Do my dogs need their own crates? This question was posed to us from a reader with multiple dogs. She explained that they are house trained and tend to go back and forth between crates, not really choosing one as their own. However, a more senior dog of hers has started to mark around the house and now she is concerned the others will start to follow suit. Should each one have his own space and not share?
Dogs are smart creatures. I have 2 of them in my home, and each one has their own crate. I leave the doors open during the day and they only use them when we leave the house. I often find the male dog resting in the female dog’s crate, but I never find it the other way. I think maybe he is just trying to be close to her when she is not in there? She never seems to mind. When we leave the house, they do go to their respective crates with no issues. Well that was a cute little story, moving on.
Related: Puppy Crate Training That’s Easy as 1-2-3
Do My Dogs Need Their Own Crates?
We all like our space
I know I like my own space, and I don’t think dogs are any different. Although, they don’t really show that when they burrow themselves under the covers and take up your entire bed. I feel they do need their own space when it comes to crating. Sure, they can go in and out, as long as no one gets territorial, but they should know which one is theirs when the times comes for the doors to be closed. My little one, Lola, knows when I get my shoes on, that she goes in her crate and waits for the door to be closed. The other dog, he needs to know he is getting a treat before he just goes into his when he knows we are leaving. Either way, they each go to their own.
Is this my bed?
When you go on vacation, other than maybe a view, what is one thing you are hoping for? A comfortable bed! And no matter how comfortable it may be, it is just not your bed. For some reason nothing feels quite as good as your own bed. Am I right? I am no dog (clearly) but I can only imagine your dogs feel the same way. Yea, sure it’s nice to feel out a different spot, but at the end of the day, he’s made his bed his own, and he likes it.
Reap the benefits
So as you might be able to imagine it is much smoother sailing when your dogs just stick to their own space. You are gathering the kids, finding socks, searching for a lost shoe and the dogs are barking at each other because Fifi is in Fido’s crate. It is hard enough to leave the house with kids, let alone dogs who are now not seeing eye to eye. When they have their own special ‘home’, it is a battle you don’t have to deal with. Now finding a matching sock or shoe on the other hand, I don’t have any tips for that, the struggle is real.
If you are like our reader and wondering if you should assign a crate to each of your dogs, my answer would be yes. Why not? It would make things a little easier. You definitely want to crate them all as opposed to just one. Don’t single one out and let the rest have free reign of the house while you are gone. I think the only time I would answer “no” to the question of “do my dogs need their own crates” is in the instance of puppies who were crated together since birth and adopted as a pair. If they freak out when separated but are fine when together, then don’t fix what isn’t broke. Just let them crate together in a larger crate.
