# Puppy gets hot in the crate...



## Turbo22

Hi,

Our puppy seems to get too hot in the wire crate. We first bought her a plastic one and that seemed to be unbearable for her. Now that we have a wire one, she'll eventually settle down but won't stop tossing and turning and grunting unless we sit it right by the screen door without putting a cushioned bed inside. Our room stays pretty cool at night.. I'd say between 65-72 degrees. Another problem is without the cushioned bed, everytime she moves the plastic lining makes a pretty loud noise so it ends up waking her up. Not sure if anyone else has this problem? Any suggestions? I thought about putting a fan on the crate but it seems bad to have it blowing on her constantly through the night? Because of this she dislikes the crate even more during the day because it gets even hotter inside the house (no a/c but have fans going)...she likes to lay on the tile floor and that's it.


----------



## Debles

Can you get a gate and just have her in the kitchen? Is that where the tile floor is? If it is that hot in the house, I wouldn't want to keep her in the crate either. Then you could have a fan blowing in the kitchen.


----------



## Wilson's REAL Mom

First of all, 65-72 isn't hot. In fact, coming from the South, that's downright cool! But, if you feel like she needs it, put a fan blowing into her crate. That's what we've always done when things got hot. Secondly, take the cushion out of her crate! If she likes to sleep on the tile floor, she'll probably be happier with just the bare crate floor, and there won't be any noise to wake her up! Just my .02 worth.


----------



## LOVEisGOLDEN

It sounds like she is more stressed than hot. Layla used to do the same thing, every time we would close the door-she would start panting, shaking, & pacing. it all stopped after we got Blush. now they stay loose together 24/7, but when they must be crated we put them side-by-side & Layla has no problems.

If getting her a buddy isn't an option, i suggest going back to the beginning on crate training (playing, eating, napping, etc. in the crate-a favorite toy & kong while you are gone) you also may try a DAP diffuser (research at drs. foster & smith online)


----------



## cinnamonteal

It's been hot here all summer (between 80 and 110) and Caleb has been fine in his crate. We don't put any bedding in his crate and on warm days we put the fan going on oscillate nearby. We put a thin sheet over the crate instead of a blanket or towel. We also keep his crate in the coolest spot in our apartment (back bedroom, near the window, shaded by a tree). On very hot days, we run the ac.

You can also try giving her frozen treats in the crate. Wet a wash cloth or rope bone with water and freeze. Works great for teething pups, but it might help cool her off, too.


----------



## dannyra

I'd second that it's probably more nerves/stress than heat. I'd also remove the bedding and just put an oscillating fan nearby so it just blows in the crate occasionally.


----------



## jnmarr

Penny was like that in the beginning. We do have AC.. what we wound up doing was putting her in a square ex pen under the vent on the tile floor in the kitchen. I did put a folded blanket in there in half of it in case she wanted warmth or cushioning. She slept like that till she could climb out like a little goat.. Then she had to be in the crate but was more comfortable being confined. A fan is a good idea.


----------



## Ardeagold

We have a small fan placed next to the crate whenever our dogs are in one. It's a tabletop sized vornado type fan. Works wonders. It moves the air....and also provides white noise. They calm down and stay calmed down much faster.

Also...ours don't like padding or blankets in the crate. They ball them up and push them aside.


----------



## BeauShel

Bama hated anything on the bottom of his crate and always pushed it over to the side. I would remove the bed and try it without the bed and if still having problems then add a little fan near her. We have a fan going in our room at night too.


----------



## Lucky's mom

Lucky liked the hard floor....he slept on the plastic...bedding was pushed aside or humped. The only problem with that is that the hair on his elbows wore off.

Sometimes we put on a fan that moved the air..one of those moving fans.


----------



## Turbo22

I just noticed I posted this question in the wrong category :doh:

thanks for all the great tips and suggestions. I think it just might be stress since it isn't that hot but i will try everything and see what works. thanks again!


----------



## Cam's Mom

Do you have tile in your bathroom? My guys like to sleep on the tile in ours, or the hall. If she still needs to be confined, the bathroom baby gated is close by and generally cooler.


----------



## Turbo22

She loves to sleep in the bathroom because of the tile! She naps in there during the day. We decided to crate train her 1 month ago (when she was about 3 months)..so we got a late start. She just got use to going into the crate on her own so we're currently working on her being in there with the door closed. We just want her to get use to being in a crate just in case and it's helping with the potty training. At what point do you know the crate training is done? or do they usually end up sleeping in the crate even when they're all grown up ?


----------



## Ardeagold

Ours get out of the crate when they're reliable. Usually it's between 1-2 years. But each dog is different, so some will get out even earlier...or later.

Our Newf Cole, who is 15 mos today, got out at 12 mos old. When he's ready to sleep...he sleeps! Goldens are different....and they tend to be more destructive, in my experience. He was only crated to train for dog shows. Otherwise he wouldn't have ever needed a crate.

We've never lost anything important to a Newf....Goldens have eaten sofas, remotes, eyeglasses, books, money, mail, floors, walls, doorframes, window sills, etc. And that's when we were THERE (but turned our backs) LOL


----------



## Groundhog

My 13 wk old Golden gets hot in the crate too, so I took the hot bed out and found a light nylon outside bed I used for camping and put that in there. He still pushes it aside at times and likes to just lay on the plastic floor. We have A/C too when it gets really hot, but I always have the fans going to circulate the air where the crates are for our dogs. When I am home and can keep an eye on Takoda, I let him sleep on the tile floor and just crate him for feedings and nights. 

Takoda doesn't like to go outside when it really hot and humid, at first I had to carry him out, he just wouldn't go out the door, he knew it was hot and muggy out there. LOL I just took him out to go potty, then let him back in to play inside. Now our Lab, she could live outside if we let her, she has to watch the yard to make sure the rabbits and squirrels don't get in.  Must be a Golden thing. hehehe


----------

