That was great!! Sorry your battery didn't hold out for the "great escape" ... that would certainly be interesting! We too are fortunate to hardly ever have to leave Toto ... they are indeed, "velcro dogs"!
We found that on those rare occasions when Toto has to be alone or if we have strangers such as repairmen, etc. in our home, that an X-pen is perfect! You can expand it or make it as small as you want. We keep it on the dining room tile [when we use it on carpet we fold a "tarp" to set it up on and it protects the carpet from water, food or God forbid, an "accident"
]. We simply place her wee wee pad, a little fleece bed, food & water stand and if we have to confine her to it we put a few favorite toys & blankie in! We leave the gate open all the time unless she is confined. She loves it ... like it is her own little place of safety in there and she just comes & goes when she wants ... like her own private dining/bath!!
She doesn't get upset or try to get out if we have to lock the gate! This works for us and is extremely portable. When we are out of doors we put two X-pens inside a Gazebo with net sides and it gives her a large play area and we aren't afraid if we take our eyes off her that a big predator might swoop down and grab her!!
