First off - is it a good idea? My plan has always been to eventually have Penny loose in the kitchen whilst we leave her. It's where her crate is and I was planning on having a baby gate in the kitchen door, with the crate open so she can still have access to it, but have a bit more freedom. I've been nervous about doing it as she is so used to her crate and so settled when she's shut in and left that I think she might not cope with being out of it. Have any of you tried it? Recent experiences where Penny has escaped from her crate whilst we've been out have only been good - we've returned to nothing out of place except her dog toys and the duvet on the bed rumpled where she was obviously lying on it. So it's made me wined what she would be like without it... Well not without it completely, just not shut in. I don't think it's ideal she's in there for so long whilst we are at work (8:45-5:15 on average) but previously we've had no choice. Her crate is more suited for a Great Dane so she has plenty of space to stretch out and get up and get comfy. My plan to try it was going to be something like how you would crate train in the first place - just start off leaving her 5-10 minutes at a time, then when we pop out to the shops for an hour or so, then if we go to the gym which is usually at least two hours, and then if we go out somewhere on a weekend which won't be as long as a work day. Obviously not moving onto the next stage unless she's ok with the shorter period first. Does this sound like a good way to do it? The last time she escaped from her crate she was out for at least 3 hours without incident.
Re: Phasing out the crate... Ah, Lauren, you know I'm a working lab mum, but I think 8.5 hours is far too long to leave a dog in a crate (sorry, sorry, i don't want to snipe, I absolutely think it's possible to work and have a lab, and lots of dogs adjust). But I think yes, absolutely, try get her out during the day if you can. Your plan sounds good. Plus, proof the place against thing that could harm her (wires, bleach cupboards etc.).
Re: Phasing out the crate... That's pretty much exactly the approach we took with riley. He still gets popped into the kitchen behind baby gates if we head out and he's three. Good luck I'm sure she'll be fine.
Re: Phasing out the crate... Hi Lauren, Harley has been out of her crate for a few months now. She goes in the kitchen when I'm at work with her bed, toys, kongs, water etc and I have her on webcam. I generally leave her for 3-4 hours max and she has done really well......no crying, barking, pacing or signs of being distressed I made the change at Easter after my daughter has been home for 3/4 weeks and couldn't bear to put her back in her crate, I'm so glad I went with my instincts I personally think it's a good idea to give her more space, but I know not all dogs deal well in larger areas so would need monitoring for a few weeks
Re: Phasing out the crate... Don't worry Julie, I hate how long we have to leave her too. It used to only be 4 hours but I had to change jobs and until now it's not been possible to have her out of the crate due to work on the house/kitchen etc. I am eager to get her out if I can. She does love her crate though so i won't take it away completely but I do worry if she will still settle and be happy being out of it. Her routine is so ingrained in her now that if I'm even five minutes late going to work and putting her in she's pacing around, going and getting in as if to say 'come on, it's time for you to go to work, I want my alone time!' Please don't anyone worry about expressing their opinion. It's what I love about this forum! And I want to get everyone's opinions and points of view on this.
Re: Phasing out the crate... Lilly was a little under a year old when we started extending her time out of the crate. We had no issues whatsoever with her. We removed her crate just before she was 3 yr old and since then she has claimed our double bed as her own. She lies there most of the day watching the world go by..........snoozing......zzzzz These days we are all out the house by 8.15am and mostly Sophie is home by 3.50, but Lilly seems not the least bothered if we have to be out later. Bladder. Camel. Laid back.
