We’ve faced the problem of what to do with the pugs while we’re gone for some time now. For a while, we had been resistant to the idea of crating them for two reasons: Because we think they like being uncrated better, AND because having crates in the room just creates another “territorial” object for them to pee on.
I think we’ve finally settled the problem in favor of crating them unless we’re going to be gone for an extended period of time. We came to this decision because we finally became exhausted with cleaning up after them (we kept them in the kitchen, and they would mark certain spots in the kitchen nearly every time we left the house) and because we came upon some really nice crates.
These crates are plastic, so they can be cleaned easily. That solves the problem of the crate becoming the marked-object. Just hose it off! (though we have not had to do that). The second problem is the “we don’t like to be crated” problem, and it has not been a problem for us. Every time we put them in there, they get a treat. So now, they know exactly what to do. They excitedly run into the crates, and they munch away as I lock them in. So, there’s not really a problem going INTO the crates. When I get home, however, they’re very eager to get out. I figure that’s because they want to see me and not necessarily because they don’t like being inside the crate.
As a side note, these crates can be folded up compactly and stored very easily. This makes them GREAT for traveling.
They were Tricia’s parents’ crates, so I don’t know where they got them. However, there is a product page for them on Amazon, but they’re not currently selling them. So I have no idea where to get them, but the one in the Amazon link is the same one as the one we have.