Dog cages are a time-honored and increasingly popular training aid for puppies and older dogs alike. While caging your dog may seem cruel, once you understand the intent and reasoning behind using a dog cage or puppy crate, you'll see the dog cage through your dog's eyes - as a room of his own rather than as a prison.
A Den, not a Jail
A wire cage may seem like a prison to you - a place to confine your dog and keep him out of mischief. But if you properly crate-train your dog, he'll see his cage as a home, more akin to a wolf's den. His dog cage will be a place where he can retreat to in order to feel safe and comfortable-his own private space for hanging out and sleeping. The desire for a small, safe space of his own is hard-wired into your puppy, and taking advantage of his instincts can make house-training your dog much easier for you.
Advantages of a Puppy Crate
Acclimating your dog to a cage or puppy crate offers distinct advantages for you as well. Dogs are instinctively clean animals. If your pup regards the cage as his home, he'll avoid soiling it. This makes a dog cage an effective component of house-training your puppy. You can also use a dog cage to confine your puppy for short periods of time-no more than a few hours at a time, say most dog experts-when you need to keep him from bounding around the house, such as when there are guests or service people in your home.
A cage can also help you set up a routine with your dog. For instance, you can feed him in his cage, and then put him immediately on a leash and take him outside to do his business. He'll learn quickly to anticipate the routine and adjust his bodily habits to it.
You can also use the puppy crate to help establish a nighttime routine by crating him at night when you go to sleep. Because his nature is to keep his crate clean, he'll alert you if he needs to go outside while he's confined rather than finding a corner where he can make a deposit for you to find in the morning. Be sure to respond to his needs rather than forcing him to soil his sleeping area - but be careful not to teach him to associate being let out of the cage at night with playtime. Take him from the cage to the elimination area, give him time to do his business, and return him to the cage.
There are times when you'll need to use the cage for practical purposes like confining your dog after surgery, for example, or when traveling. If you've trained your puppy to regard the dog cage as his den, he'll find those times much less stressful and traumatic. If you introduce your dog to his cage and then gradually and get him used to using it regularly, you'll have a much happier puppy in the long run.
