# Exercise Pen and Crate Questions



## iceman (Jul 19, 2012)

I know everyone asks a lot of questions about this. I was going to get 2 crates one for down and one for up that way do not have to carry, is that a good plan? I heard that if you are going to take eyes of puppy for longer than a few minutes she should go in crate? we will be bringing her home mid August at 12 weeks old. Also is 24" height pen ok or do I need a 30"?

Thank you my first post


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## Ozzie (Aug 28, 2011)

Hello there. Our choice was to have one crate upstairs and one crate downstairs when Ozzy was a puppy. And we plan on doing that with our new girl that we are bringing home in a few weeks. Those crates were only 21" ,great for a puppy. We ended up buying a crate that is 24" high and that gives Ozzy lots of room as an adult dog. I would buy the 24" if your puppy will be in the crate as an adult dog too. Ozzy is only in his crate when we are not home. Enjoy your new little puppy. Cannot wait to see pictures.


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## jabojenny (Sep 18, 2011)

Timmy started out in my cat's crate which was easy enough to take upstairs and down when I needed it. I eventually left it upstairs and Timmy stayed gated in our family room during the day when I was home, but I did put him the cat crate when I went out. Timmy is now 8 months old and I did end up purchasing a new crate for him which I leave upstairs, but I hardly ever use it anymore. He is totally house trained and ends up sleeping in bed with us, I do keep the crate however when he keeps me up and in he goes. I know some people here just used an expen downstairs. Timmy hated the expen, but I was lucky enough to have bought one that converted to a gate that I used to confine him to the family room. It seemed excessive to me to purchase two crates but whatever works and is easiest go for it.

Good luck with your new little one. What name have you picked out for her? Send pictures, can't wait.

Oh one last thing about pen height, all depends on the dog. My breeder suggested go higher to play it safe, but if you get a 36" height make sure it has a gate to walk through easier and safer then climbing over. Turns out Timmy is not a jumper, not even on the furniture, so 24" would have been fine for him.


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## iceman (Jul 19, 2012)

We are naming her Helen. I am also concerned about how to transport her in the car. Does she get a small dog bed in passenger seat? A travel bag?


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## jabojenny (Sep 18, 2011)

When I brought Timmy home from the breeder I had him on my lap. I did eventually buy a car seat for him like thins one http://www.amazon.com/Pet-Gear-Carrier-Basket-16-pounds/dp/B003FCKO4M I have since switched over to a seat belt harness for him. The nice thing about this bag/car seat is that I could bring it in and out of the car. Before Timmy had all his shots I would bring in the bag and put it in the shopping cart of stores that allow dogs, it kept him restrained and safe from potential germs. Nice thing about having a car seat is that they can look out the window. I am thinking of putting my car seat back in for him so he can look out, he's been getting up on the arm of the door to look out recently. I would strongly suggest getting some kind of restraint for your pup because a short stop can send them off the seat since they are so small. Also make sure if you put them up front that your airbag turns off.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

iceman said:


> I know everyone asks a lot of questions about this. I was going to get 2 crates one for down and one for up that way do not have to carry, is that a good plan? I heard that if you are going to take eyes of puppy for longer than a few minutes she should go in crate? we will be bringing her home mid August at 12 weeks old. Also is 24" height pen ok or do I need a 30"?
> 
> Thank you my first post


Oh, if you are going to take your eyes off the puppy for more than, like, long enough to BLINK you want to have them in their ex-pen or crate. :biggrin1: That's all it takes to have an accident, and every accident is forming the opposite habit from the one you want.

There seems to be a lot of variation as far as ex-pens are concerned. Many of them won't challenge a 24" ex-pen... Kodi still stays in one at night and when we are away from home, and he is fully capable of jumping out if he wanted too... he just doesn't. Others, sometimes much smaller ones than Kodi, can't be contained in an ex-pen no matter HOW high it is. They just climb out. My feeling is, that if they are climbers, they're going to get out of an open topped pen no matter what, and you don't want them falling from a height onto fragile baby bones and joints. So I'd go with the 24", and if that won't keep her in, plan on using a crate unless you are around to make sure she stays put.

The other advantage of the 24" ex-pens is that most people can step over them without killing themselves... not so the 30":biggrin1:


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

jabojenny said:


> It seemed excessive to me to purchase two crates but whatever works and is easiest go for it.


Ha! You are opposite of me! I have 3 ex-pens and 4 crattes for Kodi. (I gave away the one I bought for him as a tiny puppy, which he QUICKLY outgrew!) The ex-pens we have used time and again, both for him and for visiting dogs, as often for gates as for pens. He has one wire crate which he now refuses to use after his scary few days around 4th of July fireworks. We're planning of folding that up and storing it for the future. (NO that does NOT mean I'm getting a puppy soon, Robbie! )

He has 3 plastic crates. One has it's door off, and is his "den" in his ex-pen "bedroom". (where he sleeps at night, by his choice) One, also with the door off, is his hang-out in my office, and the 3rd, with door still installed, is the one we use for shows. The one in my office also goes in our travel trailer with us when we're on the road.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

iceman said:


> We are naming her Helen. I am also concerned about how to transport her in the car. Does she get a small dog bed in passenger seat? A travel bag?


When they are tiny, a soft-sided airline-type carrier is probably the safest option in the car. Just make sure to secure it in place with the seatbelt. When she is older, a car harness or booster seat with a good car harness are good options.

Kodi just sits on the seat, on a donut type dog bed in his car harness. I have a small car, and didn't want to deal with getting a booster seat in and out all the time. He just curls up and goes to sleep as soon as we get in the car. I don't think they make car harnesses small enough for new Havanese puppies, though, so the carrier is probably a better interim solution.


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