A Dog @ the Door

The large crate we got for our dog just isn't cutting it.

Sam The Lab is very well trained and can roam free, because she has never messed with anything even as a puppy. But our newest addition Lily the Pit was not taught to distinguish between the outside and inside, and that has been a long hard climb. It's not her fault, it's just how it is. So we always keep Sam in the master during the day and Lil is in an ample sized crate in the livingroom.

There's a baby gate up at the hall since Lily is still working on indoor manners, and she goes happily into the crate and sometimes just hangs out there, so we thought things were good.   

About a month ago, the Hubs was alarmed to come home to a very excited and proud dog who had evidently had the run of the house for the day. His heart sank, I'm sure imagining all sorts of things - the leather furniture and all the things we value and leave sitting out.  His quick scan turned up things that were chewed up and presents left upstairs, and there was this one bottle of oozing liquid which trashed the office carpet, not that it didn't need replacing anyway, but still. Generally, though, we understood that the house got a pass.  We could tell, though, that every forbidden surface had been laid on and explored.

I assumed I hadn't latched the crate correctly.

Fast forward a couple of weeks, and last week we met for dinner after work. He left from home, latched top and bottom firmly, and an hour or so later Lily met us at the door. What the heck! Bottom latch was securely fastened, top latch was unlocked and sort of banged up, meaning the door was a little tweaked. We surmised this big chested, too smart for her own good dog figured a way to angle through the small opening and get out. Again, we strolled through the house noticing a few things out of whack, a roll of unrolled TP all over the bathroom floor and the kitchen island shelves having been explored.

Last Thursday, I forgot my cell and had to go inside just as I was leaving for work ... and was met at the door.  Ok that does it.  The Hubs and I huddled by phone and I fished through the garage and came up with 2 locks- a lobster claw type and a hook type. It was a little disconcerting that her face was right down there in earnest concentration watching as they were put on.

Everything was locked securely, I went to work, and she remained in the crate. This extra locking idea was pretty good. Little did we know she was just working things out in her head.

Yesterday after being out for several hours, we returned home to a dog at the door.  We looked disappointingly at the official AKC crate. It was standing wide open, and the metal hook holding the plastic tray had been bent so the tray could be pushed all the way out, which it was. The bottom bars were also bent and twisted a little. Those extra locks were hanging from the door, latched and still in place.

But THIS TIME the house was perfect. She had chewed up just one small thing in the bathroom, and she found a stuffed bear upstairs that she brought down to snuggle with on the bedding sheets piled and ready for the washer. Its nose was wet from licking. We were so proud of her, she got 10,000 extra bonus points for the good dog she is trying to be.

Friends suggested a BabyCam - good idea. We're thinking of Houdini these days, and his daring escape from the straightjacket with heavy chains. If this keeps up, we're changing her name.