My dogs are both past the puppy phase, but I still use a pet gate and a dog crate to keep them safe at home. These are wonderful training tools that come in handy for your dog’s entire life.
When you have a new puppy, crate training can prevent them from chewing on things when you’re not home and help with potty training. But my dogs are almost 9 years old! So, how do I use a dog crate and pet gate to keep my senior dogs safe? In this blog post I’ll share a few stories!
This post is sponsored by Carlson Pet Products. All thoughts and opinions are my own. At Wear Wag Repeat, I only write about products and brands I truly love.
Keeping My Dogs Safe at Home
When I decided to adopt Burt 2 years ago, the very first thing I did was check out Carlson Pet Products and get their Extra Tall Pet Gate. When I visited Burt in the shelter he was literally bouncing off the walls! So I knew an extra tall pet gate would be great for us.
Our pet gate comes in handy several times a day, every single day! I love having the option to close the dogs behind the gate while I’m cleaning the floors or bringing groceries in the front door.
I also use the pet gate to keep Burt and Lucy in the front room of my home when I leave the house. Even though they’re senior dogs and I trust that they won’t destroy anything, I feel like they’re safer in a smaller area. Plus, my dog-cam only sees the front room so I like to keep the dogs where I can see them!
Pet Gate or Dog Crate?
In addition to our pet gate, I also have a dog crate that Lucy likes to hang out in.
Between the crate and the pet gate, I have so many options to keep my dogs safe and give myself a little space when I need it. I enjoy using both! When I leave the dogs home alone, I use the gate to keep them in the front room of my house.
Then, if I have friends coming to visit or I’m bringing things in and out of the front door, that’s when the crate comes in handy. If Lucy is safely tucked away in her crate with her cozy fleece crate pad from Carlson Pet Products, I can walk all around the house and go in and out the door knowing that Lucy can’t run out into the street.
Using a Pet Gate or Crate During Canine Enrichment Activities
Both the pet gate and dog create also come in handy to separate my dogs during enrichment activities. I love to do scavenger hunts with little treats hidden around the room. With the pet gate separating my living room from my dining room, Lucy and Burt can each have their own separate scavenger hunts!
I also give the dogs enrichment toys stuffed with healthy snacks most afternoons. Lucy enjoys eating her snack in her crate. Separating the dogs for snack time also prevents them from trying to steal each other’s toys!
Setting up a Pet Gate vs. a Dog Crate
The pet gates from Carlson Pet Products can be set up without any drilling using the built-in pressure-mount system. But if you want extra stability, the gate comes with a hardware mounting kit including end caps and screws to attach the gate to your wall or doorway.
Using just the pressure-mount system, the extra tall pet gate is very sturdy! For most small to medium-sized dogs, this might be enough for you. If it wasn’t for Burt, I would have kept my gate like that, too.
But Burt has separation anxiety that leads him to push the gate over sometimes. After that happened, I used the hardware mounting kit to give the gate some extra stability and Burt hasn’t broken through since!
Setting up a dog crate is very easy, too. I like having a collapsible crate that can be moved to storage when needed. To make it comfortable for Lucy, I always have a soft crate pad for her. This one from Carlson Pet Products is fleece with a thick bolster all the way around. The Intermediate Size fits our crate perfectly!
From Puppy-hood to Senior Dogs
When Lucy was about 2 years old I put her crate away in the basement for storage. I brought it back out last year and was shocked to see how much she loves hanging out in there. It helps to have a great crate pad to make the space comfortable.
Something similar happened with the pet gate. When I first installed our Carlson pet gate over 2 years ago I thought it would be temporary. When Burt adjusted to life in our home, I thought I would take it down. But I enjoy having the pet gate so much, now I can’t imagine living without it!
Get the products featured in this post:
Carlson Pet Products Extra Tall Pet Gate with Slide Handle
Carlson Pet Products Intermediate Fleece Crate Pad
Carlson Pet Products Intermediate Double Door Dog Crate
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I totally agree with you about keeping your dogs safe. My dogs also love the crate, I keep the gate open when I am home and they go in there when they want to.