another crate question..

[puppy go luckii]

hello.. i kno ive asked a buncha crate question but this is tha last one i promise lol.. okay.. i have a 4 month old min pin.. who is not housebroken yet.. he sleeps in his crate at night.. and is crate trainined.. my question is what is an alternative to crating?? bcuz no one is home now from 630am - 230pm (mothers work schedule changed).. and i dont want him to be crated for 16 hours (total) besides his break time in the morning.. but i also dont want him to just be peeing everywhere lol.. so what do i do.. do i continue to crate him?? do i put him in a bathroom?? i htought about jus buying a rly big crate so he had walking room and everything.. but wouldnt he just crap on one side and lay in the other?? i bought a puppy pen but this was too little too late he can jump and climb over it lol (smart lil fella).. but thnx for your hlp.. raymond

 

[YorkieLover]

So are you saying he would be crated the 8 hours from 6:30 till 2:30 and then again another 8 hours during bed time? I'm confused because you said he only gets a break in the morning. Are you going to be gone for 16 hours straight?

 

[puppy go luckii]

lol no.. yeh i meant at bed time.. then the morning.. thats the problem i dont kno if thats fair

 

[YorkieLover]

Our little 7 month old sleeps with us but used to sleep in her crate from 10:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. and then would be out until 7:00.. She would then be crated again from 7:00 until noon when I came home for lunch and back again until 2:45 when my son comes home. We never wanted her to go longer than 4 or 5 hours in that crate during the day when noone was there especially when she was 4 and 5 months old. Is there anyway you can come home and let your pup out at lunch time?

 

[puppy go luckii]

no im in skool and we dont have off campus lunch ne more my mom is a lawyer and cant exactly jus walk out of her office / court and my dad is a plastic surgeon and he sure as hell cant walk out lmao.. so nope.. is there ne thing else??

 

[YorkieLover]

I'm not sure, you may want to see what everyone else has to offer. My thought would be to buy the larger crate and put a potty pad on one side since you already know the pup can climb the xpen. I just hate the thought of locking a 4 month old in a bathroom or any other room for 8 hours. I hope someone can help you out on here. Good luck...

 

[Gustav]

We thoroughly fenced our garden and put in a dog flap, so that on the days when we do both go out (this is very rarely!!) Gus can go out by himself!

 

[becca_4321]

When we first got my daughters Rott years ago we didnt have a crate. Started off using a babygate in the hallway allowing her so much room to move around yet not enough to want to potty. I was able to come home at lunch time. One thing that worries me about the babygate is the first time I set it up I had the handle on the inside, left for work but realized I forgot something so I went back home real quick. I found the puppy had tried chewing out of it and had gotten her jaw caut up! I got her free, turned the gate a different direction and she never tried to chew it again. In fact she went years of being scared to death of a babygate. Wouldnt go near it. Anyway, as she became more trustworthy I'd give her more and more space in the hallway until she had the entire space along with a bedroom.
When I felt like I could trust her to be outside with us gone, on pretty days I'd let her run in the back yard which was fenced in. I just always worry about puppies being left in a back yard because they can sometimes find gaps to get out that a larger dog wouldnt be able to fit thru.

 

[bogolove]

What about getting a baby gate and confining him to a small area that is larger than his crate, such as the bathroom or the kitchen where messes are easier to clean up just in case? That way he can have his freedom, but with a bit of a restriction to keep him from messing all over the house.

Ok I just read the post above me which suggested the same thing. Sorry about that. I guess great minds think alike LOL!!!!

 

[Love4Pits]

I think the Baby gates a good idea. I have a hard wood floor with rugs all through out my house and so its easy to clean up. I have gotten into the habit of putting Babe in the laundry room with a high Baby gate while im gone so she can see everything but can't get out. I can't leave Pakak outside of his crate while im on runs (the only time he's in his crate unless I go to the store) in any room he finds a way to get into things. I tried to just leav him in the bathroom with some toys, food, water, and treats one day and he chewed through a bottle of shampoo puked and then got into my cupboard and drug out things. Leaving him in the laundry room or bedrooms get the same results. But Pakak stays in a large breed crate where he can stand up and walk around I give him alot of toys and he's got food and whatever and always gets a treat when I get in and let him out.
I would say as long as your puppy is'nt super curiouse then the bathroom would be a good idea if you don't want to put him in a crate. And in my opinion that is too long to crate a puppy so yeah i would say a fenced off part of the house that is easy to clean up if theres messes would be a good idea.