Crating a Grey

[DaveS]

There have been many comments (on other sites) about adopting a grey because of the way they are treated.  Often cited is that they are kept in crates up to 20-22 hours a day.  We adopted a 2yo female grey about three months ago and already had a Cocker Spaniel and a Corgi.  So we rearranged our dog living arrangements to suit the new composition of our "pack."  Long story short, the Corgi (3yo female), the Cocker (11yo male), and the grey were given crates to sleep in.

The Corgi had no problems with the crate.  I suspect she was crate trained by the breeder we bought her from at about 8 weeks old.  The Cocker had to be bribed with food or treats to go into his crate but within two or three days, he was perfectly happy in it.  He's still a happy, friendly, lovable dog and shows no ill effects from being in the crate.  Both of these dogs are now in their crates 20-22 hours a day during the week and 12-16 hours on weekends.  Meanwhile, the grey is very reluctant to go into her crate.  She'll go in for a while with a bribe, but starts complaining within a few minutes.  So she sleeps on a bed at the foot of our bed.

I'm surprised about how easy it was to crate the Cocker at age 11 while the grey is so reluctant to go into hers.  I would have thought the opposite would be the case.

 

[MaryJane]

Two of my greyhounds would hurt themselves trying to get out of the crate (digging and trying to bend bars with teeth). I stopped using them completely for my greyhounds.

[LaFlaca]

Over the years, I’ve had 3 Greyhounds and all have detested the crate. Lola actually injured her mouth and destroyed the crate to escape it.  Baby gates have been a better option for us. 

[buddibear]

With 4 dogs, none are crated. They have full run of the house all day and never a problem. Maybe I got lucky. 3 won't even get on furniture. Only crates  I needed were for a few fosters 

 

[LBass]

I've generally not needed to crate my Greyhounds.  I dutifully crated my first Grey, Piper, because the adoption group strongly suggested it for the first few weeks/months.  As soon as Piper got a taste of not being crated, there was no going back.     MoMo accepted the crate during recovery from breaking her leg but was not crated except for that 6 week recovery period. Spirit has never needed crating at home.  Nate--my newest and a bit of a hellion--is crated when no one is home right now, and is fed in his crate.  He's  just fine crated.  He wines to be let out the minute he finishes his meals, but if he's not let out, he then settles happily down in the crate for a nap.

[greysmom]

There are good reasons to have crate trained dogs - illness and injury, emergencies and evacuations, safety. So would keep on with getting her used to this new crating situation.  And it is new for her.  Being in a racing kennel, in a comfy crate that two good sized humans can sit in, with the rest of your good friends around you is *very* different from being in a wire crate in a new place and environment.  Remember, she's basically had her entire world turned upside down in a very short span of time, so it will take some time and patience on your part to help her through.

You need to make the crate the most bestest place ever for her - feed her meals in her crate, give her special chews and treats in her crate.  Leave the door open so she can come and go as she wants while you are there.  When you leave, give her a Kong filled with frozen peanut butter or canned food.  Leave a tv channel or radio on.  Some dogs like to be able to see you leave, and some need to NOT.  It's all about what makes her most comfortable.

Search through the Training and Behavior section for more crate training ideas.

[DaveS]

Thanks for the comments.  I guess I was baffled by how easy it was to crate train an older dog yet the difficulty in crating a dog I thought was familiar with it.  Perhaps greysmom has the reason; the crate at our house is not the same as the one that our gray was accustomed to.  All crates aren't created equal.

[RaineysMom]

Both of these dogs are now in their crates 20-22 hours a day during the week and 12-16 hours on weekends.

 

we crate our greys but just very curious, WHY are you crating for 20-22 hours and 12-16 hours???  that is a very, very long time for them to be crated IMO.

[Houndtime]

I crate our dogs at night and when we leave the house.  The amount of time your dogs are spending in their crates seems excessive.  Is there a reason?

[DaveS]

No particular reason I crate them that long.  I probably exaggerated the times, but they do stay in their crates a lot.  They seem to enjoy the crates and are willing go in and lie down.  I'm referring to the Cocker and the Corgi, not the grey.  She's out most of the time, usually sleeping on one of her beds.  I'm not a cruel master.