Crates have become a popular training method in recent times. They have helped dog owners train difficult dogs and have in fact influenced the number (reduced) of dog abandonments. Crates allow dogs to be trained in a safe secure environment.

Crates have three main purposes. The first is to provide a secure and safe place for your dog during house training, crates also protect household items, and they are also essential for travel.

Veterinarians have mixed reviews about the dog crate. Some see it as an acceptable and useful tool for the training of your dog. While others say it is potentially dangerous and that it is unfair confinement. However, it is used by dog show and training professionals for the purpose of properly training show dogs.

Some Vet’s question whether locking a dog inside a crate is inhumane and whether the dog feels punished by this. When a dog is properly trained however they see the crate as their own den and actually like sleeping there as they feel safe. Crate’s have numerous benefits that will help you and your dog build a better relationship.

Some more advantages to using crates include being able to relax when you’re not at home knowing that your furniture and household items are safe from destruction, knowing you won’t return home to a new accident on the carpet, and knowing that you dog feels safe when you are not there. Additionally, crates are very practical for trips in the car with family.

Some of the things you should remember about the crates are that it was not meant to keep your dog all day. In some instances such as long distance travel, where the dog may be crated for long periods of time, you will need to ensure that the dog is exercised during the day so that they have a chance to release pent up energies and they don’t feel confined.

While crating is an excellent way for training most dogs it is not for every single dog. All dogs are different and what works well for some is clearly not an option for others especially older dogs.

Crate training works best when your dog is still a puppy. If you seem that no matter how persistent you are with your dog, you never get results, it might be time to stop attempting to use this method and to try a different one.