Hey guys,

My partner and I are getting out first Golden pup on Saturday!

I am wondering, when we are both away from the home, would it be best to crate the pup inside (this is where pup will sleep at night), or put pup outside (backyard is secure too) with a dog bed and let him roam?

What is the maximum time you crate a pup?

Really would love some input around this.

Thanks in advance!

I think it depends on the age of the pup. We started letting Wyatt stay out back at about 4 or 5 months.

On a side not: we never used a crate.

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I would never leave my 7 month old unattended in the back yard for more than a few minutes, and will never leave her out overnight, or when nobody is home, but that's just me.

The longest she's ever been crated when nobody is home was about 8 hours. That was just once when we had a wedding to attend. Other than that, it's usually 3-5 hours at the most, and that's not every day either.

I think you'll find training much more difficult without a crate, IMO.

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Grasslands Liberty Belle "Bella" CGC (5-7-2012)

I think you're going to get a lot of votes for crating, primarily as a safety concern for the pup and because it helps with housebreaking. How is the backyard secured? My biggest fear about leaving our pup outside unsupervised is that he could be stolen or finds a way out and get lost, hurt, or worse.

I'd say crate! At least then if he does somehow escape, he's still secure in the home.

I prefer to crate in the house...I have never left any of my dogs outside all day when I leave, well except by accident once or twice. Our puppy, who comes home on the 27th, will be crated in the house....but that is JMO for what it's worth...

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It all depends on your set up...my backyard has an electric fence, so my girls are never outside alone. I crate the youngest, Tess has free roam of the house. If you should decide to use your backyard, make sure that no one can come in, that the dog can not jump the fence or dig under it, that he has enough water, shade and protection, that the garden is dog proofed, that he is safe in general...ec, etc...

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I don't know what kind of fence you have but also keep in mind that a dog can and will learn to flip the latch up to open a gate.
I put a lock on mine only to find out the hard way that it's against city ordinance because police and fire must have free access to the yard. Now I just have a clip on it that the dogs can't open but humans can. Just something to keep in mind. Good luck.

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First question I would ask is what age is your puppy? I have never let a puppy or dog outdoors if I was not at home ......they eat everything they can get their mouth around! & that is a danger to them ( stones, dirt, plants which could be poisonous etc ) leaving outside alone can also cause nuisance barking to become a habit which is extremely hard to break. Much safer indoors in crate .....I use an exercise puppy pen during the day when my five month old is home without me for four hours twice a week. You could not leave a puppy or dog in a crate without water for hours when you are at work, but you can use an ex pen & if it has an accident, which of course it will do, at least it is not desperately trying to hold on for hours in a crate. And when it does have a peeing and/or pooping accident in the crate, it will then have to lay in it & you will return home to an awful mess, a dreadful smell & a puppy to bathe. i would definitely go with an ex pen so that puppy can move around, have access to water (use a container that is specially made for crates & pens & clips onto the side, as pups will play with water & spill it & then have no water). Wherever it is, it will need shade from the sun. How long were you planning to leave it? Pups should not be left for longer than four hours in a crate, except overnight when they are sleeping. So if you have to leave it for longer, & you do not want to use an ex pen, you will need to have a neighbour you can trust, or family member, to come in when its feed is due, in order to let it out, give it a toilet break outdoors & time to play, feed it, give it some company, before returning it to crate. Pups need human interaction during the day. It's best not to leave the collar on a puppy when it is crated, or in an ex pen, or really whenever it is own its own.

You can get a water bowl that attaches to the side of the crate.

Some dogs can hold it longer than others at a young age. Bella was about 5 months when we left her in the crate for 8 hours that one time, but she had already been holding it overnight on a regular basis. I would not want to crate her that long every day. I feel guilty when its more than 3 hours, but I assume she just sleeps the entire time anyway. Many days, she's not ever in the crate.


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Grasslands Liberty Belle "Bella" CGC (5-7-2012)

I personally dont think leaving it outside for hours is a very good idea. Even if your back yard is secure it may find a way to dig under the fence. Or it could sit and bark all day which would upset neighbors.
We decided not to use a crate, but came up with another idea. We will put her in our small 1/2 bath while we are at work with a baby gate. Then at night we will put her in our master bath with the baby gate so we can here her when she whines to go potty. We also thought about a play pin. DH's family used those when they breed shih tzu's. But decided it probably wouldn't work with with a golden since they grow much bigger faster.