Thursday, August 11, 2011

DoggyStyle: On Crates and Tepees

We've written before about how Mr. B lives in a tepee instead of a crate. It's usually the first thing people notice when they come over:
Mr. B used to have a crate when we first adopted him, but we quickly learned about his crate anxiety. He is ok staying in a crate with the door open
But when he was in his own crate with the door shut, he developed extreme anxiety. He would work ways to wiggle his huge body out. And if that didn't work, he used his head as a battering ram to bust out. We still wanted to give him a separate place, as we feed the pooches in their beds. But most importantly, Mr. B needs the bigger bedroom  to store all of his toys:
And keep them safe from Miss M:

21 comments:

Froggy said...

Is Miss M crated during the day? Maize is but Pug is not.

Two Pitties in the City said...

Yes, Miss M actually enjoys staying in her crate, and Mr B just hangs out. Sometimes we do let Miss M out, and they don't really interact and they just sleep.

Of Pit Bulls and Patience said...

One of my fosters was similar to Mr. B. She loved her crate until the door shut, then she was an absolute mess. Luckily, also like Mr. B, she was happy to stay in a bedroom with the door shut when we weren't home. Nothing like a quirky pup!

Corbin said...

Corbin had a 2 week period with awful crate anxiety... this was after we had him for over 2 months, which he he was crated. Couldn't leave him out of the crate because he destroyed everything... It was really stressful and I hated leaving the house. Then one day, he just snapped out of it. So odd.
-Corbin's mom, Jenn

Anonymous said...

You'd better watch Mr B...I think you could have a potention hoarder on your hands! And, I hardly noticed the teepee when I was there. I pictured it way bigger in my head than it is in real life.

Patty said...

Great pictures! When you are not home, he just hangs out in his tepee?

Two French Bulldogs said...

We love the idea of a teepee, very cool
Benny & Lily

Anonymous said...

I love the teepee, and would consider this if we had dogs who were not couch climbers when we're not home. Chick used to have separation anxiety and while he doesn't anymore, he takes to climbing on all of the forbidden furniture when we're not home. Maybe someday . . .

Tucker The Crestie said...

I just never get sick of the sight of Mr. B. in his tepee! He's so cute!

How Sam Sees It said...

We like the teepee idea - we will have to try to make one for Monty!

Sam

Road Dog Tales said...

We love your teepee. If we had one here, it would most likely be in a horizontal position most of the time. We're amazed that yours stays upright!

The Road Dogs

Two Pitties in the City said...

Patty--Mr B pretends he was hanging out there all day. When he hears us coming home he always scurries back, and we pretend we don't know he was out in the house. Sometimes he sleeps there, sometimes in the bed in the bedroom, and sometimes just on the wood floor. He is a dog who likes choice.

brooke said...

Does Miss M ever get jealous that Mr B get's the open teepee while she's crated?

pibble said...

I learned early on that my border collie Trouper would not stand being crated. He worked the crate's wires with his teeth until he escaped. Since he's house broken, I have no problems with letting him run free in the house.

Mr. B is a character - I love how he's "protecting" his toys from Miss M!

houndstooth said...

Every guy needs a man cave! No harm in that! ;)

Wyatt said...

We just luv your Tepee. Mom thinks I would eat it, so I can't have one :(

Wyatt

Kitty+Coco said...

Mr. B is so unique with his tepee. I'm all for trying to find an alternatives for things our pooches hava a hard time with. Plus, it is very stylish. I have been trying to get my husband to build a modern indoor dog house.

Jacquelin Cangro said...

Reggie had the same problem with a crate. He would stay very content in the crate as long as the door was open. As soon as I latched the door, he would get extremely nervous. I thought I was doing something wrong because trainers would tell me how much all dogs love their crates. i'm glad that you mentioned this.

A Wonderful Dogs Life said...

Mr. B is lucky to have his own Tepee. It's a very clever solution to the crate anxiety.

Two Grad Students and a Pittie said...

Poor Mr B hiding his toys!

Jessy@FairytaleFrosting said...

Oh my gosh I love this idea! And perhaps you've answered this question but where did you get this teepee? My Caesar had the same problem with his crate and we just havent really found a solution Im happy with. I wonder if a teepee would work for him! (PS just found your blog and Im in LOVE)

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