Play den area? Thoughts????

[MSBoxer]

We have a narrow kitchen, and a tile floor. I saw on a show where they placed a baby-gate in b/w the counters, making a small play area with some newspaper towards the back and left the crate in there with the door open.

Now, here's the question: will this basically be the same thing as paper training, and how hard would it be to switch over (once the dog can hold it longer than 4 or 5 hours) for crating all day until able to be trusted in the house? I would like to use both methods, but am not sure if it will work. Has anyone had experience with denning in this method? Thanks in advance.

[Cami]

When we first brought Cami home (9 weeks), I had a hard time with the thought of crating. I had never used a crate before and thought it was cruel. We opted to set up her crate in the kitchen with the door left open and we used baby gates to confine her to that area while we were gone from home and during the night. We put out puppy pads for her "business".

After a few weeks of CONSTANT cleanup, (she only played with the pads and used the kitchen floor for her business), a friend informed us that we should close the door to the crate at bedtime and things would go much better.

He was totally right. No more mopping the entire kitchen 3-4-5 times a day. It was an amazing overnight transformation. We did have a few minor accidents in the crate that were easily cleaned up and by age 4 months Cami was bell trained, and "accident" free in the house all together.

I would start your pup out the way you want things to be in the "end". Paper, IMO just pushes complete potty training back. By nine months of age Cami was trusted with free roam of the entire house for short outings and not crated at night. Since one year of age she has never been crated, has not has any accidents and has never once destroyed anything in our home. Her "condo" is now in our bedroom, and she will go in on her own whenever she feels like it.

Your pup will help you in making a decision about what is best for them. It won't hurt to try different methods until you hit on something that works for you both.

Good-Luck