Why We Crate Train

A king has his castle, a child yearns for his own room, an infant is placed in a crib or playpen for safekeeping. Don’t our young canine friends deserve the very same consideration for their well-being when we're gone? Too often people frown upon crate training their dogs. The most popular reason I hear is because they want their dog to feel comfortable at home and that they don't want to confine them in one place. Well, let me tell you a little story...

Last week, Yoshi woke up in the middle of the night with what we thought were hiccups but we later found out later that they were minor muscle contractions that lasted consistently for over 3 hours! He kept tossing and turning and pacing; it was terrible. By 1AM we decided it was time to take him to the emergency vet. When we arrived, Yoshi was very alert, but aware of my calm energy, so we wasn't too overwhelmed. He stayed patiently by my side through the whole visit. Even the ER vet was impressed! At one point the nurse had to take Yoshi back to administer the IV and give him some meds to settle his stomach. When he arrived back my poor boy looked like a little camel with fluid shot in between his shoulder blades. Although uncomfortable, she said Yoshi did very well. Didn't even need to sedate him Yoshi just sat there, my brave little boy.

Thank goodness Yoshi has been prepped for situations like this! As responsible pack parents we need to prepare our (fur)kids daily for situations like these in order to not startle our pups in times of need. Little 5-7 minute training sessions would do your dog wonders, trust me. When people ask if I recommend crate training, I always say yes. Even if you don't plan on having it out regularly-- your dog NEEDS to be crate trained. God forbid there is ever an emergency and you need to evacuate your area, crates provide safety away from their homes. If ever you choose to travel with your dog, you may have to crate them for a flight or at a hotel while you go out to dinner. Not to mention that most groomers and vets will crate your dog if they stay with them for a few hours. So you might as well teach your dog to enjoy the crate at home so that they're not devastated and crying the whole time away from you. Above all, it's just a nice place to give your dog some space of their own. So please crate train your dogs and if you need help, please feel free to contact me. Let's give our dogs the tools need to survive and succeed out in the real world. Do the work and it will pay off in the long run.