While cage training a puppy, is it cruel not to put food and water in the cage with him while you are gone for about 8 hrs a day to prevent him from peeing and pooping in his cage?

Yes, I would say that is not normally something a responsible dog owner would do to a pup who is alone for 8 hours a day. I never used crate training for my dogs as I chose totrain in a more humane way (yes shaz, I know you do it right). This is just my own opinion.

This is my pet peeve. People who want a dog, expect them to behave, catch on to subtle nuances from their owners, put them in the crate and go off to work for an 8 or 9 hour day. You have to realize this is a baby you have in your care and you would not treat a human baby that way, I hope, so why a pup?

If you work all day, can't get home to tend your new puppy, then why have a dog at all ? And, yes, I have had pups, worked, but allowed time to make it home to interact with them, let them out for a run, etc.

Tick

You can leave out the food but I personally wouldn't leave out water for 8 hours.
You can buy water bowls that clip onto the wire so they can't be spilt, and you can limit the amount given.

Personally I don't leave my dogs in crates during the day as they are in their crates at bed time and 16 hours a day in a crate seems cruel to me. I leave mine blocked off in my kitchen/dining area to give them a little more room to move around.

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Originally Posted by shazamataz

You can leave out the food but I personally wouldn't leave out water for 8 hours.
You can buy water bowls that clip onto the wire so they can't be spilt, and you can limit the amount given.

P.

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Yes, clip on water bowls are a good idea. Pups tend to play in the water if left in a regular bowl, therefore, getting wet in the process.

Tick

I would for go the food, but puppies should always have access to fresh water. Even if they mess, they should still have water.
In my opinion a crate is the safest place for pups and dogs while you are away. If you can gate off a section of the house like a room or hall way, then of course that would be better, as long as they don't suffer from spereation anxiety and become destructive. I am missing all the tile in my back hall way from a destructive dog. This disorder can easily be fixed with training and behaviour modification along with pleanty of excersice and distractions. For a puppy I don't think that it is cruel for them to be crated while you are away. Mine is crated while I am at work, she has destructive tendencies (which we are working on), but I do not crate at night. My dog usually ends up sleeping in my room any ways.
I don't have food in Lady's cage, but I do have lots of toys, kongs, nyla bones, and on the od occasion a fresh soup marrow bone. She has one of those dishes that clip on the side, and you some times she kicks it over, but most times it stays nice and dry in there.
Here are some articles on crating, the good, the bad and the ugly.

Crating Your Dog: Is It Cruel to Confine Dogs?

Crating Your Dog

Crate Training : The Humane Society of the United States

Choosing a crate

About.com Dogs - Why You Should Crate Train Your Dog