Dog pen

Question
Hi,
I just adopted a 9 month old white shepherd.  He had very little training and attention before, but he is catching on very quickly. I just love him.

This is the problem.  I have a very large dog kennel that I want him to stay in during the day.  It's not chain link - it's made of slats.  He has figured out that he can break the slats with his teeth.  Obviously he hates the dog run.  

Should I let him run around the yard all day since that's what he wants to do, or force him to stay in the run?  I don't like the idea of him running around because he tends to get into trouble (killed 3 wild bunnies).

I hate to butt heads with this dog so I'm trying to figure out how to handle this situation.  I appreciate any advice.

Thank you,

Yvonne


Answer
I hate to a dog left by itself all day anywhere.  I suggest crating the dog and giving it a mid day break.  If you can't make it back for that, perhaps a neighbor or professional dog walker could.  If you can, doggy day care is a good idea.  There is just too much a bored, lonely dog can find to do, and they can be stolen, abused, killed or get loose when left outside in a fence.   am familiar with young Labs which tend to shred anything they can get their teeth on.  They also have problems with choking and intestinal blockages from chunks of what ever they chew up.  This includes rawhide chews and ropes from the pet supply.

It is only natural that a puppy resists its crate at first.  What the puppy wants more than anything else is to be others, you, anyone else in the household, and any other pets.  In our modern society, even if we are home, other things distract us from the attention an uncrated puppy must have.   The only real solution is to crate the dog when you aren't around.  The dog may be happier in its den than loose in the house.  It relaxes, it feels safe in its den.  It rests, the body slows down reducing the need for water and relieving its self.  Dogs that have been crated all along do very well.  Many of them will rest in their crates even when the door is open.  I think the plastic ones give the dog more of a safe, enclosed den feeling.  Metal ones can be put in a corner or covered with something the dog can't pull in and chew.  Select a crate just big enough for the full grown dog to stretch out in.

Leave it some toys.  Perhaps a Kong filled with peanut butter.  Don't leave anything in the crate the dog might chew up.  It will do fine without even any bedding.  You will come home to a safe dog and a house you can enjoy.

A dog that has not been crated since it was little, may take some work. Start out just putting its toys and treats in the crate.  Praise it for going in.  Feed it in the crate.  This is also an easy way to maintain order at feeding time for more than one dog.

The "shut the puppy in a safe room" is a fallacy.  Very few houses even have a safe room.  How many of us have a room with a hard surfaced floor and nothing else?  Most rooms have electrical cords to chew if nothing else.  In addition to destroying anything a bored puppy finds to chew, it may choke or have intestinal  blockage from the pieces.  I had a friend that left her dog in a "safe" room.  It ate a hole in the floor covering.  The safe rooms fail to give the dog the comfort of the enclosed space their instinct requires.  Nor do they restrict activity extending the time the dog can go without relieving itself.

You should be in charge and not need to butt heads.  The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts.  Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog.  Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones.  You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/  For more on being top dog, see http://www.dogbreedinfo.com./topdogrules.htm