It was one of those stories that was so appalling that people had to share it. A PETA supporter learned from someone at her workplace about a couple who had moved out of their house and left their St. Bernard there alone, caged in a crate 24 hours a day. She called us immediately.

After tracking down the owners, we learned that they were going once a day to give the dog food and water but were forcing him to spend his life alone in the crate, where he also had to relieve himself. We pressured the local police department and animal control to talk to the couple and convince them to surrender the dog. Thankfully, they agreed.

The dog was finally free, but the stress of confinement had left him with psychological scars. Like many dogs who are crated for an extended period of time, he had become aggressive and developed other behavioral problems. As it would have been dangerous to put him up for adoption, he was peacefully euthanized.

Had he not been deprived of socialization, exercise, affection, environmental stimulation, and everything else that was important to him, this dog might have been adoptable. You can help by encouraging the dog guardians in your life to let their dogs do what social pack animals do best: spend their time surrounded by family, not stuck in a crate or on a chain.

Photo of the day

Dog © iStockphoto.com/Steve Goodwin

With Ashly Clark, a Nebraska mother whose two young boys were found locked in a wire kennel during a police welfare check, set to go on trial on January 31, PETA is planning to erect a billboard in her area that reminds people that crating is wrong—for children and dogs. 

Since dogs are highly social pack animals, they find crating or chaining a terrible punishment and it can actually make behavioral problems like barking and hyperactivity worse.

Dogs need to be allowed outside to relieve themselves at least four times a day, whether that means coming home from work at lunchtime, hiring a reputable dog walker, or taking them to a doggie daycare. After all, would you leave a toddler in a cage all day? 

A Vancouver couple made international news when they did the unthinkable: locked their two autistic sons for months in a bedroom with bars on the window and door, turning it into a cage.  If you are disgusted by this (and who wouldn't be?), consider this: If we force a dog to stay in a crate all day, we do essentially the same thing. To get people thinking about the cruelty of crating, PETA wants to erect this billboard in Vancouver:

 
Confining dogs to a crate for hours on end deprives them of the opportunity to engage in basic activities that are natural and enjoyable to them, such as stretching out, looking out a window, walking around, running, and playing. Dogs are highly social animals who desire companionship, praise, and exercise. Studies have shown that such confinement is detrimental to their physical and psychological well-being.

You wouldn't put your child in a cage, so please don't put your animal friend in one, either. If you have to be gone for an extended time, consider a dog walker, a pet sitter, a "doggie door" leading out into a secure fenced yard, or doggie daycare.  

Written by Michelle Sherrow

photofinish2009 / CC by 2.0

Two recent news stories underscore the importance of making sure that dogs are kept indoors when temperatures soar.

In South Carolina, a man named Charles Bell has been charged with cruelty after Animal Control officers reportedly discovered that a dog had died in a small wire crate in the man's backyard while temperatures soared as high as 114 degrees. The dog had apparently been trapped in the crate in direct sunlight for three days with no food or water. According to news reports, authorities were alerted by a man who had approached the house to ask that the dog be moved into the shade only to have a woman slam the door in his face. Crating a dog is always a terrible idea, but in this case it was a formula for tragedy.

Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, thanks to one dog's ingenuity, disaster was narrowly averted. When a dog named Max was inadvertently left in a hot car, he began to honk the car's horn. After being doused in water and then rushed to a vet, Max made a full recovery from his heat exhaustion—but most dogs aren't as lucky.

Even in the shade, temperatures inside a car in warm weather can soar to lethal levels. To cool themselves, dogs must pant, and they can only perspire through their paw pads. Please protect your dog, and if you see other dogs in distress, always take action—you could save a life!

Written by Jeff Mackey

My pal Mylie has been at me to blog about crating dogs for a while now, and this is a perfect time to do it, since she just finished making a leaflet about it. Check out the leaflet below, and if you’d like to order some to pass out, click here.