What to do with dog when we are gone?

[rose angel]

Hello, we adopted a lab/corgi cross that is almost 2 years old about 2 months ago. He is house trained pretty well, sleeps on his bed at night inside fine, etc. Up till about a week ago he was also fine being indoors while we went to church, Dr appts, etc. (Mostly we are with him as we homeschool)The last few times we have left, however, he has been chewing and destroying stuff (a shoe, a book, a ruler) I don't know why he is doing this all of a sudden. We walk him or play hard with him before leaving so as to tire him (he is actually a pretty mellow dog who naps much of the day on and off) but it doeasn't seem to help. We are deciding between a outdoor kennel/run and an indoor crate. I don't think he has been crate trained before.
What would you do?

[just_lily]

I would go for the crate training, personally. I have two dogs, and if it wasn't for well made and re-inforced crates we wouldn't have a home left. I have a dog with severe seperation anxiety and he absolutely needs to be in a crate when left home alone.

While an outdoor run may work as well, I would be concerned about the dog barking while we were gone and getting noise complaints from the neighbours. Also depending on where you live, what would your back up plan be for bad weather? And of course there is cost - a good quality crate will cost up to about $100 depending on the size you need, whereas you could easily spend several thousand bulding a good run.

[Nicole915]

I agree, a crate is the way I would go if i were you. The crate is more secure and less expensive, as is its indoors. You'll also have the added bonus of a well trained dog with a crate in case you need to have him stay at a friends house for the weekend. There is a difference in what the crate provides, for my dogs the crate is a place to 'turn off' and relax, whereas I suspect that an outdoor run would stimulate them further.

[rose angel]

Thanks for your reply, just_lily. Growing up we had mainly outdoor dogs, so that is more familiar to me.
How long can a dog be crated? I live out in the country, and sometimes have to go to town for the day, and I hate to think of crating the doggy too long. I feel like at least outside, he could relieve himself and be entertained by watching the birds or whatever. No snow here, I would just have to put up a tarp at an angle for rain. That seems to be the norm here.

[rose angel]

This is what I had in mind:
http://tinyurl.com/mc8uc7
I really don't know...

[just_lily]

I will leave mine in their crates for up to ten hours without really worrying about it. I WAH so it doesn't happen very often, but when we do have to leave them that long they are fine.

It depends entirely on the breed and temperment of your dog, but what you linked to wouldn't hold my separation anxiety / houdini dog. He would either tunnel underneath or eat his way through the top and climb out that way. And then he would be on the loose in the neighbourhood, instead of at least in the house. But my dog is not the norm, so your mileage may vary.

No matter what you decide, you do need to avoid putting human emotions on your dog when considering crate training. Of course you wouldn't enjoy spending hours in a crate, but a dog that is otherwise well exercised, well socialized, and well loved is perfectly fine with it. Many dogs even enjoy their crates and will go in there on their own to nap or just get some peace and quiet. If you are worried about him getting bored fill a Kong with peanut butter and he will be entertained all day long!

[mistymama]

I would definately get a crate.

It really is the best way to help your dog feel secure and safe while you are gone - plus keep him from destroying your house! Usually when a dog tears things up while you are gone, it's because he's feeling anxious. A crate will help calm him down.

You can make the crate a very positive, happy place. Our dog loves his! He's crated each morning while I go into work, everytime we leave the house, and overnight. There have been nights I've left him out, but he goes to his crate and sleeps in there until morning.

I give our dog those little freeze dried liver treats each time he goes into his crate. He loves those things and will run in there as soon as I say "get in your crate". I also leave him with a kong with a liver treat or two in it, or a spoonfull of peanut butter. Gives him something to chew on and play with. But honestly, he mostly sleeps when he's in there!

As far as length of time, I don't leave him more than 6 hours during the day. Most days it's 4-5. But to be honest, even when I've left him 6 hours he was just fine. Didn't have to pee that bad (waited a good 30-45 mins before even going!) and was fine. I guess 6 hours is just my personal limit, I think he could be in there longer and be ok - he's in there about 8 hours overnight.

But trust me - a crate will be your best friend! And your dog will learn to like it too. Another plus? When you have a maintenace guy over, or friends who are scared of dogs, etc - you can put your dog in the crate. Ours goes in there and does not whine, bark, etc, even when people are working in the house. It's great for everyone.

[rose angel]

Hi, my wiggling dog is about 20 in tall, and 30 in long from nose to start of tail. 42x20x30 crate be too big? There is one on Craigslist.
http://fresno.craigslist.org/for/1348789170.html
you guys have sold me on the crate! He is a very attached dog, so I think the crate would make him feel secure/be a signal to sleep.

