On 2008-03-03 11:02:14 -0500, "mike d." said:

Why do you(or pet owners in general) keep the pup or dog in a crate?

We don't "keep" dogs in crates, but they are useful tools.

Sometimes dogs have to spend time at the vet because they are sick. If
they are happy in a crate at home, they won't be stressed in a crate at
the vets. I don't want a sick dog further stressed.

Our crate has an open door. It is the dogs' "room" and they can come
and go as they like.

If we need to transport a dog, it's safer to have them in a crate in the car.

When we have house trained dogs and couldn't tether them for some
reason (like we were sleeping), having a crate in the room was a
godsend. We could easily hear them stirring if they needed to go out.

When we had contractors in our house and we weren't home, it was safer
for everybody that dogs were napping in their crates.

If we travelled with dogs that were going through a heavy chewing
period, having the dog in a crate while we slept was a better choice
than closing it off in a bathroom or some place away from us.

So there are some of our reasons. It isn't possible to have dogs loose
at all times and we want them to think of the crate as their den.be
happy in their crates.