Is Crate Training a good thing to do?
Crate training is one of those things you are either all for it, or you are totally against it.
Most pet parents that are against crate training are likely to not really understand how and why a crate is used, and how, through training, the dog views the crate as a super awesome place to be.
The biggest misconception is that if you crate train, your dog has to sleep in the crate and spend large amounts of time in there. This is simply not the case. If your dog finds the crate an awesome place and wants to sleep in there, that’s your choice to make. However, the majority of pet parents use crate training as more of a life skill, rather than a perceived prison.
As trainers, a huge part of our job is simply helping pet parents prepare their dog for the stresses of life. Whether that be going to the vet, overcoming fears with noises, or people etc and essentially helping them create a dog that will coexist in an easy manner with humans. At That Dog School, we believe that crate training can be instrumental in many of these areas.
Let’s look at when a dog may be required to be in an enclosed cage, carrier or crate:
- At the vet after a surgery (desexing)
- At the groomers
- Recovery from injury
- In the car for transportation
- In an emergency evacuations (such as the bushfires)
Every dog will experience at least one of these scenarios in their life and most of these are already stressful situations. It makes a whole lot of sense not to have the stress of being in a crate for the first time compounded to the experience.
Aside from stressful situations, there are many instances where crate training can also be utilised in normal living or training circumstances:
- Dog sports
- Developing independence
- House breaking
- Managing multi dog households
- In house dog fighting
- Creating calm
- A bed for sleeping time
- Keeping your dog safe
- Camping with your dog
- Storm phobias
- Developing impulse control
- Helping with resource guarding issues
Most people that have a crate trained dog will tell you that their dog LOVES the crate. Us trainers know that this is the case for our own dogs. The reason this is, is because our dogs don’t view the crate as a negative place, in fact is has so much value!
So, before you make a quick decision that crate training is not for you, consider what it could do for your dog and how instead of thinking it’s a cruel way to live with a dog, it could be in fact a useful tool. If you are interested in crate training, touch base with us and we can assist you further.
