Another option instead of a crate is to "baby-gate" off one room in the house you can doggie proof. We keep Sadie, our 1 1/2 year old lab mix in the kitchen when we are gone (we are fortunate to have pocket doors and she does fine in there. If we give her more rooms she tends to tear things up. Cincy (our 7mos. lab mix) in still in her crate, and she seems to like it. When we have tried to give her the kitchen she has either toen things up or had diharrea (anxiety related?) She does fine in her crate and sometimes go in there to sleep when the door is open. While a crate may seem like an expensive investment, it may be cheaper then furniture or whatever else needs replaced later