The Length of Time for Dogs in Crates

After crate training your dog, it is useful in various situations. First, acclimate your dog to her crate with momentary introductions and positive reinforcement. Stay close and gradually increase the time you keep her in. As she becomes more comfortable, start closing the door and leaving her sight for increasing periods. Confirm with your vet that your pet is ready for crating, generally recommended at around 8 weeks old. Also, crating must only be done for appropriate lengths of time.

  1. Purposes

    • Crating is key in housebreaking. During the process, it encourages your dog to control her need to go when you can't watch her to get her outside; she won't want to soil such close quarters. Being enclosed in a small, familiar space comforts and calms your dog when she's stressed, too. Crating also helps safely introduce a new pet into your home. Dogs often attack a new animal over territorial concerns, so crating keeps your dog away from the new pet until she can be gradually familiarized with the newcomer's scent. Crating stops destructive behaviors from separation anxiety when you go out, but it's a temporary fix, and the anxiety should be addressed with acclimation training and other techniques recommended by your vet or trainer. Your dog can travel in her crate, too. Remember, crating for any length of time is not a way to shirk the responsibilities of caring for a dog.

    Length of Time

    • How long you can crate your dog is age-related, but your pet's physical and emotional maturity, overall health, stress tolerance and other individual factors are all considerations. Consult your vet for personalized crating recommendations. However, general guidelines exist for crating times. Remember, your dog must be crate trained gradually before being confined for these lengths of time. At 8 to 10 weeks old, crate a dog up to 30 to 60 minutes per day; between 11 and 14 weeks of age, crate from one to three hours per day; dogs 15 to 16 weeks old can be confined for three to four hours per day; at 17 weeks and up, dogs may be crated for four to five hours per day.

    Break It Up

    • If your vet gives you the OK to crate your dog for the full amount of time recommended -- say three hours for a 3-month-old puppy -- that doesn't necessarily mean you should confine her to the crate for three straight hours. Three hours of crating is the daily maximum, and it's better to break it up over the course of the day. Your puppy is likely to get bored and lonely if left in her crate for three hours. Ideally, she should have the opportunity to move around and relieve herself in less than three hours, too.

    Crating Too Long

    • Good reasons exist to stick to appropriate lengths of crating time and avoid using crating as a pet parenting crutch. Dogs need lots of stimulation, attention and affection to remain happy and healthy. Over time, boredom, feeling neglected and not burning up enough energy lead to depression and behavioral problems, including disruptive and destructive behaviors. Socialization with humans and other animals is essential to raising an affectionate, well-adjusted dog, while excessive isolation is a sure way to raise a poorly adjusted dog who's unfriendly and overly sensitive to stress. Also, too much crating probably means too little exercise, which prompts weight gain, muscle loss and increased risk of developing a number of illnesses.