It was 11pm, I had put him to bed in his crate and gone to bed myself. I didn’t know our friend was dropping by to pick up an xbox game. Usually Dobie is very excited and friendly when the doorbell rings because he expects us to welcome in more playmates. He must have known the situation was different since the lights were off and I was upstairs, because when the doorbell rang, he let out a series of protective big-dog barks.
I don’t know how he changed his voice, but the barks were menacingly loud with a low growl. He sounded genuinely frightening. Brandon and I ran downstairs to see what was wrong, and when we got there, he instantly quieted down and waited for us to see who was at the door. When we saw our friend, he sensed that there was no threat and went back to sleep. Even though Dobie was in his crate and couldn’t do anything if it was a break-in, he still warned the ‘intruder’ with his pretend big-dog voice to stay away from our house.
So when people say that dogs don’t have the instinct to protect their homes if they are crated on a regular basis, you can tell them that this is a complete myth. My 4 month old puppy had the good sense and courage to use his big voice. He doesn’t just see the crate as his home, he knows he’s part of the bigger home that Brandon and I belong in. I also learned that even though Dobie has accidents inside the house, chews carpet and wets his crate, he DOES see this as his home and feels the need to protect it. I am extremely proud of my little puppy for being a brave doggy. Good boy Dobie!
Dobie at 4 months of age... *wink*
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