is he to big?? is he to young??

[SirdanceAlot]

Hello everybody.  Spazz is 5 months old today.  He just dug his first hole in my yard yesterday.  Hopefully I can deter that in the future by paying more attention while he is in the yard.  But that’s a later discussion.  Spazz is now 65+ pounds and is still growing.  He has a extra large kennel that I make him sleep in at night.  When he sleeps he likes to sprawl out with his legs and head spread our or on his back.  The vets said that kennel is good for him but when he is sleep his head is cocked on the gate door.  He can stand and sit in the kennel and can turn around.  The Giant kennel doesn’t seem that much longer.  Should I be forcing him to sleep in it at night.  I know he can hold his Bathroom urges till morning, im just not sure if he will decide to.  My room is carpeted so if he pee’s I’d never know.  (until he soils the spot and the smell comes out)  I would love to let him sleep where ever he feels comfortable at night (except my bed).  Any suggestions.  Is 5 mo to young to trust him not to pee in my room?  Is that extra large kennel to small for him?  Do you guys let your pups sleep where they want, or in a kennel?

[DogGuideDan]

You have to do what you're comfortable with (and what your rug can take!) It sounds like the crate is not too small for him at this point.

Lucian hasn't ever slept in his crate at night and has been trustworthy, but it started by my attaching his leash to his collar and putting his bed right next to ours.  If he even rolled over in the middle of the night- out we went!  Luckily now I can sleep most nights from 11pm until 9 am!  (umbilical-leash free!) So if you do decide to wean him off of it, it's a good method to start with.

[PennyK]

Luckily now I can sleep most nights from 11pm until 9 am!  (umbilical-leash free!) So if you do decide to wean him off of it, it's a good method to start with.

LOL!!!!  That made me laugh...."umbilical-leash"!  HaHaHa!! I remember those days!  LOL!

[mama23+pyrs2]

I agree it's what you feel comfortable with. I can tell you I don't even think mine would sleep outside their crates anymore. They love them no matter how uncomfortable Yukon appears at times, it's just how he sleeps. I have a very large crate but his head is close to touching the top when he sits- makes me wonder if I'm going to eventually need another one! Mine are 5 mos too. I definitely wouldn't trust mine to not pee in the house through the night. Hubby has brought up leaving them out and I say NO! They can hold it through the night but that's because they are in a confined space. I personally think it's too young to trust to a house. But mine also still have accidents inside when they are out- well my male..he doesn't give a warning either- STILL. It's not often, but still.

I long for housebroken days, sometimes it seems like it will never happen. Anyway, I wouldn't worry about the crate-I'm sure he's not outgrown it yet.

[ZooCrew]

I agree that if he can stand up and turn around, the kennel should still work for him.

However, if you wanted to try him outside the kennel to see how he does, you could always stick him in a bathroom or some other room with tile floor to see how he does.  I think Gunther was about 5 mo when I started letting him stay in the bedroom at night......... ..I had to, he outgrew the largest kennel I have.  Luckily, he whines if he has to go so it wasn't an issue.

If you do try the bathroom route, just make sure there is nothing he can get into in there, and give him a nightlight so he's not in the dark.

[chaosndestruction]

I think Keela was sleeping outside of her crate at 5 months. I had to she was getting too big for hers! I was thinking she'd be more of her mommy and daddy's size which is about 22-24 inches at the shoulder and around 50 ish lbs...well she definately is more like 25 inches and way more than 50 lbs now! She was able to hold it all night and either stuck her nose in my face to get me up or she would lay by the door and "knock" with her paws.

The bad thing is that she got used to sleeping by my head as a puppy and so now about 40+lbs heavier she still thinks she can do that on a TWIN bed!

[Duramax]

he's not too big.i still crate max in the same crate he used as a pup

[kathryn]

I've never crated at night with any of my dogs.  To be honest I didn't start crate training any of my dogs until Cinder came home.  I always used a room like the bathroom or a laundry room and some puppy pads to help with house breaking.  But I think it's completely up to you on whether or not you think you can trust Spazz and want to give him a shot.  The crate sounds like it's plenty big enough though.  Good luck if you decide to try Spazz loose during the night.