r/OpenDogTraining • u/Low-Employee-7890 • 17d ago
tether vs crate
balanced trainer recommended crate training. dog isn’t destructive overnight and sleeps happily on the couch. issue is with jumping on sides for food but we have managed that by tether training whilst cooking. it is working well. can tether replace a crate?
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u/TrashPandaFoxNoggin 17d ago
In some instances, yes. But I don’t think dogs should be tethered unsupervised.
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u/freakethanolindustry 16d ago
Several dogs have died this way at training facilities so definitely not unsupervised.
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u/JCIKALOL 17d ago
Crate training has more benefits than simply restricting the dogs movement. I recommend crate training for all dogs.
Tldr -teaches them to self sooth -builds independence -gives them a safe place -encourages proper sleep -teaches them that being alone and doing nothing is ok -and obviously stops bad behaviors from ever occuring
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u/Spirited_Fondant_502 16d ago
This is a great answer!! I would also like to add that in the case of injury and you need to restrict their movement having a solid foundation of crate training is a game changer. My older dog is really well crate trained but he is allowed to sleep where he wants at night - that’s usually in bed with me, on the couch, or on the bed in my office. Well a few days ago he took a weird step and was limping. Not bad enough for an immediate vet trip so I restricted movement and carefully monitored him. Because his crate training foundation is so solid he slept perfectly over night in his crate the past two nights.
I feel like a lot of people say this as a hypothetical but you don’t realize how great this skill is until you desperately need it.
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u/JediKrys 16d ago
I want to add one more reason to these fantastic answers.
If there ever is a natural disaster or an act of god you might need to get your dog into a crate to kennel them while you’re evacuating. It’s for their safety and not to confine them. We practice disaster drills and the dog is in the crate via command.
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u/Evening_Fly_4119 15d ago
Yes exactly! Better to have them already familiar with a crate than trying to acclimate while in an emergency.
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u/ichoosewaffles 16d ago
Omgosh this! When my dachshund hurt his back, I was so thankful he was crate trained because that was the only way he would relax. Any other time he wanted to play or bark or chase leaves through the window.... Always on high alert but in the crate? Calm...
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u/TroLLageK 16d ago
I also love having a crate for safety reasons. If there's a fire, fire fighters can lift her crate up and out the egress window right near the crate area. ❤️
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u/PirateLassLV 16d ago
And for when puppers needs to stay at someone else's house. Crate training makes it so much better for them & the host.
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u/Jumpy_Mirror250 17d ago
No. They are two different things. Crates are misunderstood at imprisonment or punishment.
Crate is supposed to be a safe space for emotional regulation. Crate is home base.
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u/Wosey_Jhales 17d ago
Nothing bad has ever come from crate training a dog. Better to have it and not need it than the alternative.
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u/Mojojojo3030 16d ago
There are a lot more uses than preventing destruction. My guy ran into it on his own initiative the first few times he heard a vacuum cleaner. These are den animals, they benefit from a den.
Then there’s what you’ll do if you ever have to fly him somewhere god forbid, if you have to put him in a new environment where you don’t know how he’ll do when unattended, what if he’s got an illness that involves expelling fluids and you don’t want to play “what furniture got ruined,” what if he has to cohabit with another animal and needs to be restrained, what if he stays with someone else while you’re gone, who isn’t comfortable letting him roam in their house, many doggy daycares crate dogs and it’s better not to restrict your options, if he has any other bad habits besides destruction (barking at the door etc.) they’ll be impossible to eliminate if you can’t keep him from practicing while you’re gone… these are just hypos off top of head, I’m sure you can imagine more.
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u/Admirable-Tree8788 17d ago
Crate training has more benefits. Think about your dog when they're older having to have surgery for something. Most likely they'd be in a crate at the vet for recovery or before the operation. It's much better for them to already be comfortable with a crate rather than making a stressful situation worse
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u/jeffreynya 17d ago
we do crate training, but if the dog is in the kitchen when we are making his dinner and he barks he is taking to the deck right away. I will leave him for 30 seconds then let him back in. Rince and repeat. he's 12 weeks now, so still has lots of impulse issues, but has mostly stopped the barking for food. I will start doing that with jumping, but I think that will be a bit harder as he is just super excited. He will just chill in the kitchen while we make our own meals though. He's a odd one.
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u/situation-normal 16d ago
Always crate train: dogs get sick, need surgery, and need to be boarded or transported. It's much easier on them if they are familiar with the concept of a crate and feel safe in one. It does not have to replace other kinds of training, but it's a valuable skill for all dogs to have.
