Transitioning from crate to free rein when home alone

[ghowarth]

Over the last two months or so, I have begun to transition my nearly 9 month old lab--Kahlua--from crate to free rein of certain areas of our home when she is left alone. She had been doing beautifully until this last week. We had worked up to 4 hours of alone time with no problems except for an occasional accident by the backdoor (where she typically goes out to pee) while we were away.

I am a graduate student with a fairly flexible schedule except for six weeks of full time employment over the summer. During my time of full time employment, Kahlua attended doggie daycare and played herself into a state of exhaustion by the end of the day. It was during this time that I began making the transition from crate to freedom when my husband and I left the house. I was confident she would rest virtually the whole time we were gone and that proved to be true. After daycare ended, I continued to be confident that she would behave when left alone given proper exercise beforehand. This was true for a few weeks, but no longer!

Within the last week, she has become increasingly destructive when left alone. First, she tore up the contents of a trash can which I didn't think was such a big deal. I closed the door to the bathroom when I left the next time and she escalated her mischief by scattering and chewing the contents of the guest room dresser. I started to get worried at this point, but I gave her one more chance which turned out to be a mistake. She got herself onto my dresser somehow and spilled a glass of water all over it, knocked down and chewed my make up brushes, and destroyed my glasses. For each of these incidents, she was home alone for right around 2 hours and had an hour walk in the morning (each of these incidents occurred mid-morning to early afternoon). I always leave her with a peanut butter Kong and treat ball filled with dry food, knowing these will keep her occupied for some time but not all afternoon. It seems that all of the sudden, she's realized that there's lots of naughty fun to be had when mom and dad are away.

My classes start again next week and I was really looking forward to leaving her at home for up to 5 hours with no worries. I hate leaving her alone in her crate for any number of hours during the day. She loves to sleep in it at night and goes in willingly before I leave, but I hate the thought of her being so confined for so long. As a general rule, the more confined she is the more destructive she becomes. She will tear apart her bedding when left alone in the crate during the day. She never chews on anything she isn't supposed to when we're home. She's a doll! How can I teach her how I want her to behave when I'm not home? What about holding it the whole time rather than occasionally peeing by the door? I know she can do it!

[emmabeth]

For the peeing - since you are gone there isnt a huge amount you can do - reinforce that peeing outside when you are there with her is a REALLY good thing to do, and also that asking to be taken out is a REALLY good thing to do, and hope that she grows out of it.

As for the destruction when you are gone - this does sound more like seperation fun than seperation anxiety, though without seeing her I couldnt swear to that.

Put away more of your stuff - leave her with access to rooms where theres nothing in reach, and make her toys that she is left with more interest. Get a few more and rotate the selection she gets daily, so she doesnt have exactly the same toys each day. Vary the fillings in Kongs etc as well so that again, its not the same each day its something new to think about.

On your morning walk what do you do exactly? Not all walks are equal... just walking on a leash can be quite boring, other leash walks can be made really interesting by incorporating training and 'work' as well. DO you do really exciting things on a walk, or quite calm 'thinky' things?

Sometimes an exciting walk can actually leave a dog in quite an energetic, silly frame of mind, where a taxing clicker training session and a shorter calmer walk may well not.

If she does eat her Kongs, have you thought about reducing her meals and feeding more of her meal portions from a selection of Kong type toys?

[ghowarth]

Thank you for the reply! I often reinforce peeing outside, but could do so more consistently. I've also tried to pair the action with "go potty" and encourage her to go before I leave. This sometimes works--she seems to like to hold it until her bladder is completely full before going.

I think we're definitely dealing with separation fun rather than anxiety.

I once tried limiting her to the laundry room when we were gone and put her crate in there so she'd have a nice place to sleep. She ended up using the crate to get herself onto the work bench and a roll of tar paper. Small environments in which she is not used to being confined seem to be problematic. She has spent lots of time in the master bath with me getting ready in the mornings, so I think I may try clearing EVERYTHING out of there and putting her crate mat and toys in. She has an incredible ability to climb when we're gone. I have no idea how she reached many of the items on my dresser, so it's difficult to know if things will truly be out of her reach.

On our morning walks, we're still working on loose lead walking. I stop when she pulls and wait until she circles back to me and the leash slackens. This seems to be very frustrating for her and she's slowing getting the point. We practice stopping before crossing each street and sometimes I'll throw in a stay or high five. Otherwise, we just walk. I will try to throw in more training.

