
Re: Crate location Thanks Sally. I do think that's what we'll do. We live in an old, not huge cottage and there are no hallways downstairs so the utility room is off the kitchen/diner/office, which is off the living room and playroom - so the puppy wouldn't feel too separated wherever we are, but the utility room will be as good as it gets (and, like you say, has access to the garden for toilet trips), so the crate can go there I said to my hubby I know it's big and takes up a lot of room but it'll give you an extra surface to put the washing basket on
Re: Crate location I'm still pondering this one! We have a cat and the cat flap is in the utility room so we either have to move her and get her used to being fed and having her litter tray elsewhere before the puppy comes or we have to put the dog's crate in the kitchen, however our kitchen is a big open plan room and even if I 'puppy proof' it I fear it's plenty big enough for mischief! So I'm considering a puppy pen - any thoughts on this, has anybody used one and for how long please?
Re: Crate location Also - if I use a pen should I put the crate in it too (reducing the space to play in considerably!) or stick to the plan to have the crate in the utility room and treat this as a play area in the kitchen?! I'm sure it seems like I'm over-thinking this - but I'm a childminder and whilst I don't mind my own children's feet being attacked by a croco-pup I don't want to be filling in accident forms for the children I look after! That said, we are only really in the kitchen at meal times and when we're passing through on our way to the toilet or outside
Re: Crate location I do think you are very brave having a Lab puppy with lots of kids around - but I know it can be done Puppy pens don't really work for the puppy to play in, they work just like a crate with more space - a place for snoozing and chilling out. When it comes to play they need and want to be with you. We camped out in the kitchen until the pups were 'safe' (ie house trained) as you are outside with them every half hour in the early days - and even then, there are lots of accidents. They are much harder work than babies due to the lack of nappies! I had a crate for one dog and a puppy pen for the next. I will be getting another puppy in July-ish and I'm thinking I prefer the puppy pen. For these reasons - [li]If the puppy has an occasional accident in the night they don't soil their bed[/li] [li]It's easier to pop the puppy into a pen when you are going upstairs etc for a few minutes[/li] [li]The pup has a choice of surfaces to sleep on (this was the reason we abandoned the crate for Gypsy, she likes to move from bed to vetbed to floor and back during the night - fussy monkey!)[/li] [li]I also used to pop the puppy in the pen when one or other dog was getting over excited, which no doubt you will need with your kids[/li] The down side of a pen with no crate - [li]Some say they take longer to house train - Gypsy didn't[/li] [li]Space[/li] [li]When they are older and have no pen, what if they become chewers? (No crate training = a problem)[/li] We made sure Gypsy was used to going in a crate for vet visits etc but we didn't have her bed as a crate for the reason I gave above. Here is Gypsy in her pen -
Re: Crate location Guarding the wine rack : Had I the space, the money and a long term need I would have had a puppy pen. As to the issue of cats: my crate is located near the back door which has a cat flap and my pup doesn't mind my cats coming and going during the night. So, if you started off the same way it may not be an issue for your pup. Also, my pup's crate is not shut away from the main living area; the idea was that she could go in there and still see what was happening. I also still worry about any possible drafts from the cat flap, so the crate has the top and sides and half the front covered at night and vetbed on the inside. I suppos you could start with the crate where you wanted it and get your pup used to it then introduce the puppy pen a little later.
Re: Crate location Thank you both - I'll ponder on! The little children I look after are no trouble at all and it's actually quite calm and quiet here during the day, my own four however .... We have had puppies before but back in those days I didn't ever come across anybody using a crate! We just put lots of newspaper down and bought new carpets after a few months (and lost several household items), it wasn't pleasant ... This time I'm home all day so the puppy will have plenty of company and I intend to 'hang out' with it a lot both with and without the children Just have to think a little more carefully about the practicalities!