[Ola_]

I agree about the crate. Also, if you will be gone for a long time (say more than 8 hrs or however long the dog is used to) I would have someone drop by to take him out for a potty and a few minutes of interaction. It sounds to me like you are dealing with separation anxiety - and if you are always home most of the time, but then go away for whole days that could certainly be part of the problem. He is used to you always being there and when you go away not only is that strange to him, but you go away for a long time.

I think the walking and playing before leaving is great, glad that you are doing that. It helped my SA dog a lot, but the walk had to be at least 30 min in length. Another thing that I found helped is not to leave as soon as you get back from the walk but have some "mellow" time so he can wind down. Otherwise it is a big change from walk/play time to no one home, you know?

[mistymama]

Originally Posted by rose angel

Hi, my wiggling dog is about 20 in tall, and 30 in long from nose to start of tail. 42x20x30 crate be too big? There is one on Craigslist.
http://fresno.craigslist.org/for/1348789170.html
you guys have sold me on the crate! He is a very attached dog, so I think the crate would make him feel secure/be a signal to sleep.

I'd just make sure it's big enough for your dog to stand up, turn around and stretch out. Honestly if the dog is already potty trained, there is no reason to make sure it is just the right size - with puppies you do that so they will not find a corner to potty in. But with an adult, potty trained dog, I'd make sure it was nice and comfy - not huge - but I would err on the side of larger vs. smaller. Hope that makes sense!

[lilyka]

we crate. Lucy can actually open and close her crate door herself. she loves it. and spends a lot of time bringing toys in and out (its on another floor of our home, that she is not allowed to be in alone. ) All I have to say is "kennel up Lu" and she runs to it. she will even do it for my 6 year old now. sometimes I put her in there just if she is getting too wound up. sometimes she will just go lay in it when she wants to nap or something (so long as her blanket is in there).

She stays in there while I am at work regularly which is about 9-12 hours (usually nine) and she stayed in for 18 hours the other day. I had someone come over to let her out and she freaked out on them and refused to come out. so I called the neighbor to let her out and she got stuck in traffic but Lucy was fine and didn't have any trouble going back in. She actually gets panicy if I leave her out in the big house while I am gone. So we are both fans of the crate here.

[Sailor]

I crate trained, but now my dog is "safe" to leave outside the home. I'm a fan of crate training too. I must admit, some of these responses are shocking ... 8 plus hours in a crate?! I don't know, to me, that sounds like way too much time. I have a very high energy GSD. If I ever did that with him, I'd pay for it very seriously. Plus, in terms of my dog, and his exercise/mental stimulation needs, it would be abuse. I know all dogs are different ... but, still, that's a lot of time to just sit enclosed in one area.

Have you explored why your dog may have had a recent behavior change? Maybe leaving more chew toys out would help. If she was fine before, something must have changed to start this new behavior. I'm a fan of video cameras. Set one up, see if anything triggers the chewing.

Also, this could be a training issue. This might sound crazy to some, but I would leave the house, and then sneak over to the window and watch my dog. When he went to chew something, I'd correct without him seeing me - just hearing me. When he went for his chew toy, I'd praise. He never saw me, it was just my voice. Yes, I was at that window for several hours, lol. But, I wanted a reliable dog without the crate. In truth, it only took 3 or 4 window sessions before he was reliable.

[mistymama]

Sailor, I'm sure it depends on the breed. Our dog is in his crate 8 hours overnight and prefers it that way - I can leave the crate door open and he stays in there all night long. In fact, I wake up before he does, open the door and he usually sleeps in there another hour.

During the day I keep it to 4-5 hours. He gets lots of good exercise and is not a very active breed - he's a napper! We joke because he's still a young dog now - I can't imagine when this guy is an old man!

Each breed is different - before this guy I fostered basset hounds and they were the same way. With lots of good exercise, they were thankful for their crates for a nice, long nap.

[Sailor]

Oh, I didn't know this was night time we were talking about. My dog also prefers his crate at night, and will sleep there the whole night, though the door is open.

I thought people were saying 8 hours in the day time AND night time. I misunderstood!

[just_lily]

I said that I will leave my dogs for up to ten hours, but it is VERY occasional. Like once every couple of months. I WAH so usually they are only in there for an hour or two a day when we go to the park or something (I can't bring two large dogs and four kids to the park by myself) but sometimes on the weekend there are things we need to do or places we need to be, and the dogs have to stay home. I don't worry about it, and they are fine. Happy to see us for sure, but fine.

And ours don't spend overnight in their crate, they sleep with us.