ISO information on sleeping cages for dogs

[Canice]

I know this has been discussed here, but my search is not coming up with anything. A friend of mine is getting a Cavalier King Charles puppy and is considering getting a cage so the dog can go visiting with her and so that she can be left home without destroying the house. Everything I've read has suggested that, contrary to our intuition, dogs quite like their cages. Anyone know where I can find more information on this? TIA

[MrsReber]

My dog likes her crate quite well. I think pet supply stores have some different ones. The kennel I have came with her when she was a puppy. The kennel is upstairs and a bunny cage for her downstairs. The bunny cage was cheaper than the dog pen and it's held up over the years. She's now 12.

As far as searches for threads go, did you try searching under crate or crating?

Dogs really do like having their own little areas. I'm not familiar with that breed of dog. My dog is about 12-15 lbs. She's relaxing in her kennel right now.

[RunnerKim]

Crate Training (try searching using the term crate or kennel) is a great idea for many dogs for a variety of reasons. Here's a good online article about it posted by the American Dog Trainers Network:

http://www.inch.com/~dogs/cratetraining.html

I've used a wire crate that provides good ciruculation during hotter times (or you can drape a blanket over it to make it more cozy) but in my car I have one of the hard plastic vari kennels for transportation purposes. The wire ones can fold flat (depending on which one you get) and can make it easier to store or travel with. They often weigh more though.

Kim

[Canice]

Thank you, Kim, that is exactly the kind of information she was looking for!

Susan, they're just adorable. They're a spaniel, about the size of your dog, and really sweet. I'm so envious that she's getting this little pup!

[tamawrite]

Something your friend might look for is the fabric/net collapsable crates, since she plans to travel with it. I have the hard plastic kind for my Dalmatian, and it's great except that it takes up 2/3 of the backseat when we travel. Good thing our dog IS our kid!

[RunnerKim]

I also have one of the fabric/tent crate and they are fabulous to travel with but I'd never use it with a puppy or dog that isn't very comfortable in a crate. They're easy for the dog to destroy.

Tamawrite - people think we bought our minivan because of our (human) kid but it's really for the dog! We couldn't even get a crate in the back seat of our little car for our golden and we're planning to add more 4 and 2 legged kids and just decided to bite the bullet. I've felt your space issues!

Kim

[Luika]

I have a Cavalier KC Spaniel, and he is now 10 years old. From the time we acquired him at 7 weeks old, we've crate trained him. For the first few years, we kept him in the crate while we were away and overnight. Since he's been about 5 years old, we've never shut the crate door and he still goes inside each night and often to rest during the day. He also has a couple of dog cushions of his own but often prefers the crate even during the day. It's all a matter of positive training IMO!

The one thing you must remember is their crate should be a "happy place," not somewhere you put them for punishment. You don't want your dog to have any negative thoughts associated with the crate.

Crate training also makes it really easy to travel with your pet as they are already used to being in a crate.

Keep in mind you want to get a crate large enough for them to stretch out, especially if the dog will be in there for several hours at a time. We actually purchased one that is "German shepherd sized" for our 20 pound dog. It may be a little overkill, but we felt better (when we closed the door) that he had room to stretch and walk a few steps. When we were potty training him, we just put a partition across part of the cage to make the cage smaller (with the thought that he is less apt to soil his sleeping area--which was an accurate assumption).

Anyway, a pic of our Cavalier is my avator. :D

[beckms]

You've gotten some good advice. There have been several threads on the BB talking about the merits of crating. I hope you don't fall into the trap of being persuaded that they're inhumane by people who are simply uninformed (IMHO).

[PAMMELA]

Originally posted by beckms
You've gotten some good advice. There have been several threads on the BB talking about the merits of crating. I hope you don't fall into the trap of being persuaded that they're inhumane by people who are simply uninformed (IMHO).

Some people may choose not to crate and NOT because they think that crating is inhumane, but because they made their own informed choice not to crate. Crating is a choice and if you choose not to crate it doesn't mean that it is the wrong choice, it just means it's a different one.

[beckms]

Originally posted by PAMMELA


Some people may choose not to crate and NOT because they think that crating is inhumane, but because they made their own informed choice not to crate. Crating is a choice and if you choose not to crate it doesn't mean that it is the wrong choice, it just means it's a different one.

You'll note that I specifically referred to people as uninformed (again, IMHO) who DO think crating is inhumane. Most of those people think crate=prison. I didn't say it was wrong to decide not to use one.

[PAMMELA]

Originally posted by beckms


You'll note that I specifically referred to people as uninformed (again, IMHO) who DO think crating is inhumane. Most of those people think crate=prison. I didn't say it was wrong to decide not to use one.


Yes, I didn't mean to imply differently.

[beckms]

Originally posted by PAMMELA



Yes, I didn't mean to imply differently.

No harm, no foul. :)