To Crate or not to Crate?

After meeting with lots of clients I am always met with scepticism about adding a crate into their home. Often people find these metal cages ugly, think they are for punishment or just do not want to confine their Pooch!

I am here to tell you that every one comes around to the idea of a crate in their home once they experience the joys that a crate brings when introduced properly.

Fact of life

Firstly going inside a confined space like a crate will be inevitable. In the car or transporting across the world dogs are put in crates. On holiday or a kennel they are kept in crates or pens. Over a dogs lifetime it is likely they will spend some time at the Vets, who also keep dogs in crates or similar before surgery or over night. If they have had surgery or been castrated/spayed the vets advice will be for them to recover in a crate to limit the amount of zoomies and jumping the dog does. Making it super important that your dog is relaxed and enjoys their time in the crate.

Take a chill pill

Crate training is one way to train a dog to be safely left alone, the common alternative to punish a dog who destroys the house while left alone (Landsberg, 2007 and Tuber et al, 1974) which does not reduce anxiety (Arhant et al, 2010). Crate training means your Pooch practises being chilled. A dog who is left in the home to roam freely who can not settle themselves is likely to make poor choices, from destroying the furniture, to defecating on the rug to barking the house down. This also has been linked to dogs being more anxious. A dog who is relaxed in their crate is likely going to rest and chill out, making for a more relaxed Pooch overall.

The dog house

Crates are a safe place that provides security to your Pooch. When they are in the crate their only real option is to chill out which can be encouraged by placing them in the crate after a big walk to rest, or using a lick mat/ kong stuff with nice tasty foods for them to focus on. Placing a cover like a big blanket or old towel over the crate also creates a den like feel for them to bunker down and sleep. Crates are super handy for when strangers come round the house, like gas tecnision or the WiFi or friends that your dog has not meet yet, by putting them in the crate, your dog will not be bothering them, they will be tucked up in their crate chilling out.

What did I step in?

Whether you have a puppy or new adult dog joining your household, every dog will need to learn where they can go toilet. By keeping them in a crate when you are out as dogs are generally clean creators they won't wee in their bed (the length of time left alone will depend on how long they can hold their bladder). When you do get home, the first thing you want to do, is one ignore your dog if they bark, wait till calm and then let them straight outside to relieve themselves. When finished say good dog and reward with treat or play a game.

Snoozefest

Sleep is so important for the wellbeing and development of your dog. Young puppies need to be asleep for around 18 hours a day. Therefore, teaching your puppy to settle themselves and go to sleep is so much easier when you have a crate as they can not wonder off and find something to entertained themselves usually by turning into crocodiles and bite you! Older dogs also need to learn to settle as this is part of everyday life. No one should be on the go all the time. Even working dogs will rest by the fire at night. So all the more reason to implement a crate into your routine, after they have been for a walk make it the new normal for them to have a rest. If you have hyper children in the home make it possible for your dog to have a retreat and place of rest in against the chaos.

Feed me?!

Every dog loves a routine as do I. Dogs are creatures of habit. Breakfast at 9am and Dinner at 5.30. My Ted will be lie down and just stare at me (in fact he is currently doing so), put his head on my leg or start to jump up and down till I remember ahh, is it dinner time?

Routine is more than just your dog being annoying at 9am and 5.30pm, routine is a way for your dog to predict the future. A dog who does not know what is going to happen from one minute to the next can be on high alert and quite anxious. Whereas, a dog who can predict what will happen next ie, home time = go in their crate, creates stability and more relaxed Pooches. Another example is the door bell. In my house Ted sure likes to let me know someone is at the door and barks. So I just have to say go to your bed, and off he goes, no more barking, understands his role and performs a task he has done hundreds of times before. On this note, door bell training mean he is not rushing out the door, or barking at the delivery person or getting up to anything I do not want him to do when out of sight. I know he is safe in his crate which reduces my anxiety.

Bad Dog!

There are no bad dogs. When your pup is a crocodile, put them in their crate, they are over tired and need a rest (put frozen kong or lick mat with them, or long last chew to help sooth them into sleep). By the time your fingers have been chewed or your pup is hanging off your cloths and putting them in their bed, it will be around 10 seconds or more. Puppies take 2 seconds for behaviour to be reinforced. So puppies do not have the mental capacity to know, biting you equals put to bed.

Ugly duckling

Crates are what you make them. A metal crate is a bit ugly granted, but personally, I'd rather come home to a metal crate in the corner of the room than a poo or destroyed sofa. You can make shift your own cover, with a towel or blanket that goes with your decor. Or buy a fancy fitted crate cover from places like Lords and Labradors. Nowadays you can even get furniture crates in a range of designs and prices depending on your budget, from the Range, Robert Dyers, B&Q, up to the high end Lord and Labradors, Ebay, Amazon and Etsy many of whom make to order.

Last but not least, independence

Research shows that dogs who happen to sleep on their owners beds were more likely to be anxious and had behavioural issues. So, join the right path with introducing crate training to your Pooch. Your dog will be more independent and an independent dogs is a more confident dog. A dog who is confident will be able to handle stressor in their life, reduce the risk of separation anxiety and other behavioural issues. This does not mean that your dog loves you any less or that you love them less. It means there is a healthy separation from your dog to you. Just like babies who are in a cot beside the bed will have their own room or share with a sibling, but even then most children will want their own room eventually.

Citations

Arhant, C., Bubna-Littitz, H., Bartels, A., Futschik, A. and Troxler, J., 2010. Behaviour of smaller and larger dogs: effects of training methods, inconsistency of owner behaviour and level of engagement in activities with the dog. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 123(3-4), pp.131-142.

Landsberg, G., 2007, February. Diagnosing and treating canine separation anxiety. In 79th Western Veterinary Conference.

Tuber, D.S., Hothersall, D. and Voith, V.L., 1974. Animal clinical psychology: A modest proposal. American Psychologist, 29(10), p.762.