[MI Yorkielover]

I've never heard of leaving a puppy in a crate most of the time until they are 5 or 6 months old. When Sophie was a new puppy she slept in her crate at night and went into it for naps but if I could watch her she stayed out of her crate and we played and cuddled most of the time. We left the door open so she could go in it if she felt tired. The only other time she was in her crate was if I was house cleaning and couldn't keep an eye out for her or we had to leave the house for a couple of hours. Now she sleeps with us and can stay home alone for short periods with run of the house privileges without getting into mischief.