How long should I crate my dog

Hi

My dog (Jess) has been crated ever since she was a pup (she is now 2 1/2).

It was the fist time I have ever crated a dog and it took me longer to adjust to the concept than Jess who was crate trained by the breeder.

As I said she is now 2 1/2 and still very happy in her crate.

The question that I am struggling with is do I start to leave the crate door open and give her more space during the day when I am at work.

I have tried it once or twice but she then does not stay in the crate, rather she tries to follow me and gets anxious and barks when I leave. When I leave otherwise, she just hops in her crate when I ask her and I close the door and she's quite happy.

I guess, the saying 'if it aint broke dont try to fix it' applies but as I understand it the crate mimicks a dogs natural den and as a pup she would expect to be resticted to the den. However, I would expect then that as she gets older that restriction would go and she would in nature be free use her den as she wishes.

Do many people crate adult dogs? Is it still fine to crate her or should I be giving her more space while I'm out?

How long is she shut in her crate for each day ?

if your dog is respectfull of your house ! mine are 1.5 and are now getting more time out alone while im out.they are calming down and are able to be trusted ,it took a year of training to do this...good luck to you and if you come home to a mess,please dont yell!!!!LOL..phil

ps...mine are crated for there protection too.....

Thanks. She is not destructive at all thus far, despite being a JRT. I also have a slight concern about leaving her out and about with our cat when we are not about. Though they do get on really well.


She is in her crate about 5 hours per day during the week.

I`ve never crated a dog. It is, I understand, extremely useful for young pups or destructive dogs, but I really don`t see why a mature dog with no problems needs to be shut up. How about trying it for short periods to get the dog used to it?

So I can expect her to bark like a loon for ages at first?

On the very rare occassion that I have left her not shut in her crate, she barked for ages and I gave in and went back and locked her in her crate.

She was fine then and not a word.

I have used crates for my pups but as soon as they are around 6-7 months old I let them have the run of the house. I personally would not like to crate a dog for 5 hours at a time. It's a difficult decision though if she is quiet in the crate but barks and gets anxious when out.

My boy is similar. He seems to panic and not know what to do if we go out and leave him out of his crate, but if he is in his crate he is happy, has his stuffed kong and goes to sleep. He is two and a half. I am thinking he feels more secure in his crate as he is used to it and doesn't have to decide what to do so can relax.

If the dog is anxious outside his crate it is probably as a consequence of being crated from a puppy, IMO, not something that is a part of the dog`s character. To me (and I stress that I`ve never crated my dogs) it would be a problem and I would retrain the dog to try to get him relaxed when out of his crate - rewarding when calm outside it etc. Certainly I think you should be leaving the door open if left for long periods.
At what age do people who use crates normally leave the door open or stop using them?