Hey everyone!

I searched in the topics for what age everyone here stopped using the crate for their puppies but couldn't find so I thought I would ask here. Shiloh my husky puppy is 3 months old and the last 2 nights I tested him at night to see what he would do if I didn't crate him. He outgrew his crate (bought another one but it was WAY too big) and would whine because he couldn't get comfortable. He loves to sleep in the kitchen so I let him. He was great! I was afraid he might chew on things in the middle of the night or pee/poop all over but when he had to go out, he would whine or come get me. So just curious, at what age did you guys stop crating your dog and allow him to sleep where he wants?

Second questions is exercising. I know I posted it here before and there are so many different opinions. Some people are very strict about the 5 minute per month rule while others say that the rule doesn't apply to EVERY dog, especially dogs like huskies, labs, GSDs etc... I asked my vet and she said walking him twice a day with free running (off leash or in the backyard) is fine as long as I am not running him on pavement or biking him. I take him for 20-25 minutes in the morning (off leash in a park) so he can run at his own pace, and then again at 5pm. Just wondering how much exercise did you guys give your puppies at 3 months?

With Kohdi, it was early on, maybe 3 or 4 months old, I left his crate door open though in case he still wanted to sleep inside it. By then his schedule was pretty much set as far as being let out to pee and stuff. He did awesome too, with zero accidents in the house and no chewing on things. Mishka was a bit different, I did the crate door open thing early on, but because she was staying so small, didn't let her have free roam of the house cuz in playing, which could happen at any hour, I didn't want Kohdi to stomple her, so I just blockaded the kitchen area so she had room to roam. She is different though, haha, she did chew on things (nothing too serious) and one morning I found her on top of her crate (she was climbing up the thing like it was a ladder) but once she was up (presumably to get over my blockade) she couldn't get back down so essentially she was stuck up there.

I think every puppy and really every circumstance is different, had Mishka been an only dog it *may* have been different, but in allowing freedom comes a responsibility to ensure their safety just as if you had a small child, which means power cords and anything else they can harm themselves with has to be put away/hidden. You basically have to think like a parent. And why a lot of people never really stop with the crate, it's the safest place for them.

Unless I'm reading something wrong, your exercise routine sounds ok to me (it's early though so I'm not totally awake, haha), technically you should be doing about 15 minutes but that's not "per day", you can be taking him several times a day for 15 minutes, it's the rest periods in between that are important. I don't necessarily agree with the part about the "rule" not applying to every dog/husky but the rule comes down to structured walks and you seem ok there.

I'll second Jimmy's comments.  
"To crate or not to crate, that is the question."  Some dogs are quite comfortable being crated, it's their private home; others will fight you tooth and nail; some, seriously, don't need to be crated.  You need to decide whether he needs to be crated for his own protection or for your house's - some dogs will be content in a crate and destructive out of one.  I've never used one, have wires running all over the back of my "desk" and have never had a problem with my dogs chewing on the cords ... on the one hand, it's dependent on your comfort level and on the other it's how well your dog can handle the freedom.

For simplicity sake, the five minute rule is to help new owners who want to get out and run with their dogs and then overdo it.  When you get out and run with your dog, the dog doesn't have a lot of choice in the matter and you can overdo it; when you've got your dog in a park (or your back yard) your dog can go and stop as he feels the need to, so when he get's "tired" he can stop.

Thanks Al! Yes, I do agree with you. I think that 5 minute rule is valid for those who think it's necessary to run 15 miles with a 3 month old. I let mine run off leash so he can stop when he wants if he gets tired. Little bugger can go for hours though but I limit his walks/runs to about 25 minutes twice a day.
As for crating, so far so good. I recall not crating my previous husky at around 3 months and he loved sleeping in the kitchen. My current puppy roams at night between his bed and the kitchen. I too worried about cords, plastic, etc.. but he's been good about it at night so we will see. I left his crate door open at night to see if he would go in but he wouldn't.

As others have said, to crate or not to crate is a very personal, case-by-case matter and varies greatly from dog to dog. We probably could have let Layla stay out of the crate while we were away or at night earlier than 1.5 years, but that's how long we waited. She's actually a very well-behaved and calm dog at home and is happy to nap while we're out.

We waited until she was fully potty trained and had proved to us that she would behave well enough to trust her out of the crate. It actually took us about six or seven months until we could say she was fully potty trained. She still sleeps in her crate at night most of the time, but sometimes we let her up into our room, where she likes to sleep next to our bed. She's comfortable sleeping in either environment. When she's home alone now we always let her have the run of the house, and since doing that we've never had an issue. Again, though, Layla is a much more laid-back Husky than some others. She doesn't get into things that aren't hers and isn't destructive (besides with her toys).

I love crate training but as others have said it's not for every dog room train can also be effective. I kept Cora in her crate at night until she was 4 months she was fully potty trained so I started to let her sleep on the floor then I let her up on my bed at around 5 months. Cora still has her crate set up in my room with the door always open but she only goes in it when I am getting her food ready. During the day Cora is watched by my parents when ever they go out they put Cora in my room for the safety of our cats.