[sikk50]

My girlfriend and I got a Bluetick puppy a few months back. He is now 6 months. I work 12 hour shifts and am unable to leave work, though I get 3-4 days off a week. So he gets plenty of play time. We opted out of crate training, instead we got a baby gate and were able to keep him sequestered to the kitchen the first two months. This worked well as he did not have to feel responsible for as much territory and when he made a mess, which they do until they get older and learn bladder and boule control, it was easy to clean.

After about 6 weeks of this we began leaving him alone in the house while we were at work. My gf is able to come home on her lunch breaks usually, which meant he would only be alone for 4-5 hours at a time. During this time he would still "make" in the kitchen which was the preferable outcome, and of course nice for our carpet.

Today I installed a doggy door that he has already mastered. For the last few weeks he has been holding it until we got home, so we figured it was time.

Being a coonhound he requires a lot of attention to burn his energy. I would steer away from coonhounds if that will be too hard for you.

But, the point of this post, is to offer an alternative to crating. I'm personally rather against crating. If you have a kitchen such as we do, where you can just put up a baby gate or two I would highly recommend this. It is the same general idea, less territory for him to feel responsible for as well as protecting your home from becoming a giant chew toy.