An new article about the benefits of restricting puppies to certain areas of the home, and the use of baby gates to achieve this
Re: Labrador puppies and baby gates Another great article, thanks. We opted for the baby gate instead of a crate for Holly. It ensured that she could move around and be part of daily life, but kept her away from the main part of the house until she was toilet trained. It worked really well for us. We've seen gates at charity shops which makes them even cheaper. Our cousin in Ohio found that her collie could open the gate. Smart dog! We got a Lindum gate that required us to squeeze the handle then lift it. It needed an opposing thumb to work the catch so we figured it was Lab proof.
Re: Labrador puppies and baby gates I use good quality retractable mesh baby gates at the bottom of my stairs - just a slim brushed stainless steel tube to see when they are open. They are very robust, with more than 100kgs of impact strength. The ones I have lock into place once the mesh is pulled out, and I'd put my trust in them over plastic ones, I think. They might not be the best to create a permanent space in which to leave a puppy as they are chewable (but so are wooden and plastic ones, I found!). Heavy duty metal for Charlie's permanent pen is the only thing to use.
Re: Labrador puppies and baby gates There's some great observations in this: "The kids will watch him No, they won’t. They really won’t. They want to, and they think they will, but they won’t." ;D ;D ;D Another excellent article, Pippa.
Re: Labrador puppies and baby gates Really interesting article..we are currently using a crate..Benson is 5 months old, we are hoping to move him soon to a new area of his own which is a new utility area, sectioned off from the kitchen with a baby gate. Also has a glass door so he can look out onto the garden, just got to finish decorating and get the area tiled then good to go. What age has everyone moved from a crate to a more "restricted area?" Would be useful to know as at the moment we don't leave Benson for more that 3 hours at a time in his crate, he has no problems, however any longer just wouldn't feel right, he does seem to be growing at rather a pace at the moment!
Re: Labrador puppies and baby gates We have a baby gate and a crate for Katie. I installed the baby gate so that the cat could come in and out of the kitchen and escape from the dog over the gate, if necessary. Unfortunately, our cat is super lazy so she has only jumped the gate one time in 6 months! She usually just stands next to the gate and meows for us to open it. If the dog chases her to the gate she tries to smack the dog. Overall, the gate has been a failure with regards to the cat. I think the dog will be jumping over it before she makes it over again! On the other hand, it keeps the dog out of our living room, dining room, and upstairs. We keep the kitty litter box upstairs in the bathroom, so the gate keeps Katie away from her favorite treat. If it's ever left open she rushes upstairs to eat cat poo. I guess it's been successful in protecting our nice furniture and our cat's poo. I recommend it, but we also do not leave the dog home alone for long unless she is in her kennel.
Re: Labrador puppies and baby gates Good article indeed. I would recommend a baby gate for the bottom of the stairs even if nowhere else. Unfortunately we got one which didn't fit so returned it and used a makeshift barrier for a while, but possibly not long enough. I have always wondered whether our steep stairs contributed to Lilly's hip problems. I know that the essence of the article isn't hip-related, but thought I would just mention it.
