Sparky and his Jail Break

[SparkyJonesMom]

Sometimes when we're busy working on something at home, we'll put Sparky in his crate. He always paws at the gate repeatedly, and I was always had a feeling that maybe one day he would figure out how to escape. Well, that day has finally come. Tonight I put Sparky in his crate at about 11:00, his usual bedtime. DH and I were in the living room, and I got up to walk down the hallway, and all of a sudden I just see a streak of black run past me and into the living room. I peek in the bedroom (where his crate is) and I see his gate wide open. Sparky finally broke free. I was so shocked that I just stood there for a couple of seconds. *sigh* Now we have to figure out a way to rig up the gate so he doesn't try to escape while we're both gone. He'd demolish everything. So there ya go. Just another example of why Cairn Terriers are smarter than their owners.

[Nikki]

LMAO Scotty did that once...but he had one of those cheap crates that were like $20-30 at petsmart...I brought a new one that was a lil bigger and one of those crates you can take on a plane and he can't open his crate door!

[Cairnmania]

You should be able to buy a latch from any store that sells hardware - they kind of look like the latch at the end of a lead. If you cannot find one that is big enough, buy a very short length of chain, loop the chain through the door and side of the cage - and then hook both ends of the chain together with the latch.

"Latch" is the wrong term - I don't know what the heck it's called.

BTW - does Sparky need to be locked in his crate at night? Once my dogs are house trained I've never found the need to keep them locked in their crates all night. However, I'm happy to let them sleep where they want in the house - so that's a consideration.