Guest iLoveLucie Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 When we first got our girl Lucie we had a crate in our bedroom. She's gradually transitioned out of it: first sleeping in it at night with crate door closed, then sleeping in crate with door open, now the crate is folded up in our closet and she sleeps on her bed in our room. We used it while housetraining and it worked great.... She would wake us up when she was ready to go but lay back down in her crate and wait for us to get up. We also kept her crated when home alone until we knew she wouldn't going the house. We decided to start fostering for our local group and should be getting our first dog soon! I'd like to use the same technique with the crate for the foster dog (if he has no crate anxiety) - keep him crated at nightand when home alone until he is house trained. Also maybe when feeding at first. But I'm curious how Lucie will take it? Will she want her old crate and get aggressive with the new dog in it? Will there be an issue with one dog in a crate and one out when we are gone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gryhndsr4us Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 Sneakers is kenneled when we are gone and Dreamy isn't. We have no problems, Sneakers runs to his kennel for his treat when we leave. Dreamy has a kennel we just don't lock her in when we leave. They both will take treats to their kennels. I don't know if you will have a problem with Lucie wanting to go in the kennel as we didn't take Dreamy's down. Quote Sue ,Sky and Dood, Bridge angels Clark, Gypsy, Dreamy and Sneakers, Oshkosh,WI Heartbound Greyhound Adoption<p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mbfilby Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 We use one crate and have three dogs. They take turns, first come first served. No fighting.. We sometimes crate our male, and if someone is in it at the time they will move if asked. It is more likely that a foster will become snarky over the crate then your girl. When a pup first gets into a home, the crate becomes their safe place and they can become possessive. The same is true with first experiences on human furniture. It is common for newly adopted greys to get snarly until they learn the rules.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeylasMom Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 Shouldn't be a problem. I've done various combinations of crated and not crated without issue. I would just watch at the very beginning to make sure one won't try to go in the crate while the other is already in it. Although I've also had that happen numerous times and while it can be tense, I just happily call the dogs and have always managed to have everyone come out without quarreling. When you think about it, no dog really wants to get into a scuffle in such a small space so it would be more likely someone might do a warning growl or snap to tell the other dog not to come in as they approach, but otherwise, at least one will likely just come out. Even Neyla, who was my resource guarder would just get up and out in those situations. And I always made sure to reward her with a happy dance and treats when she did. Quote Jen, CPDT-KA with Zuri, lab in a greyhound suit, Violet, formerly known as Faith, Skye, the permanent puppy, Cisco, resident cat, and my baby girl Neyla, forever in my heart "The great thing about science is that you're free to disagree with it, but you'll be wrong." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest june Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 Try putting the crate up before you bring the foster home to see how your girl acts. I occasionally have a crate set up in my house as I dog-sit (greys only)and if I don't know the dog will have it set up "just in case." One of mine who really doesn't like to be crated will go lay down in the crate when it is first set up but quickly looses interest. I have to admit I very seldom have to crate, but would rather have it set up and not need it than have to go out to the shed to get it after dark june Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest iLoveLucie Posted March 12, 2011 Share Posted March 12, 2011 Thanks all. I'll lug the crate out a few days before our foster comes home. Ideally it would be great to have 2 crates, but we just don't have the room. It's been nice not having it up for a while and Lucie is fine without it. I'm just thinking it will really come in handy to help the new hound not have an accident inside - especially first thing in the morning! And I didn't even think about the foster wanting/needing a "safe" place to go while the are adjusting... makes sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest roachnroo Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 What is your group's protocol on crating? If your group requires crating, then there is your answer concerning to crate or not. I seriously doubt your girl would be "possessive" of the crate. Greyhounds don't really tend to have those types of behaviors since they were raised in a pack environment, not a home environment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeofNE Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 It seems to me as if your group should be providing you with some direction. The woman who fostered my dog did not follow the group's protocols at ALL, and it created a huge problem for me later, as I assumed she had. Please find out what they want you to do--that way you'll be ready to hand over a dog to its new family and they're understanding of how the group deals with fosters will match up with how you actually worked iwth him or her. Quote Susan, Hamish, Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LokisMom Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 One of my greys is with me because his first foster family didn't follow protocol and it led to him getting hurt and another dog getting killed. If the group wants the foster crated, crate her. If Lucie gets upset over the crate which I highly doubt will happen. I've done a lot of combos of crating and never had a problem, you can always move the crate somewhere else or keep it closed until foster dog needs to go into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest iLoveLucie Posted March 17, 2011 Share Posted March 17, 2011 The general direction I got from my group was the crate can be used as a training tool if needed, but the long term goal is to get the dogs out of the crate (since they've spent most of their lives in a kennel). So I'm planning to start with the crate until we know the dog better - know it won't have an accident inside, isn't food aggressive, is ok out and about when we are not home. Also know we will use muzzles when we aren't home, take rides in the car, etc. We definitely want to keep the dogs safe! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TexasGreytMom Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 My personal thoughts are that I would sleep better knowing that there's absolutely no chance of a scuffle in the middle of the night- until the pups know each other better. I would crate for a while. That way, you know everyone is safe ... my motto is "better safe than sorry." Even if the pups aren't aggressive toward each other, if both are uncrated at night and one accidentally steps on the other or throws a leg over, the other pup could misinterpret as an attack. I also think your girl will in all likelihood be fine with having the foster crated and won't be possessive of "her" crate. We've never had that experience in the past 15 years we've had greys. What an awesome thing you're doing to foster! I wish you all the best! DH and I tried it and failed miserably - we adopted each one we fostered! LOL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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