Doggy Door or Not for the first month?

[Frances S]

Hi,

I'm new to this site I came across today..We have a puppy goldendoodle that came home this weekend at 8 weeks.  She is crate trained..When do you think we should invest in a doggy door? Thank You..

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm just jealous that you have a yard so big you can't see what your dogs are doing even when you're out there with them.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

I totally agree with that Karen, sometimes I think my husband is overprotective, but the dogs are so quick that even on a leash we have to yank stuff out of their mouths!

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

Same here Adina-we actually put padlocks on the inside of the gates when they are out there so if UPS or grandma and grandpa stop over they will not get out onto the street!!

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

THANK YOU!! Chloe got very sick eating mud and launching for rabbit poop as she was on leash in our yard, the rabbit poop made her very sick! Plus there are many annuals and perrenials that are toxic!!

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

They sell them at all our pet stores and Walmart now has them too.

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

We already had a doggie door from our dog before we got Gracie Doodle.  We love it!  Though it does not go to our entire back yard.  It goes into our patio that is fenced completely and also fenced from the main back yard.  It is cement and bark covered ground with plants around it.  I really can't remember when Gracie finally started using the doggie door.  First off, they have to be tall enough.  Ours is raised about 9" off the ground and is in our sliding glass door.  Since we got Gracie 4th of July weekend when she was out of her crate in the kitchen/breakfast area we just left the sliding door open so she could go in and out into the patio...always supervised though.  Never out of the crate unsupervised.  Eventually we taught her to use the doggie door and when she became 100% trustworthy at 5 months we took the crate away and she slept in our bed every night.  During the day we left her in the kitchen with all the doors closed to the rest of the house so she had the kitchen, doggie door and patio as her areas.  Eventually she was allowed the entire house!  For our lifestyle and home/land arrangement the doggie door is perfect!  Would never think of any other way.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

Wow Nancie! Gracie was trustworthy at 5 mo?? OMG Chloe is 4,Myla 3 and they just got their crates taken away. We must be BAD doodle paents! We were celebrating this just this weekend...oops!

[Eva (Lilo and Rocky)]

we got a doggy door when Rocky was about 2 1/2 years old (I think) - he is semi-nocturnal and wants to patrol yard at night. Prior to installing the door, he was getting us up to let him in & out several times/night, which was ruining our sleep. So the dog door has been wonderful - it's radio-controlled to avoid having racoons and other critters visit our kitchen. I don't think I'd want a young puppy outside alone, but letting a large adult dog run around by himself isn't a problem where we are (our yard is very large, but fully fenced), as long as he doesn't bark too much...

[Lee Seidman]

We have two Doodles and two Doggie doors. Our guys love knowing that when they have to go potty they just walk outside. We always let them have access to their run day and night, the second run is our yard, fenced on three sides but on an open canal on one side. We only provide access out back when we are home. Billy , our 18 month old swims in the pool  several times a day and will not come back into the house until he is dried off. Lexi has had the run of the yard since she was four months old, the same for Billy.

I like knowing that they can go potty whenever they have too. If we are out and return home late they have acces to their side run and do not have to hold until we let them out. They love to sit by the fence and watch what is happening outside and we often come home to find the two of them just sitting outside in the fresh air waiting for us.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

If you really want to get paranoid about leaving your dogs outside alone, go read Andy's post about the guy who tried to lure his doodles out of his yard tonight.

[Lynn D.]

Ugh! So scary!

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

Yep. There's apparantly some dog snatching going on in my city. I've been meaning to post a discussion about leaving dogs tied up outside of a store. I see a lot of it, and a girl I met recently who has a goldendoodle puppy says she does it all the time, because we live in a good neighbourhood. Regardless, I would NEVER do that. I'm so afraid she'll be taken.

 

I'm not sure I want to post about it now though, after seeing how crazy some of these sensitve topics can get, lol!