Benefits of a dog cage?

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SecretSquirrell379

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Hi ya,

I have put my name down on the list for a Cocker Spaniel puppy and she is due to be born next week, so I am very excited :D

I have seen and heard you talking about cages for them. I have had 2 Cockers in the past and never had a cage, but, I was at home full time when I had them as pups whereas I now work in an office a couple of days a week. The pup will come with me or OH to work most days but I am sure there will be the occasion when she has to stay at home alone. Are they really that good? I just think (maybe with ignorance) that they are a bit cruel as they don't have much room. Our last Cocker, Amber, used to sleep in our bed while we were at work! She never, ever, chewed anything, maybe we were lucky :D

Enlighten me please!!
 
Mine have one each and love them. I got the biggest I had room for so there's plenty of room to move. Quila loves hers and goes in of her own accord a lot. Jack doesn't but he goes in quite happily.
 
I know my uncles puppy (staff) who i looked after for one day .. chewed absolutly everything that would fit in his mouth!

I wouldnt be leaving a puppy unnatended, with anything chewable .. :D
 
I use one with mine. It's situated under the stairs which doesn't have alot of passing traffic and is draught free and quiet.

She uses it as her bed, even when the door's open. If the children / cats get on her nerves she'll just retreat there. She eats in there and takes her toys there too. As soon as I put my coat on, she wait to see if it's walk time and if I say "bed" she just goes in and waits for me to shut the door.

It made house training easier. They rarely mess in their beds so we just got into a routine of outside before I went out, praise for a wee, then crate then outside straight away when i got back. I had a housetrained puppy in a matter of days.

if I have visitors with small children I can pop her in her crate and know that my guest's children are safe. I've taught my children to leave the dog alone when she's in her crate.

It's purely a bed with a door on, that's all. Mine can turn around, eat, drink and sleep stretched out in hers. I leave the door open at al times when I'm home, only close it when i go out. Now she's almost a year I've started to leave it open occasionally so she has the run of the kitchen and hallway. But when she was a puppy it was invaluable to save chewing and accidents.

My last pup never chewed a thing. This one's (same breed) been through copious pairs of shoes and even a laptop wire.
 
sounds like I may be being a little naive then expecting a perfect pup! I will have to have a measure at home and see how big a one I can get in.....goodness knows where it will go though!!
 
We got Star dog as a rescue and if we couldn’t have put her in a crate I think she would have had to have found a new home by now!! When we first got her if you left her unattended for 10 minutes she would wee and poo all over the kitchen and drag things around to smear it all in – really knew how to make a mess!! Then we got Alf and he stayed in a cage for a bit but now they just have the run of the house and a absolutely fine, never chew anything or have accidents (although they do like to get the bin out if I forget to shut the kitchen door… grr!!!).. I think it’s perhaps a good thing to get them used to as pups and then you wouldn’t have to use it if you didn’t want/need to but at least you’d have it for back up.

Good luck with the new pup!!
 
Thanks Starbucks, thats very usefull to know. I think that I will look at getting one, even if its for a bit of security for her.

I am very very excited about getting our pup. We lost our last Cocker, Amber, on Boxing Day last year and the house has been so empty ever since. Hubby has wanted another dog for a while now but I keep saying no due to work, me not being ready etc, etc. I have been and met the breeder and put our name on the list........however, hubby has NO idea at all :eek: it is going to be a surprise, we go and meet our pup when she is 2 weeks old and he will find out then, he is going to be so emotional and so excited and totally made up. I just can't wait to see his face and meet our puppy :D
 
We use a crate for Betsy, she is still a baby and could chew / poop / destroy the house still so when we are out / over night she is in her bed with some toys and her water bowl.
 
It's really not too hard :)
The crate becomes their little den where they get peace and quiet as well as plenty of exciting chews / bones / toys. As far as I know it's supposed to be quite snug in there. Betsy's crate is probably a little bit big for her but there is no empty floor space for toilet trips. Just her water bowl and a bed :)

We put a blanket over the top of the crate too :)

Our crate is from Argos and my munm got a HUGE one from pets at home, but there are far far cheaper ones available online!
 
