Dog poop everywhere.

I disagree that crates are inhumane. Crating a young puppy is much more humane than having your things ruined and destroyed on a daily basis. Waking up to poop everywhere would not be acceptable and crating the pups would be a much easier solution. Allowing young puppies free roam of the house is like letting a 2 yr old free run of the house unsupervised. Not only is it dangerous for the child/puppy but imagine the disaster awaiting you when you get home from work!

Totally agree.

My two youngest ones are crated, they feel safe in their crates, they go in there on their own.
When I hand out treats they run right in there to enjoy them in peace.[]

I agree on the crating. You only need to use the crates at night/when you are gone, and it's not cruel to the dogs. They just need to get used to being there and realize that crates are nothing to fear. You can also set your alarm (tough, I know!) and take them out once in the middle of the night, to cut down on any crate messes they may have because they're still young.

Also remember that chewing is good for helping set the teeth into the jawbone, helping prevent dental problems later on. Just keep them crated with a good chew toy, and make sure you have plenty of toys around that are good for chewing.

So, what is more inhumane, giving your dogs a safe and comfortable location to snooze while they can't be supervised, or ending up hating your dogs for what they do when you're not looking?
 
That was the choice I had to make. Either crate Conrad or resent him every single day when I got home. My homecomings now are 100% happy waggy affairs because everything is exactly where I left it, including the dogs. Don't think your dogs can't pick up on how you feel about them while you're cleaning up their poop and whatever destruction they've created. They may not speak English but they read body language and tone of voice better than most humans.

Well.. last night they did it again. Along with chewing up one of my nice dress shoes. Anyone gonna input on this before I send one to the pound?

 
Maybe sending the dog to the pound is more humane...........argh...

If this is inhumane, why do my dogs choose to sleep in their crates when I'm at the computer?  Their doors are wide open.

PLEASE don't tell my six german shepherds that crates are inhumane.  They LOVE those crates and run to them when offered a fresh bone, when someone mentions bedtime or "gotta go to work".  The trick is staying out of the way so WE don't get trampled in the mad rush to the inhumane place.....

My favorite is when, in a mad rush to get into a crate, any crate, they get mixed up and go into each others' (and it actually does matter whose is whose). Mass confusion reigns while I try to sort them out because as soon as I coax one out of the wrong one, and turn around to call the other (who is patiently waiting in the other, wrong, crate), the first is back in the wrong one again. I actually have to pick one and hold him back by his collar while I call the other.  
 
Also amusing, when they both try to simultaneously go into the same one and end up doing a three-stooges-in-a-doorway skit.

FUNNY!!!!  LOL  I only have one dog now but she LOVES her crate.  My sister had three at a time and there was the mad dash for the crates at night.  It was too funny.  They knew they each got a bedtime biscuit and would knock you down if you were in their way.  They sometimes got mixed up too but one of the dogs was a little short on brains and if one of the other ones got in her crate she would just stand outside and look at you like, what the heck?  Thanks for the funny memories!!

Also amusing, when they both try to simultaneously go into the same one and end up doing a three-stooges-in-a-doorway skit.

 
That happened here once and it was a riot.  Dudley was crate trained when we got him, so we had 2 big crates set up side by side.  Sometimes when they would come barreling in the house, they'd run into the "wrong" crate or both try to squeeze in the doorway of the same one.  Eventually, they'd figure out that wasn't gonna happen, so somebody better step back! 
 
We kept Dudley's door shut (he couldn't care less) and Kato's open.  They slept side by side peacefully in their own space.
    

What's funny is that Tasha is the bigger of the two dogs and goes in the shiny metal one because it's a little bigger, but her and Pepper are more about who's side they're on.  Tasha always goes into the crate on the right and Pepper on the left.  Even if we reversed them, they would still go in the crate that is on "their" side.  We have to be careful with the way we set them up when they stay at my sister's to make sure that they get into the right crates.  lol...  silly dogs.  and if the reward is high enough, you'll have all the dogs trying to squeeze into one crate because that's the one you're standing in front of with the treat.  lmao...

Also amusing, when they both try to simultaneously go into the same one and end up doing a three-stooges-in-a-doorway skit.

We have an extra wire crate in the living room. If I tell one dog, "Kennel" sometimes four of my five go dashing to it and cram themselves in it. It's insane.

ORIGINAL: tashakota

If this is inhumane, why do my dogs choose to sleep in their crates when I'm at the computer?  Their doors are wide open.

 
Wow, I can't believe you're abusing that dog like that! []
 
Seriously, I'll never have another dog that I don't crate train (even if I don't leave her in there every time I leave).
 
I've got two labs - one is crate trained and the other is not.  The crate trained dog is at home wherever we go - you just put her to bed and she's fine.  The other dog is very nervous when we're out of town (not to mention the fact that she knows how to open the refrigerator).
 
 

If the OP is still around... two puppies shouldn't be able to make 10 piles of poop overnight - that indicates they are either eating too much or eating low quality food (or both). If they really are pooping that much, you might want to look into upgrading their food to something high protein and low on fillers and grains. Even young puppies shouldn't poop more than 5 times a day total, never mind just between bedtime and morning. A food upgrade in the right portions should keep the pooping to a reasonable amount.

(not to mention the fact that she knows how to open the refrigerator).

 
Now my DH would consider that an ASSET on football Sundays!! [sm=clapping%20hands%20smiley.gif] 

ORIGINAL: Mastiff

(not to mention the fact that she knows how to open the refrigerator).

Now my DH would consider that an ASSET on football Sundays!! [sm=clapping%20hands%20smiley.gif] 

 
Charlie's a rescue, and I suspect somebody tried to teach her to get a beer[]
 
We had her for a year and a half, and would come home every now and then to find the refrigerator door open (nothing missing).  I kept accusing my wife of not getting it shut, until one day I saw Charlie walk up and nudge it open with her nose.
 
For a long time, she would just open it up and look - never touching anything inside.  One day, she ate a pound of raw bacon, a head of lettuce, a package of English muffins, and some cottage cheese (at least she was covering all the major food groups).  She was deathly sick all night, and from that point on, she'd help herself to whatever was in the fridge whenever we'd leave her alone.
 
We finally got a side-by-side refrigerator.  She doesn't know how to open that up, so we're OK.  At our lake home, we block the refrigerator door when we leave her.
 
Here's Charlie: