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puppy destroys the house when you leave? Chewing the couch, scratching the door, pacing at the window… that’s been my life lately.

I talked to a local trainer (Cailyn from Always Faithful Dog Training) about it, and her first suggestion was way simpler than I expected: proper crate training as a safe space.

She explained that for a lot of dogs, the crate can be a comfort zone where they can decompress and avoid getting overstimulated, instead of having full access to the house to spiral into anxiety. The idea is to teach the crate as a calm, predictable place before leaving, not just throw the puppy in when you walk out the door.

We’ve been working on: Making the crate a “good things happen here” spot (meals, chews, calm time).

Sending the dog to the crate on a cue while we’re still home.

Practicing super short in‑crate periods with us stepping in and out of the room, then gradually out the door.

It’s obviously not a magic fix for serious separation anxiety, but even this one change has helped my pup relax instead of going straight into demolition mode.

For those of you in the puppy‑destroyer stage:

Did crate training help at all? Anything you wish you’d done differently when introducing the crate in the beginning?