Where Should Dogs Be Kept At Night?
Where you keep your dog at night very much depends upon his age and his nature.
In A Crate
Dog crates are very useful and can be a safe place for your dog to retreat to when he needs a rest.
For puppies and older dogs who might otherwise cause trouble when unsupervised, dog crates are very handy.
Dogs are den animals, and they can see crates as protective, enclosed spaces.
You can start crate training from puppyhood, making the crate a safe and fun place for your dog with appropriate toys and comfy blankets.
If you approach crate training in the right way, your dog can see sleeping in a crate as calming and rewarding rather than a punishment.
Sleeping in a crate is particularly useful for dogs who get stressed or anxious. Your dog may see his crate as a secure place where he can curl up and enjoy some peace and quiet.
How Much Space Should A Puppy Have?
When it comes to young puppies under 6 months of age, confinement is a good thing.
By confining them when they are young, you will help to get them ready for much more freedom later on.
Keeping their movement restricted when they are still puppies will help them to get used to consistency and a steady routine. It is better and easier to create a good foundation early on rather than have to break bad habits when they are older!
This doesn’t mean that your puppy has to be kept in a crate all day long. While it is highly recommended that you lock it in a crate at night for sleeping, during the day you can create an unsupervised area for it in the form of a playpen.
Exercise or play pens are like baby gates for puppies.
They can be set up anywhere, such as in the living room, but preferably it is in a location that does not have furniture which can be easily chewed on. Instead, you can rotate a few chew toys inside the pen to help the puppy to stay entertained.
Make sure also that it is set up far away from any bustling windows or doors so that a quiet and calm environment can be maintained. You can always take it out for a walk and some exercise early in the day to burn off some of that hyper puppy energy to help it stay relaxed.
The more accustomed your puppy is to a playpen, the more comfortable it will be in one even when it gets older.
Even as they grow stronger or taller than the pen, they will learn not to break out. Therefore, it really is a great tool to use when you don’t want to directly supervise the puppy.
Can I Let My Dog Roam Alone in My House? | The Beacon Dog Academy
Although everyone wants to give their puppy plenty of space to play and explore, allowing it free run of the house too early on is a sure recipe for disaster.
Not only will you need to buy new shoes, cables and furniture- be ready for wet puddles of pee and poop everywhere!
It is a good idea to let your puppy have free reign of the house only when it is house trained and no longer chews on objects out of curiosity. For a puppy that is trained well, you can begin to let it roam around the house, on a leash, at around 6 months old.
From 8 months onwards, you may be able to give a puppy free access to the parts of the house that you want, as long as it doesn’t cause any damage. However, don’t rush this process as each puppy is different and there isn’t a strict timeline as to when it will be ready.
As the puppy matures, you will be able to leave the house for short periods of time to see if it gets into any mischief by itself. It is important to do this slowly and in stages, so that the puppy is not exposed to so much freedom all at once that it forgets its training!