Indoor dog enclosures and dog walking don’t seem to go by the hand. We don’t need to be dog whisperers to know how much dogs love a walk around the neighborhood or a run in the dog park. Indoor dog enclosures negate this possibility for them. They may seem more like a prison cell to your friendly pooch. Sometimes, though, as much as they need and like to be exercised outdoors every day, it’s just plain impossible to do so.
Severe weather, illness, a busy schedule may keep everyone indoors. There are even dogs that need socialization training before daring to walk them on a leash alone, never mind with other dogs. And yet we also know that they can grow obese or destroy our shoes, furniture, rugs, and anything else they can get their teeth into, if they don’t have regular exercise and mental stimulation.
This is where indoor dog enclosures enter to solve the problem of not being able to exercise your dogs outdoors. Plus, they have many other uses besides. Indoor dog enclosures keep these fur buddies safe when we’re introducing new pets to the household. They help us potty train them when they’re puppies and can be invaluable if we have a dog that suffers from separation anxiety or is having a bout of diarrhea.
But you must become savvy about the use of these instruments. Our canine best friends need to get used to indoor dog enclosures gradually. If we bully them into it, they’re likely to see confinement as a punishment. We can avoid this by coaxing them into the enclosure with treats and other tools, using lots of love and praise when they voluntarily go in. But first, let’s review the type of indoor dog enclosures available to choose from.
Baby Gates Make For Great Indoor Dog Enclosures
Installing a baby gate to keep certain dogs in your care limited to a specific part of the house and leaving the rest to walk about freely is good for everyone, especially if you have a new baby, a nervous cat, fragile décor or that rare visitor who has cynophobia (otherwise known as a fear of dogs).
Baby gates come in all shapes, sizes, and materials. They are easy to install. A low gate that people can step over is ideal to keep small dogs contained in a certain area of the house, while taller, sturdier walk-through gates are available to block passage to bigger dogs. Baby gates are available in wood, plastic, and steel and the material you choose will depend on whether your dog is a chewer or not. These gates are often expandable, arched, or tri-folded to fit any size doorway or hallway.
A free-standing portable gate is handy if your dog is only under containment some of the time. The gate can be easily stored away and doesn’t take up much space. Even if you need a gate that is a permanent fixture in your home, installing and uninstalling the gate will only take a few minutes and all you’ll need to have in hand is a screwdriver. Gates that are permanent fixtures often have a pet door that your dog can use to move freely throughout the house when you don’t need him to be contained.
Once you install the gate, it’s time to fill the space with equipment so that the encased dog can receive the equivalent exertion and stimulation that a good walk or visit to a dog park would provide. This is key for anyone pet sitting in addition to wanting to charge for doggie exercise when the weather is so bad that not the owner or even you would want to or should step out to walk any dog. What type of exercise can a dog engage with inside one of these indoor dog enclosures?
Your dogs can enjoy running through a mini play tunnel or obstacle course. You could have it work for its treats by having the dog climb stairs, jump through hoops, balance on air-cushioned discs. You can challenge their equilibrium and coordination by having them wear paw pods or standing on a balancing peanut. You can set up a dog see-saw or a wobble board. All this gives you a fantastic opportunity to train the dog to follow your commands. Play tunnels, hurdles sets and inflatables come in all sizes, so be sure to get those that match the space you have available and leave sufficient room for the dog to use effectively.
Another good exercise for dogs to do within an indoor dog enclosure is to play fetch. You can use one of many available automatic ball launchers in the market. It’s a bit scary to think of balls flying all over the place indoors, but you can control the arc and distance that the ball travels and sensors prevent the balls from launching if you or your dog are too close to the launcher.
Dog treadmills also provide superb exercise for your enclosed dog. They are pricey, so you could charge for the training and usage of your equipment as if you were conducing dog walking services outdoors during indoor-only days. They’re an excellent investment to make for generating income during the low-season months of winter when the weather is not ideal and dog owners don’t know what to do with their dogs.
Dog Pens Can Become Dog Penthouses
Unlike baby gates, dog pens are not meant to block access to a certain area of the house for the dog. They’re meant to become the area the dog will believe to be its own. They do come in all sizes and are very useful indoor dog enclosures for both training and exercising the animal if you have enough space to set them up. But dog pens are meant to be more of a portable corral for a dog.
Some dog pens are made of cloth and mesh with removable plastic floors which is excellent for easy cleaning. Others are steel or plastic with skid resistant pads to protect your floors. Dog pens can be square or round or octagonal, and in many cases, extra panels can be added to make the pen bigger.
The one you choose will depend on how many dogs you have and how big or small your dogs are, as well as how much space you have. Most dog pens are easy to transport and easily fold away. They don’t take up much storage space when not in use.
When going outdoors is not an option, dog pens can serve as a controlled area where to teach obedience commands like sit, come out, roll over, shake hands and so on. They can also serve as a time-out space where to punish the dog for disobedience. You just need to remove all stimulus that makes the area a happy place. What kind of stimulus are we talking about?
You can keep your dogs stimulated with puzzle toys or kongs when they’re confined to the dog pen. Most puzzle toys release treats when the dog solves the puzzle. Dogs love these games. Food and play combined make for an occupied mind and a happy dog indoors. The Kong is the most widely known puzzle toy, but there are many others like the Seek-a-Treat Shuffle Bone or Dog Magic Puzzle by Nina Ottosson.
Balls, tug toys and squeaky toys will also entertain your dogs for hours at a time. Dogs can be like children. They become bored with the same toys. So, put out only two or three at a time and rotate them to maintain a sense of novelty.
Also, dogs can gradually overcome separation anxiety when you place a variety of toys in their dog pens to keep them occupied and distracted when you’re away from their sight. Dog pens are an excellent choice as indoor dog enclosures.
Dog Crates For Transportable Indoor Dog Enclosing
Crates are essential indoor dog enclosures and every dog should have one. When you need to take your sick dog to the vet or make it rest after surgery, a crate is invaluable. Your dog is safe in a crate when you’re traveling and it’s also a terrific way to introduce a new dog to the family without stress and injury. It’s useful as a quick way to potty train a puppy as well.
Some dogs love their crates so much that they choose to sleep in them. If the crate is the right size, it makes them feel snug and safe, much like a dog house.
You can choose from steel, plastic, and soft-sided cloth and mesh crates. Some crates have double doors which is great because we all know how frustrating it is to persuade our dogs to reverse out of a crate. Some crates are top-loaders, and these are very useful when we have a willful dog that refuses to leave the crate when we’re at the vet because it knows a cold steel table awaits it for a vaccination.
Choose the right size by measuring your dog while it is standing: from ears to paws for the height and nose to tail for the length. Add 6 inches both ways to decide the crate size your dog needs. Too big a crate may make dogs feel insecure and too small a crate is just a prison box.
Indoor Dog Enclosures Last Thoughts…
Indoor dog enclosures keep our fur buddies safe and happy when we can’t be outdoors for one reason or another. In addition, if we fill them with equipment and toys, our dogs will still get the exercise and mental stimulation that they need. Line them with pee pads, if going potty outside is not an option. If you make sure that your dogs have fresh water, a snug sleeping place, and fun toys and equipment to play with in their indoor dog enclosures, they will love spending time in them and won’t yearn as much for their daily walk or run in the park.