Crating Disaster

by Andrea
(The Great Northwest)

We rescued our dachshund Gomez when he was around 5-6 years old....the vet wasn't sure.

He came with lots of health and behavior issues. He had a mass of tumors on his neck that (all together) were the size of a large orange! His teeth poked out in all directions, he had lost part of an ear to frostbite, was terribly underweight and sadly un-socialized.

We fell in love with him and went to work getting him treated.

Unfortunately, at the same time, my husband had to go into the hospital for emergency heart surgery! I had to discover in a hurry how to contain Gomez indoors while I was at the hospital for long hours at a time.

The first crate I bought was an appropriately sized airline kennel. He went in without much fuss....but when I came home two hours later Gomez had somehow unlocked it and taken the door completely off, breaking more teeth in the process.

I took that one back and got the next one the vet recommended. A larger wire kennel with a pan on the bottom and more room to move around. I put his food and water, blanket and favorite toy inside along with him and, with my fingers crossed, ran for the hospital.

What a horrible sight awaited when I returned a few hours later. Gomez had dug and dug and gotten the pan out of the bottom, then proceeded to push the crate (while he was still inside) out of the kitchen, across the house and as far down the hall as he could before it got stuck (smearing blood, feces and urine all along the way). He then bit, broke and bent the wire bars completely apart tearing his teeth, mouth and paws as well.

When I came in the door all I could do after getting him out, was sit and cry. After that I just left him free to roam the house. When I do that he is completely fine and trustworthy, hasn't made one mess.

I wish I would have had a better adviser at the beginning! I had never been in this type of situation, and with a "new" dog would have known better how to ease him into the crating process....and Gomez wouldn't have gotten injured because of my ignorance.

Take advantage of the sources like this online when you have a pet. You'll BOTH be glad you did!!!