Re: Phasing out the crate... I'm in the same position, thinking it's time to move nine month old Molly out of her crate. Her crate is currently in my study. This last month she has consented to laze around in the hall if I want to do housework upstairs, which is why I'm thinking of moving towards de-crating her. I have always used the word "bed" for her crate. I have installed a piece of Vetbed where I want to put a dog basket and I encourage her to use it. Next step is to buy and install basket. I'll give her a couple of weeks to get used to it with us in the house, then I'll go out and walk round the houses for 10 minutes or so to see how she copes. Then I will gradually extend the time she's free in the front hall. I'll keep the crate in my study for a while, so that if she cannot cope I can just pop her back in it for another few weeks and try again later. I have it all mapped out in my head, all I need now is for Molly to co-operate
Re: Phasing out the crate... Hey Lauren, I think,she will be ok you know,if she's escaped and just lay around,she doesn't go looking for mischief and if she chooses her blanket over going back in her open crate she's not relying on it for security. We've got the seperate area that we can always keep Dexters crate up ......there was a total flukey situation the other week......maintenance men servicing ac ,skirting boards being replaced ( wonder why? :) and a new bath being fitted ,so the house was all open front and back...it was a godsend as I knew he was safe.However I could have worked round it if we didn't have it.ill always keep ours up,it's in his 'room' which is the utility room off the kitchen separated from the kitchen by a baby gate .....he gets settled in there to sleep ,sometimes I can tell he's been in,but I can also tell he's slept most on the night on his bed outside the crate!good luck,Penny will be fine,she's a good girl,x
Re: Phasing out the crate... Yes, I would leave the crate door open if she had to be left any length of time. Also - any chance of a dog walker coming to take her out and give her some company? I would willingly take her with Tatze and me if you lived nearby (There should be a board for matching volunteer dog walkers with home alone dogs! I often wish we had another pooch for mine to play with)
Re: Phasing out the crate... (There should be a board for matching volunteer dog walkers with home alone dogs! I often wish we had another pooch for mine to play with) [/quote] Hi Lauren/boogie There is a website that does just that. It's called borrow my doggy. It aims to match local people together to help each other out when in need or on a more permanent basis. Take a look it might just help. https://www.borrowmydoggy.com
Re: Phasing out the crate... I just worry that as she's so settled being in her crate and knows what it means - time to go to sleep and be settled, she's going to get stressed being out of it. I don't want to turn her into destructo-dog!!! I guess the only way to find out is to try it and see! A dog walker isn't an option for us. The only one I would trust with my dog is my ex manager and she now lives 40 miles away! She'd be happy to do it but we'd have to pay her mileage which soon adds up!!
Re: Phasing out the crate... I don't think she will be you know.....you aren't taking it away from her ,just changing the crate rules a bit .....the next week or so might not be normal life anyway with her getting over her op but I reckon she will be grand when she is recovered and back to normal x
Re: Phasing out the crate... I think she'll be fine, Riley just settles down when there's nothing going on..... we needed a little Tabasco sauce on the skirting boards in the early days to stop him chewing but that worked and we never had any problems. Any dodgy tunnies are contained on the easily disinfected floor and everyone is happy. We can hear him sometimes in the night have a good stretch, re-arrange of his bed, maybe a drink and then settle down again with a massive sigh lol
Re: Phasing out the crate... If you start with the crate still there but with the crate door open I don't think she will be stressed
Re: Phasing out the crate... How old is Penny? May I ask how old all your dogs were when you stopped crating them? Interested in this as well as I'm sure our Time will come soon.
Re: Phasing out the crate... Honestly I can't really remember but it must have been between 9 months and a year because I still took a crate with us even though we didn't use it at home when we went for a short break before Lizzie arrived and Riley is a fraction over a year older than Lizzie.
Re: Phasing out the crate... Update. No longer thinking of de-crating Molly any time soon. I left her in the hall while I went upstairs to do some chores. When I got down she had chewed the door jamb to the broom cupboard. I think I'll leave it till she's nearer a year. She is quite happy to get into her crate. It is only the humans that want to get rid of the unsightly bulk of it.
Re: Phasing out the crate... Penny is nearly 18months old now and in the last month or so she's really settled down. She's much more happy to just lie down somewhere whilst I'm doing housework etc whereas before she used to just follow me round the house wanting to play. She's just calmer in general now (something I thought would never happen!!)
Re: Phasing out the crate... We have just de-crated Benson, well in the process of de-crating him this week. : I took Monday and Tuesday of work to check how things are going with him. He is 8 months old now, and so far so good. He had started whining a little in his crate, which is why we started the process a bit earlier. He has free rein of the kitchen, which is a reasonable size, plus he has his crate in the kitchen still, we just leave the door open. We have put 2 child gates on the door leading to the kitchen, and have another leading into the utility. He is alone during the day, 3 days a week, the other 2 days hubby works from home, our dog walker takes him out for an hour plus with all his mates, so he is never alone for more than 3 hours a day (Tues through to Thurs) His normal routine is to doze from 9am to 12ish anyway, so this seems to fit in with his routine, he did whine a little when I left this morning, so am thinking of setting up a webcam to check what happens when we leave the house. No evidence of stress or destruction, and very calm and relaxed when I have returned home from work.
Re: Phasing out the crate... Penny got speyed today, and I just realised she won't fit in her crate comfortably with the cone of shame on - duh! So tonight were going cold turkey!! I fixed up the baby gate (hinge bracket broke a while ago and we weren't using it so didn't bother til now) and laid a bed out on the kitchen floor for her. She whine a little for about 5 minutes and then silence. After 15 minutes I took this sneaky pic from the top of the stairs lol! You can just about make her out laid on the bed! Been about 25 minutes now and she seems quiet. My only worry is that my OH went out for the evening and is due home in about half an hour... Hopefully that won't disturb her too much!
