Cage Questions Roxie came to us 5 months ago with a cage that is much too big for her. She could run laps in that thing! After all the reading I've done here and on other dog sites, we decided to get her a smaller cage. The box says it is for dogs up to 12 pounds, but it seems SO tiny. I actually feel bad putting her in it, because there really isn't room for her to do anything in there. She used to be very protective of her cage, barking and even biting at anyone who went anywhere near it. She is not protective of her new cage. She used to lay in her cage when she was bored or tired. She doesn't do that with the new cage. Should I give her back her old cage, or wait to see if she gets used to the new cage? Was it a mistake to even get a new cage? Am I thinking too much about this? |
I wouldn't call it a cage but more of kennel or crate...hehe..cage sounds so inhumane...lol...but as far as her kennel...are you crate training her? how long is she in this kennel a day? is this where you put her when you leave the house? if so i would recommend placing this kennel inside an ex-pen which will give her a little more room to roam while you are gone...i know i wouldn't want to be cramped into such a small place for hours on end...and while you have this kennel/crate inside the ex-pen you can leave the door open place a pee pad down and even place her food and water bowl inside. |
We only put her in there to sleep at night. We gate her in the kitchen when we go out to work and whatnot. Her water, bed, and toys are in the kitchen and she has plenty of room to move around. |
if it is just for her sleeptime then i wouldn't worry so much about not being able to do everything that she used to do in her other crate...maybe with this new one she feels safer since it is smaller so there is no need for her to act protective of it or herself... |
IMO - they don't need tons of room to move around. Especially when they're young and still small. If you notice, most dogs when trying to get comfortable will circle around and then lay down, usually in a little ball. They only need enough room to be able to comfortably do this. I know that this is especially important if trying to house break them. Naturally, a dog usually will not eliminate in the place which it sleeps. So if you have a smaller area, they learn to hold their bladder. HOWEVER, if Roxy is already trained in this area and this isn't an issue for her, then I see no problem with the bigger pen. Harley LOVES her pen and will go rest in it whenever she wants some alone time. However, it's just big enough for her. She's 4.8 lbs and her crates dimensions are 24x18x21. This is plenty big enough for her. |
Thanks :) Roxie is 3 years old and potty training isn't an issue. |
For crate training I used a small kennel for Joey, one big enough for him to stand and turn around in, the idea is that they won't pee in it. Now that he's trained he has a larger kennel that he goes in for naps, I don't think it matters what size you use once they are crate trained since he's only in it at night, but it may take a while for him to get use to it. Your first kennel sounds like it may have been an x-pen, if it were really large. They are great for keeping puppies in, especially during the daytime if you have to work. Do you have confortable bedding on the bottom of the kennel? |
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