Adult Dog Size Versus Crate Size

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

When Tara came to live with us we bought a 24 inch crate with divider thinking this would be more than adequate for her expected size as a mini.  Now that she is nearing 2 years old she still sleeps in her crate at night with the door closed in our bedroom.  Although she is only 19 pounds she is really a "long body" style doodle and I am concerned that she does not have enough space in the crate at night.  Here are the measurements:

 

Tara- 26 inches from nose to rear laying flat

 

Crate-24 inches

 

Pan in bottom of crate-22 inches

 

Crate measured diagonally -29 inches

 

So you can see she can't really stretch her legs out. Sometimes I look in there and she is laying on her back with her legs up in the air which is probably the only way she can stretch them out. It looks really uncomfortable to me!!

 

We tried experimenting with leaving the crate door open but she just goes back in the crate by morning. We started closing the door again after while (long story) so she is back to being closed in the crate all night again.

 

For those of you who have adult doodles still in crates for extended periods during the day or night...what is your crate size vs dog size?? Do I need to upgrade to the next bigger size or do dogs prefer a tight fit?  Will dogs who are accustomed to a crate return to it because of habit or a feeling of safety even though it is uncomfortable?

 

[shelly]

LOL... Yeah - definitely NOT in my decor scheme! BOYS! Gotta' love them! (And except for Tori - I'm surrounded by them!)

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Well last night we left the crate door open. It was pretty uneventful. She slept in the crate until some point in the middle of the night when I coughed. She got up and came to my side of the bed, put her paws up on the bed and looked at me. That was it. Once she saw I was okay she went back to the crate and stayed there until morning. But at least she had a little stretch break during the night! It made ME feel better!! LOL! We also put a baby gate across the bedroom door so she couldn't roam the house but she didn't seem to have any interest in roaming at all. This whole thing may be more MY issue than HERS! I do feel better knowing that she has the OPTION of getting out of the crate.

[shelly]

LOL... It usually IS more US than THEM! Glad to hear how well it went!

[jessica mockapetris]

yeah i would probaly get a new crate

[Laura & Chewie]

I've been following this thread as Chewie still has the same crate we bought for him at 8 weeks. It is a 30" crate and of course we used the divided initially. Now at 15 months, Chewie is in the crate only at night. I would love to leave him out...he does wonderful being out of his crate during the day when we are not home, but keep thinking why break what isn't broken. He is content in his crate at night until I let him out in the morning. I have no idea what he would do with freedom at night...wake me up a 2:00 am to play...LOL. Anyway, I keep wondering also if his crate is too small. He is a mini and weighs 26 lbs. He can lay on his side in the crate, but just barely. I just hate to invest in a new crate if it's for a minimal amount of time and I start leaving him out.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Laura, we feel the same way about investing in a new crate when we really prefer to have her out of it! And also some dogs don't LIKE their new crates-so it could turn out to be a big waste that way too. Maybe you could try what we are trying-just leaving the crate door open and see how that goes. If his crate is in your bedroom you could block the door so he couldn't roam. What we do at night when we are in bed and she tries to get our attention is just ignore her and she gives up and goes back to laying down. Tara is about 6 months older than Chewie so he may have a little more puppy enthusiasm than Tara right now! We know the first days or weeks will be exciting and different for her but like so many other things with Tara it doesn't take long before it becomes "normal" and loses the "newness". He might surprise you and just go sleep in his crate even if the door is open like Tara does!!

[Leslie and Halas]

It's funny that you say she's a long-body. I think the weight of some of our doodles compared to their height/length is surprising. Halas' original wire crate was one with a divider. We used the divider until he was a little bit bigger, but we eventually got rid of the divider entirely. When I first bought the crate, thinking that he would be 25 - 30 lbs full-grown (which he is), I was a little worried that it would always be too big for him. My friends have a cocker spaniel that is in the same weight range, so I was thinking Halas would be about his size, and he would always be swimming in this crate. But Halas is much taller and longer than the cocker spaniel, even though Halas weighs slightly less. Sure, the cocker spaniel is overweight, and so a little bit wider than Halas. But it still surprises me. A lot of crates in the stores talk about the weight of the dogs that would fit in the crate, but I don't think that's a fair indicator. Wow, I really went off on a tangent there. If Tara willingly goes into her crate, she must be fine with the size. If you're leaving the door open, and she's not getting out during the night to stretch out on the floor, then she must be OK with not stretching out.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Lesle, that is exactly what we did-went by weight. The 24" crate was rated for a 11-25 pound dog. Tara is 19 pounds and should fit in it just fine. But because of her long body style she is pretty cramped. (At least in my opinion! LOL! )But like you say, she doesn't come out all night even with the door open so it can't be too bad. Last night was the 2nd night with the crate door open and she just sleep in it through the night. I do think it would have been more helpful to have had length as one of the measurements considered at the time we were crate shopping. We would have gotten the next size up.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

I would do the 30". That is what we have for Peri. She is 26 pounds, but these mini doods seem so much bigger than what they weigh. They have longer legs, body, etc... My mom's old cairn used to weigh 22 pounds but looked 1/2 the size of Peri. If you question it, I would buy the 30". You can find some good deals online....I think we got ours for $50.

[Lisa, Daisy & Dexter]

I really believe that your Tara is like my Daisy and is fine in her crate. I woke up super early this am and she is still in her open door crate. My fear is the HUGE crate will always be a piece of "furniture" and my "nightstand". We ordered her a bed (that has back-ordered twice now-ugh) in case she does feels cramped but meanwhile it is her choice to stay in it or anywhere else she's like to sleep. Daisy's crate is only one step down from the biggest crate and is for up to a 90lb dog (Daisy is 65lbs) but I know what you mean about stretching out. They say if the dog can stand and comfortably turn around in it's crate it is fine, well Daisy can. Mommy's guilt/worry is in play here.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Lisa, the same thing happened here this morning. I woke up really early and Tara was still sleeping away in her crate with the door open. She didn't even wake up when I got up. So it appears she is getting "quality sleep" in the crate! LOL!

And I know what you mean about the "furniture" concern! Tara's crate has already replaced DH's nightstand! We thought it was going to be temporary but....

Oh and yes, yes, mommy's guilt for SURE!!! I am obviously much more concerned about the entire issue then SHE is! Who is the one sleeping at night and who is the one laying awake worrying about if she is sleeping?

[Lisa, Daisy & Dexter]

LOL - my only real concern with not having her in the crate was if my husband gets up in the middle of the night (to do whatever :-) and steps on her. My every waking thought would be and is where is Daisy but he is never really thinking when he gets up. So far nothing bad has happened and it's been about a month now.