Crates are only for bad dogs that cannot behave when left in the house alone. I must say, after our late beagle (rest his soul) tore out the screening in all our brand new windows and escaped when left alone for a mere 2 hours, you bet your biscuits he was in a crate. We tried a toddler gate to keep him in the kitchen but he jumped on the counter, ate half a rhubarb pie, and proceeded to pee on the sofa. That darn dog even tore up the new carpet when left in the crate for the first time, which I haven't a clue how he did it as the bottom was a hard plastic sheet. Should of had his nuts snipped, that might of calmed him down. .
No such thing as a bad dog, just a dog that is in charge of their owners.
Lots of dogs have dominant dog disorder, which is caused by people pampering the dog and treating it like a human child. Unfortunately when people do this the dog takes advantage and takes charge of the house. Dogs that are in charge of the house generally have separation anxiety too. The two disorders are linked.
In a wild dog pack you have dominant dogs (alphas) and subordinate dogs. There are only two alpha dogs in a pack, a male and a female. These two rule the pack and where they go, everyone else follows. At home people have a dog and let it jump up on the couch, feed it before they cook their own dinner, open the door for it and pat the dog as soon as it runs up to them. This is the same type of things that happen with alpha dogs.
Alpha dogs eat first, other dogs come up to them and lick their faces and make a big fuss over them. The alphas sit down or lay down wherever they want and if a lower ranking dog is in the way and doesn't move, the alpha dog sits on top of them. Has anyone ever had a dog jump up onto the couch and sit on your lap or lay across your legs? That is an alpha dog sitting on a subordinate dog/ person
Dogs that have dominant dog disorder are usually more aggressive towards strange dogs in public, especially if the other dog does not immediately submit. And they can be aggressive towards people visiting the house and will often sit next to their owner and growl at visitors or even try to bite them.
Separation anxiety comes into play when an alpha dog is not with their pack. The alpha dog calls and the pack should come running. However, in a house when the people go to work, the alpha dog barks, howls, and does everything it can to recall its pack members (the people). When the pack do not return for several hours, the dog stresses out and destroys the house. As soon as the people come home, the dog settles down and is quiet again. Many dog owners never realise their dogs have separation anxiety because the dog is always quiet when the people are at home. However, the neighbours hear the dog every time the humans go out.
This issue is easy to fix.
1) Feed yourself and your family before you feed the dog. When you feed the dog first you are telling the dog it is in charge because alpha dogs always eat first. If you don't want to have dinner but want to feed the dog, then spend several minutes eating or pretending to eat a biscuit, or something, in front of the dog so the dog sees you eating. After a couple of minutes of doing that, you can feed the dog.
This is not cruel but normal for a dog. Alphas always eat first and subordinates sit there and drool while waiting for their turn to eat.
2) When you get home and your pet runs up to you, ignore it for a couple of minutes or until it settles down. Once you have put your shopping away and hung the keys up and had a drink, then call the dog to you and pat it. If you give the dog attention as soon as you get home, you are reinforcing the fact the dog is in charge. Subordinate dogs go to the alpha dog to say high, not the other way around. Alpha dogs show affection to lower ranking dogs when the alpha dog wants to.
3) Do not let the dog sleep on you, your bed or your furniture. The dog must have its own bed and should use it. If you let your dog sleep on top of you or next to you in bed, you are telling the dog it is in charge and the dog can sleep anywhere it wants.
You can let a dog hop up on the couch and sit on your lap or lay down next to you, but you must call it up. The dog should not be allowed to just jump up any time it wants. And when you stand up or say get off, the dog should do as it's told.
4) When you are walking around the house, do not step over the dog. If a dog sees you walking towards it and doesn't get up, tell it to move out of the way. Alpha dogs go wherever they want and subordinate dogs move out of their way.
These 4 steps can be used on any dog and if done correctly, you will see a noticeable change in the dogs behaviour within 2 weeks, usually less. And in fact a lot of dogs almost act and look suicidal after about a week. This lasts for a couple of days where the dog sulks and doesn't want to associated with you. This is the dog reacting to you taking over the pack and the dog losing its position as top dog. Once the dog has accepted its new position at the bottom of the pecking order, it will look to the human as the leader and not worry about you going out to work and will be much less inclined to destroying the house while it stresses out over its owners (lower ranking pack members) not being there.
You have to continue using these 4 steps for the rest of the dog's life otherwise it can take over the pack again.
If the dog has had this behaviour for a long time then anxiety medication can be prescribed by a vet and can help reduce the stress during the change over period.
Basic training is also a must for all dogs. They don't have to turn the tele on and cook dinner for you but they should no the basics of sit, come, stay.
Finally, dogs have to be taken for a walk each day so they can get out of the house and see what is happening in the neighbourhood. Dogs kept in backyards with little or no social interaction, eventually go nuts. They are in solitary confinement when left alone for hours on end and not given a chance to socialise with other dogs or people. If you multiply that by 10 yrs of a dog never going for a walk, it messes them up pretty badly. Imagine living in your house and never going outside and never speaking to anyone else except those who live in the house with you. You have no telephone, tv, internet or any way of communicating with the outside world. That is what happens to dogs that are kept in backyards and never taken for a walk.
Dogs need to go out and explore the world, sniff things and see other animals. Dogs that don't get enough exercise will dig up the garden, chew things and destroy virtually everything in the house or backyard. Beagles are working dogs and need to get lots of exercise or they make life hell for everyone in the house
Cats on the other hand... they're mysterious creatures that never seem to die yet always are the ones being taken to the vet for all sorts of infections and abscesses. At least they're good at keeping stray cats, coons, and other critters out of the yard.
Cats should be kept indoors to prevent them roaming the streets at night and getting into fights. 90% of cats that get taken to a vet have wounds from fighting with other cats. Even if your cat doesn't wander at night, and they all do to some degree, other cats come onto your property and they fight because they are highly territorial.
Feral cats can carry rabies and feline aids, and transmit it to your cat. Cats can also carry diseases that can affect people, toxoplasmosis. Keeping them confined to your property can significantly reduce the number of visits to the vet, and the helps the native wildlife