I typically walk her an hour or or two before I leave the house, so she's usually resting when I leave. It's silly, but sometimes after walks, I will turn on Animal Plant if a dog show is on in order to keep her awake a little longer while I'm home in hopes that she will sleep while I'm gone. She's transfixed by dogs on television and watches intently (and silently). Again, I don't do this RIGHT before I leave.

She absolutely eats her Kongs while I'm gone. My girl loves nothing more than food. I could try feeding her a portion of her breakfast in the treat ball when I leave.

[maximoo]

Be sure to close all doors to the rooms before you leave, and try to walk/train her closer to the time you leave. Can you leave the tv on when you leave too? Or perhaps just baby gating her into a safe room might be best for now. Is it possible for someone to pop in midday to let her out & play a little?
Not all dogs are ready to have free roam at the same time. 9 mths might be still too early for her. Set her up to be successful even if you have to take a step back.

[ghowarth]

Last week, I tried to set Kahlua up for success in as safe a way I could think of and took EVERYTHING out of the master bathroom with the exception of the shower curtain which I tucked up. I walked her before and left her with two toys... and came home to disastrous results! She got on her hind legs and pulled down and shredded the shower curtain, turned on both the shower, and sink, and was left in a fairly steamy bath. At this point, I've decided it's safest for both her and our things to leave her in her crate while we're gone and try freedom again in a few weeks. My girl LOVES to play and will doit with whatever she can get ahold of when her people aren't around. She would knock over or jump over a gate within minutes.

Kahlua is only home for half days. I have a wonderful schedule and go into school from morning to lunchtime or right after lunch until the end of the work day. We'll just have to continue with lots of exercise and try to build up to free time at home again in a few weeks.

[Noobs]

Ohhhh, sorry to hear that. Since you're only in school half days it's not terrible, her crate schedule. She will probably need to be out of her hooligan stage before you can fully trust her with the whole house, but sure, try one room again in a few weeks...maybe not one with any plumbing.

[tinytwo]

Yes, sorry to hear about your bathroom fiasco! I know it's frustrating! We have started to leave our pups with free access to our home for short periods of time, too. We thought we were pretty well out of the play/destroy phase! We usually leave a toy box full of "special" alone time toys. This isn't their regular toy box, it has different toys that they only get when they're alone. That way, they seem a little new and different.
BUT, and this was totally MY fault, I left a pair of shoes in the living room by mistake, and, well, let's just say I have one less pair of shoes now!
I agree that your schedule is not too bad, and your little one should be fine in the crate! Let us know when you try again, though!

[Midget]

So i guess my question of leaving my 5month old alone and not crated is out of the question
I just feel so bad of the thought of her being in a crate.
I try to give her good walks too , with loose leash training and letting her run on a grassy park nearby when it is not raining, but still it seems not enough.
She is extremly playfull. Any ideas on indoor (mostly) or outdoor games besides, chase,catch and tug o war?

Good news and mostly the reason why i was off this place a few months is that i got her really close to potty training! She now waits for me at the top of the stairs when she wants to go! i did the crate thing even though i dont like it, it works.

[tinytwo]

Midget, I would say don't forget mental exercise! That can tire pups out, too. You can play hide and seek, or find the treat, or do some training sessions, or invest in some of the puzzles out there for dogs... And when you go for your walks, mix things up a bit. Go a different direction, or cross over to the other side of the street several times for no apparent reason. Do some training on your walks, anything to make her think.

[maximoo]

Don't be upset about leaving pup in crate at this age. Try to keep it under 4 hrs when possible. Dogs are 'den' animals. They feel safe & secure in small cozy places. That's why they typically go under desks, in closets & under beds.

[Nettle]

Labradors are well known for being Olympic grade chewers - so don't be in too much of a hurry to de-crate yours

[ghowarth]

Thanks for all the support! I realize dogs mature at different rates and at 9.5 months, Kahlua's just not ready for the responsibility of being home alone with--even limited range--at this point. I was encouraged by some early successes, but she's just found that she can have so much FUN when we're gone! She's an absolute angel when my husband and I are at home, but is a nut when we're out! I just got a Kuranda bed for her crate in the hopes that she will have less to destroy during her down time. We are continuing to work on loose lead walking and obedience/tricks in addition to a few trips to the dog park during the week to let her RUN! We've had some recent successes with short alone time in the house while I've been in the front yard gardening (where there is no fence), but she seems to know I'm right outside (will paw at the front door when she hears me talking), so I don't think this represents her typical alone time experience. I'll give her some time and try increasing her freedom again in a few weeks.