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Sleeping In The Crate?


Guest tdlsix

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Guest tdlsix

Hi All,

 

We're picking up our new greyhound this afternoon (we visited him last week and spent the intervening time getting the apartment ready). We understand and expect that he'll sleep in our room with us, and the rescue organization that rehabilitated him has lent us a crate for the adjustment period. Should we move the crate into our bedroom so he can sleep in it? I recall seeing on another discussion that someone advised against having your greyhound actually sleep in his crate; is this a bad idea? We were thinking that his sleeping in the crate in our bedroom would make the first few nights easier, but if it's a bad idea we wanted to know in advance so we get started right.

 

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

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Guest FastDogsOwnMe

They can sleep in a crate, and yes, I would put it in the bedroom. I make most fresh-off-the-track dogs sleep in the crate the first few nights, though certainly not all. Depends on the dog.

 

Congratulations on your new hound. What's his name? Do you have any photos?

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When we brought Rocket home, we put the crate in our bedroom and had him sleep in there for the first few weeks until we felt like he had adjusted to a routine. This kept him from wandering around while we were sleeping, and established his routine of sleeping in our room. We simply moved a dog bed into the crate spot when he was ready.

 

We do keep the crate setup in another room in case he wants to go in there and hang out, especially while we are gone. It is primarily used as his "tanning booth" when the morning sun comes through that window now, but it's there if he needs a safe place. We also still crate him if someone is here working on the house, as he likes to help and really can get in the way. :lol It also prevents an escape if a service person is going in and out repeatedly.

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Camp Broodie. The current home of Mark Kay Mark Jack and Gracie Kiowa Safe Joan.  Always missing my boy Rocket Hi Noon Rocket,  Allie  Phoenix Dynamite, Kate Miss Kate, Starz Under Da Starz, Petunia MW Neptunia, Diva Astar Dashindiva, and LaVida I've Got Life

 

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Guest FastDogsOwnMe

Oh, and I do keep the bedroom door shut at night always anyway (quirk of mine) but especially to keep my dogs from roaming the house at night. I'm a light sleeper and I expect them to settle and stay settled which they do with no problem after a few days.

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I have several who have slept in their crates from the day they got here, because they just love their crates! They tell me when it's bed time and they want their crates to sleep in.:lol I have no problem with dogs sleeping in crates at all.

Judy, mom to Darth Vader, Bandita, And Angel

Forever in our hearts, DeeYoGee, Dani, Emmy, Andy, Heart, Saint, Valentino, Arrow, Gee, Bebe, Jilly Bean, Bullitt, Pistol, Junior, Sammie, Joey, Gizmo, Do Bee

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Guest Wasserbuffel

Mine slept in her crate the first few nights, then once she learned the stairs she slept on a bed in our room - after the second night, I slept on the spare bed in the room with her crate.

 

For nearly a year she slept on just a dog bed in our room. Then, on New Year's Eve she was crated during our party and refused to budge at 2:00AM when we went to bed. After that, she decided to run to her crate to sleep after last turnout instead of our bedroom. She won, and we moved the crate to our room where she sleeps in it happily every night.

 

 

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Guest sheila

What about putting the dog in the crate but leave the door open? Also just out of curiosity, you say that your group 'rehabilitated' him. What does that mean exactly? I've never heard that phrase before.

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What about putting the dog in the crate but leave the door open? Also just out of curiosity, you say that your group 'rehabilitated' him. What does that mean exactly? I've never heard that phrase before.

 

I was wondering that too!


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Susan,  Hamish,  Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck

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I would give the crate as an option...like Sheila said, leave the door open. But, I'd also babygate the bedroom to keep him from wandering all over the house...at least for a week or so.

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Michelle...forever missing her girls, Holly 5/22/99-9/13/10 and Bailey 8/1/93-7/11/05

Religion is the smile on a dog...Edie Brickell

Wag more, bark less :-)

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Your plan is not a bad idea. In fact it is a very good idea. You will be doing your new Greyhound a great kindness by bringing him into your room to sleep at night. There will already be many, many changes for him without being asked to sleep in isolation. When we have fosters they sleep in a crate in the bedroom with us. They are in our bedroom so they do not feel alone. They are in a crate for both safety & house training purposes. My first Greyhound slept in a crate in our bedroom at night for at least a year. At first we kept the crate door closed because of my cat. Later the crate was left open but it was still her favorite nighttime sleeping spot. All our dogs love to sleep in crates when we have one set up. However, do to space constraints we no longer usually have crates set up except for visiting or convalescing dogs. However, when visiting others or staying in motels they are usually crated. That is for safety reasons.

 

All of them are allowed to & do sleep in our bedroom. They do not sleep in bed with us though. With two humans & two cats in a queen size bed it is already cozy enough. :blush

 

Welcome and enjoy your new hound. Hope you all have an easy transition. Please post pictures.

 

ETA: Until we are reasonably certain they are house trained, all dogs are crated with the door closed at night & when we are not there.

Edited by kudzu
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Guest june

As so many said each dog is different. My first girl slept in her crate with the door open for over a year. I two others who let me know in no uncertain terms they did not want the crate. If you don't crate while you are gone you might want to gate into one room and muzzle for a while until you know there are no chewing issues.

Congratulations on your new baby! Your life will never be the same; in a greyt way. B)

june

Edited by june
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my dogs love their crates! when i only have one up there is a waiting line of dogs, our place is small so we generally have room for one and that's it. my girls came to me right off the track and i set their crate up in the living room. no problem having them sleep in there. if there is fussing then i bring the pup into the bedroom and work on training to get them to sleep the night. my male was very young when i adopted him, hand raised and needed to be near humans- so he let us know that he needed to be in the bedroom. but the girls were fine in their own space and spent lots of time hanging out in their crates where the action was- the living room. also our living room is 10degrees warmer than the bedroom during the winter, another reason i set the crate up there.

 

remember their crate their "safe" place. they know it well, it's theirs. also our hands do not belong in the crate, do not try to take something out when they are in it. crates are cleaned when the dogs are out of them. you will find lots of interesting object stasched in the crate, greyhounds are fantastic hoarders.

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We allow Bella on our bed, but she never spends the whole night there. She really prefers to sleep in her crate. We generally shut the door to the crate, otherwise she tends to hop up on our bed at about 4 am. We all sleep better if she's in her crate. :D

Dave (GLS DeviousDavid) - 6/27/18
Gracie (AMF Saying Grace) - 10/21/12
Bella (KT Britta) - 4/29/05 to 2/13/20

 

 

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Dogs are pack animals. Packs sleep together. YOU are the new pack. Having him sleep in your bedroom is very important. Whether you crate him, have a crate and leave it open, or babygate, the dog should be in your bedroom at night for now.

 

Please DO NOT put a dog to bed in a crate in a different room from you the first few nights. It's terrifying to them. For the few people that have situations where the CAN NOT have a dog in the bedroom - those people often sleep on the floor near the dog for a while.

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