One or Two Crates?

[Gillian]

Hi Everyone! I am new to DoodleKisses and will be bringing home my first puppy in June! While I am overly excited, I can't help the anxiety I feel and have done a lot of research about my new baby. So glad I found this site.

I plan to crate train as soon as our pup comes home. I want her to sleep in her crate in our bedroom at night so I can alleviate some of her anxiety in the beginning and to help me get her out quickly when she needs to go to the bathroom. But, I also read a lot about keeping their crate in a higher traffic area so the pup gets used to the crate while I do house chores, etc. to alleviate separation anxiety in the beginning. I am wondering if I should get two crates or if that would be confusing to her? I don't have to lug the giant crate from room to room, but if need be I will. Just curious what you all might think about the one crate vs. two issue.

Thanks for your help!

[Julie Savolt]

We started off with two crates. One in our bedroom and one in the kitchen. I couldn't see leaving him at night downstairs. He loves his crate and often goes in just for a peaceful rest. Barley doesn't like when we move a crate. He likes them in the original locations. We tried moving a crate to one of the kids rooms and he doesn't like it.

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

If your plan is to keep a crate in your bedroom for your pup to sleep in on a regular basis, I'd opt for 2. It really comes down to personal preference. We only used a 2nd crate for 2 nights in our bedroom and then moved Lucy to her regular crate downstairs near the patio door. She never did have issues with separation anxiety, being away from her mom and sibs, or from us, for that matter, and never cried in either crate. She might be the exception, I realize, as she was really easy to crate train and seemed to fit into our family immediately. We had scheduled times we took her out for potty breaks during the night and she never had any accidents in her crate. I've read that if you plan to move your pup out of the bedroom eventually you shouldn't wait any more than 3 nights, as it can be difficult to transition after the 3rd night. Never had to deal with that problem.

Congrats and good luck with your new puppy! It really is like expecting a baby... and the challenges that come with one are very similar too!

[Carol and Banjo]

Congratulations on your new "baby"!! I totally understand your excitement and anxiety -having just gotten our puppy just a month ago. We do have two crates....one in our bedroom and one in our living area - this has worked out very well and eliminated us moving one crate around the house. Banjo loves both his crates! The living room crate is the smaller of the 2 and we're realizing that he will outgrow it very soon so we will have to make some adjustments in the near future. Best of luck with your new puppy!!!

[Doris, Knox & Flash]

Gill, I just went through this. I have a 15 week old puppy and I started with one crate, moving it back and forth from my kitchen area and my bedroom. I did that for about two weeks and had enough of it! I got another one that stays in my bedroom and it has worked well! There has been no confusion to my puppy -- they really are more flexible than we give them credit for! Hope this helps!

[BG and Gavin]

We had one crate that was in the spare room - directly across the hall from our bedroom. With both doors open, he could hear us breath and we could say a few soothing words when required. This worked well. The first night with the crate in the living room did not! During the day we kept a close eye on him or tethered him to us and put him in his crate out of sight for short times here and there so he could get used to it - as after the first week we would be returning to work and he would be in there for a few hours alone during the day. He adjusted very easily. We were lucky.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I have 2 crates for Calla. Upstairs she sleeps in her crate in the bedroom although Luca is free. She's not 100% reliable about not chewing things she's not supposed to, she doesn't seem to mind and two dogs in bed is a bit much, I think. The downstairs crates are for when I"m out. I rarely put them in the crates when I'm home, just for very muddy paws or a felony : ). They always get a treat when I leave and don't complain about going in the crates. On the other hand, they do not like being in their crates when I'm home.

[DeeDee and Sheila]

My puppy was relatively small, so I just moved the crate at night to beside my bed, right where she could see me. I did have to switch out the fleece liner for just a towel, now that the weather has changed she was getting hot. I only bought one crate, because I may have to get a bigger on in the future. Moving the one crate has worked out fine.

[Minga & Malu & Costa]

I am using two crates with this puppy. It is working great for me. That way he is in our room at night, and in the daytime he is in the living room where there is more light and he can see the cats and hear our birds. He does not seem to be confused by it. Usually with a new puppy, whatever you get them used to, is what they will be used to. So start off with 2 at the beginning and it shouldn't be a problem!