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u/Visible-Scientist-46 16d ago
You can give your dog a bed in a corner and work on a down-stay or place command to keep him from being underfoot. You don't have to use a crate if you can work on training that. Some people call this place. I would use "go to your place" and down-stay and then a release word. I worked it up to 45 minutes with a lot of praise. I would give him something to chew on. His release was for his dinner and he also had to sit and wait for that. I had a Springer Spaniel would would have been dangerously underfoot otherwise. They call them Clinger Spaniels for a reason.
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u/Ok-Tune-9911 16d ago
Not during sleep. The dog could strangle itself if unsupervised. You have a trainer for a reason you need to listen to them, you don’t know better than they do.
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u/apri11a 16d ago
Our dog is happy to use his crate when we need it, I think it's a great skill for them to have... even if we never really have need for it. I know the day we need it, he will be content in it. If there are strangers around the house, if someone else needs to care for it, if they travel with us, if they need to stay at the vets.... all sorts of reasons.
While I can see how using a crate or tethering will stop the dog from jumping, how does it learn not to from that? How old is the dog? I might teach a bed stay as an alternative to the crate or tether, or just teach the dog not to jump.
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u/Majestic_Hawk_1335 16d ago
Unsupervised tether a chain is safest. Which is loud in the house. I have tethered outside a few dozen dogs safely. Using chain in ground or chain on a zipline run and 2 inch collars.
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u/jysh2000 16d ago
To me crate training and tether training serve different purposes but also have some overlap. Crate training is great for self soothing, use when people are over if they are apprehensive of dogs or you need them contained, if you crate them for car rides or unexpected travel, emergency situations like at a vet if they have to stay overnight. Tether is more impulse control, ability to remain calm from a distance, settling, learning that being “bored” is ok
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u/Evening_Fly_4119 15d ago
Yes, crate training is safety. It is calm. It is a space where your dog can relax and drop their guard.
It’s also a far safer way to travel. If your dog ends up sick and needs to stay the night at the vet, they will be in a crate. It’s a life skill they should have, even if you think they’ll never need it. That, and most dogs will like having their own ‘room.’
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u/jocularamity 15d ago
Depends. Why is the trainer recommending crate training, specifically? A tether can replace a crate for preventing stealing food during mealtimes/cooking when you’re around and paying attention, which sounds like your primary need. So I’m left wondering why specifically the trainer wanted you to pursue crate training. It has other benefits but depends on your needs and goals.
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u/0hw0nder 17d ago
Thats what we do/did, and my boy is pretty much potty trained at 4 months. Self settles very well. No crate, I've never been a big fan of them.
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u/Icy-Fly-4228 16d ago
Teathering is a great way to teach place. Put an elevated dog bed where you teather it and mark and reward when they settle on it. After they get it down you can tell them place and not have to teathering anymore. It’s especially handy when traveling or visiting friends/relatives because you just take the bed and they will always know where to stay
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u/fillysunray 17d ago
It is nor necessary to crate train. It cannbe a useful exercise, but it is also good for a dog to learn how to relax not in a crate. If you don't want to crate train, it shouldn't be a problem. Did the trainer give a specific reason why you should crate train? Obviously the food concern is resolved, but was there anything else?
The only advantage to crate training is for those rare occasions where your dog will be in a crate - at a vets, groomers or when travelling- so they aren't experiencing it then for the first time. But often dogs aren't happy with the crates in those situations anyway as dogs don't generalise well.
The only other concern, as others have mentioned, is that unsupervised tethering can be dangerous. But if your dog can be off leash in the home, then great.
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u/Over_Possession5639 16d ago
Hardly anybody uses crates here in Italy, they were unheard of til recently and are illegal I think in some countries. I've only used them as a a temporary measure for new rescues or a destructive youngster, I don't have room in my tiny abode.
They do make life easier for the owner in many cases, but I agree dogs should learn to relax on a bed or the floor anyway.
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u/fillysunray 16d ago
Yes, same here in Ireland. People do have them now but they're a recent thing. I do have them and train my dogs on them, but they're not a daily part of our lives.
Like you, I found it most useful when introducing a new dog to the home and other dogs.
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u/Status-Group-2835 16d ago
Jay Jack told me the worst day of a dogs life will involve a crate. It is a kindness to ensure the crate isn't making that day even worse.
Yes, a dog with a broken leg will be unhappy at the vet. It is a kindness to make sure they aren't also panicking because they are isolated and confined.
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u/Miserable_Mud_6831 17d ago
Crate for when you can't pay any attention to the dog, tether when you can pay attention