Anyone have experience with Playpens/Exercise Pens??

[Tara aka Harry & Wally's Mom]

Right now me and my gf work opposite schedules so someone is always home with our pup, with the exception when we need to run out for a bit and we crate him. Starting Monday we will both be working similiar schedules which means he will be alone for the majority of the morning. He obviously cannot be left with free roam of the house all day, and we will not crate hime for that long either. I was thinking of my options and thinking of maybe looking into one of those playpens or exercise pens they sell.
Anyone have any experience or suggestions with these? or any other suggestions on what we can do with Harry while we are at work???

[Adina P]

How long will he be left in the morning...how many hours and what is his age now? A 3-4 month old pup could make it 4 hours in a crate, but that might be pushing it if he's under 3 months.

With my puppy Rosco he spent his first week or so in an expen. his crate was inside the expen but open so he could go out of his crate and still be confined to a safe area in the expen. I think it is a perfectly reasonable option unless your puppy learns to climb OUT of the expen (so buy a tall one just in case) and make sure the room that it is in is puppy-proofed. The only downside of a larger living space is he might poop or pee in one corner. I tried using a chunk of fresh sod in a plastic container as an indoor potty inside his expen...he did use it once or twice, but then ended up digging in it. So it wasn't a good long term solution.

[Lynda Kamrath]

Hmmm. Yes, we do have experience with playpens as I used them for both my puppies as their beds when they were little. I had a thing against crates and only used one in the car for transporting them when they were little. In the house, they had a playpen that they stayed in whenever they were not supervised. Everytime they came out of the playpen, they first were carried outside and placed in their potty spot. So they became accustomed to going pee as soon as they came out of the playpen. My first playpen has a vibrator on it, and when I wanted him to sleep, I just turned on the vibrator and told him "goodnight" and he would go right to sleep. THe second playpen did not have a vibrator and the GD started to jump out of it so we had to put on a top that attached with bungy cords. It was still much larger than a crate.
My suggestion would be that if you are going to use a playpen or exercise pen, get started right away so he gets used to it. Good luck.

[Tricia, Shiloh, Fenway & Tessie]

Fenway is a master escape artist and NOTHING, no gate....no enclosure....nothing except a crate can keep that boy confined. He can figure his way out of just about anything.....including the front door (the storm door) if I go outside with Shiloh....Fenway will OPEN the door and come outside, too. So.....I would suggest that you make sure you don't have an escape artist on your hands. =)

[Noble Vestal Labradoodles]

the only difference between a crate and play pen is that a crate has a top and bottom and is much more reliable for dogs who are home alone.

I have had 6 & 8 week old puppies climb right out of 3 1/2 ft pens! I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving the house with a dog at home in a pen. There are many risks to leaving them in a pen alone. They can climb over and get a foot caught and break their leg~ I actually had a puppy do this.

I would stick to a large crate.

[Tara aka Harry & Wally's Mom]

harry is a little over 3 months old. Right now he is pad trained so I figured I could put a pad in the pen with him. He cries when in crate and again I think its too long to keep him in crate. I was thinking a pen has more more for him to move and play then a crate does.

[Tricia, Shiloh, Fenway & Tessie]

I think play pens are for "playing" which kind of makes it something you should be able to monitor. I agree with the post right above that it can be dangerous, even for a small puppy if they have escape skills. I never thought about it like that, but knowing that they could break a leg....if you weren't home to watch them....the safer option would still be a crate. Save the money on the playpen.....you can get a really large crate if you want him to have room....and you could still put a puppy pad in there if you wanted to. Fenway shreds puppy pads, but it might work for you.

[Noble Vestal Labradoodles]

play pens are fairly small, even the big ones

You can get a 48" crate

I am still convinced that the risks far outweigh the advantages. At his age he can definitly climb or jump out of a play pen

[Adina P]

The other way to look at it is...if he's alone and not too terribly stressed, he'll probably SLEEP the whole time. Now 8+ hours...too much for just sleep. But if you get that dog sitter or dog walker or friend to stop in 4 hours through the day...then he'll be FINE in a large crate.

[HANNAH 8/2/07 & HONEY 7/2/08]

Playpens and Exercise Pens are not what you want to leave your pup in for any lenght of time unattended. They will try and climb out of them. They can fall and injure their heads causing themselves neurological problems, or other injuries. If you do not want to leave him crated for 4 hours or less, try a pet sitter, they can come in and potty your dog for you, spend some time playing with him and exercising him.

[Janie]

A playpen would not be safe and they could chew it up in a very short time.

[LuvMyAbby&Kaela]

Tara I have this

http://www.sears.ca/gp/product/B0010YWUMQ/ref=pd_huc_gp_1/178-93578...

I love it. It is sturdy (metal) so virtually escape proof and I can configure it however I want and anywhere I want. It is free-standing so no need for screws. It doesnt tip over. I can block of an area. Or I can make it into an octagon.

When she was real young like Harry I would block her off in the kitchen with this, put in special treats she only gets for when mom is away, her bed, and things that kept her busy - like a kong stuffed with peanut butter.

[Janie]

This looks like it would be great.