I got mine from here which was the cheapest I could find, the three-door crate price includes a removable divider, strip of fake vetbed stuff and a clip-on bowl. :)

They really are invaluable and have been the key in sorting out my dog's separation anxiety (for anyone who has been following the separation saga, she can now do three hours in happy silence :D).
 
Crates are the best thing ever! Your puppy will come to think of its crate as a safe, secure home for him to relax in. Sometimes people mistunderstand and force their dog in a crate which can create problems, but the trick is to allow the puppy to explore and take ownership of the crate himself, then he will be happy to stay there.

There are loads of advantages: house training happens a lot faster, the puppy is safe from household dangers while you are away, none of your things get chewed, the puppy can have somewhere to retreat if he is feeling overwhelmed by young children, you can take a crate in a car, hotel room or new home and the dog feels immediately at home...
 
Ok I now understand the benefits, thanks for the link to the cages, they look really good and great value. I need to have a measure when I get home and see what we can get in where and go from there.

Thanks guys :D
 
PM Cayla for her crate training guide!

Don't get a huge one. Get a smaller one that will be just the right size when the dog is full grown and get a divided.

Be prepared for some whining and crying at first. Don't give it to it. Ignore the dog.

Put the dog in at times other than when you are going out. Pop the dog in and out of it all day. When you vaccum, when you go for a shower, after they have eaten ect so they don't think its just a place for when you are out.
 
Cages are fantastic. When I got a springer puppy-Twiggy, 4 years ago I already had two other dogs and decided to use a cage for her.

It had her own blanket and toys in and was HER den, it was never ever used for punishment only for sleepind and eating!

You can imagine a springer puppy, she'd play all day with the other two and wear them out so when they were getting tired I'd pop her in her cage and tell her "sleepy time", she also went in when the other two went for their long walk.

The door was always left open if she wasn't in so if she wanted she could go in on her own accord, if either of the other two dogs dared to go and get a drink she'd growl at them and make sure they knew it was her den.

At about 18 months old the cage was put away but I got it out earlier this year as I got another dog - just incase there was any trouble I could put the new dog in till it settled, as soon as I put it up Twiggy jumped in and lay down wagging her tail.:)

She was fully house trained by 4 months and didn't chew anything.:)
 
My Boston terrier never had one. She housetrained quickly, and wasn't a chewer (except for my toes :D). I adopted the pug when he was older, and he is also good in the house, but I wouldn't hesitate to use a crate on a different dog. My sister-in-law's dog is a case in point. She gets into cupboards and seeks out what she can--bottles of medicine, cutlery--and goes to town on said items. A crate is a must for that dog.

I believe the guideline for using a crate is no more than four hours at a time, unless it's overnight.
 
Thanks for all of your replies. I have just had a measure where our dogs bed used to be and I can fit a 36" crate there which, I think, is the size recommended for a Cocker. From the site that Blackcob recommended they do a free divider, pet bowl and Vetbed (copy) as a package for a good price so I have saved that for when the time comes :D

I just can't wait for the phonecall to say that she has been born, only 8 days until due date :D:D

I think you may be seeing a lot more of me in here!!

ps I will pm Cayla x
 
my dog loves her cage .. no problems with house training/chewing .. the only problem is the cat thinks that the cage should be his ... they fight over who should be the 'owner' of the cage ... we find them snuggled up together quite a lot :D
 
We keep talking about taking Chloe out of her crate now shes a "big girl" but decided the other night that shes so happy in it that it doesnt actually matter, so she can stay in it!
 
We got ours for Jake when he had his operations and was on cage rest for months. He took to it immediately and would go in there rather than the dog bed. His brother liked to go in too with him and then the cat joined in!

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The puppies are caged overnight: I just don't think they're big enough to have garden access and I'd panic. I don't know how we managed the other two when they were babies, never had a cage then.

I think they're fabulous. We got the biggest one we could find-£16 secondhand on ebay and picked up locally. Try Freecycle, too. They give you and the dog a break and are fab for vacuum training etc. Neither pup is concerned when the vacuum comes out now because they clearly feel safe in their cage.
 
As you can see my lab gets really stressed in hers.....

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ETA she's in it overnight, whenever we're out and whenever we can't be watching her properly. She has plenty of time out of it, and is totally well balanced. Good luck with your puppy - I also had reserved mine before she was born, and I love her!!
 
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