In article ,
elegy wrote:
also: eat lots of poop. they prefer cat, but rabbit or goat will do in
a pinch.

And then there's decomposed dead things. Greta like to roll
in them, while the huskies like to eat them. I can't decide
whether or not that's an improvement. On the one hand I
don't have to clean them off, but on the other hand there's
bacteria and parasites. Either way: ick.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community

In article ,
Kimber wrote:

If
my dog could talk she would be begging me to close the crate door to
save her from temptation. Leaving the door open or leaving her in a dog
bed is like putting a drink in front of a recovering alcoholic. It's
just cruel and unnecessary temptation...IMO.

That's the most bizarre excuse I've ever heard for being too lazy to
train a dog.

--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

Kimber wrote:

But don't your dogs tend to follow you around from room to room a lot
more than your cats do?

Nope. I've had dogs who did follow me, but my current one does not.
If she can't have my undivided attention, then she'd prefer to
take her toys and go someplace else, thankyewverymuch. Or take a nap.

My
husband and I take turns getting up from our computers and standing at
the top of the stairs and waving our arms until the cat looks up. It's
pretty funny actually, albeit somewhat annoying.

My cat never meowed until she lost her hearing. Now she will
occasionally let out an ear piercing and nerve shredding wail. I
think she's telling us to get offa her lawn.

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)

Kimber wrote:

If she's trained to stay in her crate all night, why would she
care if it's open or closed.

I don't think it matters. I personally wouldn't crate a dog at
night unless there was a good reason, but that's a personal preference.

I *do*, however, think that you should train your dog not to be
obnoxious about demanding your attention when you're hanging out
with the cat. Or, rather, I think you *can* train your dog not to
be obnoxious when you're hanging out with the cat. I would
definitely do so, but my threshold for tolerating that sort of
behavior is kind of low.

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)

In article ,
Shelly wrote:

Kimber wrote:

If she's trained to stay in her crate all night, why would she
care if it's open or closed.

I don't think it matters. I personally wouldn't crate a dog at
night unless there was a good reason, but that's a personal preference.

I think she missed my point anyway. She was saying that the dog wanted
to be in her crate. I suggested that if that were true, she could leave
the door open and the dog would still choose the crate. Then she came
back with no, the dog would try to get on her bed. Hence, the only
reason the dog is not on the bed and sleeping in her crate is because
she has no choice - she is SHUT in the crate! That is a training
issue.

There may be a number of reasons to crate an adult dogs at night. I
can't think of any that aren't training issues, except perhaps some
temporary medical needs, but what the heck.

I know that *I* am VERY happy to not have to maneuver past a crate in my
bedroom any more! At 17 weeks, Marcie has learned bedroom routine and
we're all sleeping happy.

I *do*, however, think that you should train your dog not to be
obnoxious about demanding your attention when you're hanging out
with the cat. Or, rather, I think you *can* train your dog not to
be obnoxious when you're hanging out with the cat. I would
definitely do so, but my threshold for tolerating that sort of
behavior is kind of low.

Same here. Don't stomp on cats, don't push your way in for attention.
Be polite and you'll be given the attention that you need, on *my* terms.

--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

Janet Boss wrote:
Hence, the only
reason the dog is not on the bed and sleeping in her crate is because
she has no choice - she is SHUT in the crate! That is a training
issue.

Yes. I agree that there are some odd mental gymnastics going on
there. I'm not sure it really matters, though, in a practical
sense. If you're going to crate the dog, there's no need to go to
elaborate lengths to justify it.

I know that *I* am VERY happy to not have to maneuver past a crate in my
bedroom any more! At 17 weeks, Marcie has learned bedroom routine and
we're all sleeping happy.

With just one dog, it's a non-issue for me. Right now, Harriet's
crate is on loan to a friend, so she's making do with just her (way
too small!) bed. Normally, though, I'm happy to leave a crate up in
the bedroom. Not that it gets used for much aside from "Go to your
room right this minute, missy!" time-outs.

If I had three dogs, then I might feel differently about crates in
the bedroom!

Same here. Don't stomp on cats, don't push your way in for attention.
Be polite and you'll be given the attention that you need, on *my* terms.

I was thinking about this, and it's funny--I like bossypants, sassy
dogs, but I do not like to be bossed around. It may be a fine line?
Demanding behavior or butting in when I'm paying attention to
something else is just not acceptable to me. My dogs wouldn't try
it. Or maybe they have, and learned very quickly that it was not to
their advantage? It's just never been an issue.

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)

Kimber wrote:

Oh good grief - I've trained my dog to do and not do lots of things and
I wasn't lazy about any of those other rules. Why would I be lazy about
just one rule and not lazy about any of the others?

Human nature? I've trained my dog pretty well in the areas that
matter to me. Other areas, though, have not been a priority. One
might even accuse me of being too lazy to deal with certain training
issues, and that'd probably be a fair cop.

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)

In article ,
Shelly wrote:


If I had three dogs, then I might feel differently about crates in
the bedroom!

We have a not-so-big bedroom. Queen bed, small nightstands, 2 small
chairs, 2 dressers and 3 large dog beds. Not a lot of walking space!
One end wall is completely taken up with closet doors (wide and shallow
closets here, no walk-ins) and a bathroom door. It's still bigger than
the MBR in my last house.

I am one of those people who could have a crate in the middle of an
otherwise unfurnished room, and still manage to bruise myself on it,
multiple times a day.

The daytime crate is a 42" but has fold in doors, which helps a LOT.

--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

In article ,
Shelly wrote:

One
might even accuse me of being too lazy to deal with certain training
issues, and that'd probably be a fair cop.

Yep. I'm the first to admit to being too lazy about some things. I'm
not ashamed of that, it just is what it is! I don't complain about the
things I'm not willing to change though.

--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

Janet Boss wrote:

We have a not-so-big bedroom. Queen bed, small nightstands, 2 small
chairs, 2 dressers and 3 large dog beds. Not a lot of walking space!

My bedroom isn't huge, but I've actually got room to spare, so I'm
not complaining.

I am one of those people who could have a crate in the middle of an
otherwise unfurnished room, and still manage to bruise myself on it,
multiple times a day.

Well, duh! You're supposed to put it in a corner, silly!

The daytime crate is a 42" but has fold in doors, which helps a LOT.

Harriet's door can be hung on either side of her crate, but a
fold-in door would be even better. I've not seen one like that.

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)