I have NO MEDICAL background. If your question pertains to a physical concern about your dog -- that is, you think your dog may be sick, whelping problems, trouble breathing, vomiting, diarrhea, excessive urination, excessive drinking, heavy drooling, unexplained physical symptoms of ANY kind, etc -- YOU NEED TO GET OFF THE COMPUTER AND CALL YOUR VET IMMEDIATELY. DO NOT WASTE TIME WAITING FOR AN EMAIL RESPONSE!!! Your dog could be having a medical crisis!
I answer questions pertaining to training of all kinds, behavior, grooming,etc. I am qualified to address questions regarding basic training issues; crate training, housebreaking, behavior management tools, basic obedience skills.
You may be interested in visiting:
http://bad-dog-good-dog.blogspot.com/
www.housecalls-dogtraining.com
Experience I have owned the breed for 16 years. Have done conformation, obedience, and pet therapy training. Have been a member of the local breed club; I participate in breed rescue. Have done training in private and group situations.
Education/Credentials Attended seminars presented by Dr. Patricia McDonnell, PhD, Lesley Nelson, and Cesar Milan.
Question Our Golden retriever is 10 weeks old. We have heard that it is best to crate your puppy, but she seems to be doing fine w/out one. She is never home alone, and at night, we place her in a pen for sleeping. Sometimes she's restless, choosing different spots to sleep in. Her pen is roughly 48" tall and totaling 194" in length. Dispite this pen, we have been reading in training books to crate train regardless. If you have some insight on this, please let us know if we need a crate.
Answer Teaching a dog to accept a crate has a number of benefits; if they are ever hospitalized at the vet, they will need to stay in a crate/pen. If you travel, it is safer to have your pet ride inside a crate, or at the very least, in a pet seatbelt in the rear (never in the front). When the dog is older and becomes incontinent, or perhaps if it gets sick, may require you to keep it in a crate for periods of time.
So, having the dog at least be familiar and comfortable staying in a crate for a number of hours may someday be to your advantage. It isn't an ABSOLUTE; if the pen works for you, you have room for it, and the dog never tries & succeeds to get out of it, then that's fine. Crates are a "management" tool, and the more tools we owners have at our disposal, often the better.
Hope this information is helpful. Please let me know if you have concerns or questions.
