When given the "go lay down" command in my room Ryuk will either ask permission to get on the bed or go into his crate and lay down. Once it's later in the evening and the TV is on he likes having the crate door closed when he's in there so when he was a puppy I'd just close it without latching so he could get out when he wanted (I'm in the room the entire time). It wasn't long until he started closing the door himself with a paw which he still does to this day.

However during the last time I moved his crate (he went to convention with me in January) it must have gotten a little bent up when I folded it to fit into the car. When he goes to close it up it doesn't stay 100% closed without being latched anymore. This has resulted in a few attempts to close the crate with a paw then some whining when it won't stay closed followed by coming out and putting his head on my leg, then going back and trying it again. He'll lay down and be quiet with the door open but he won't usually sleep like he normally does in the evening. Every ten or so minutes he'll do the "deep sigh" to get my attention and if I look at him will paw half heartedly at the door.

I don't want to lock him into the crate since at his age (over 2 now) there is no reason he needs to be shut in a crate while I'm in the room. His water and food (he's allowed to graze for his nightly meal) are outside the crate so I'd prefer not to have to lock him in. I'd rather not get a new crate because there is nothing "wrong" with thing one and it would be a waste of money (around here even used a crate of this size is about $50, and this one is in muuuch nicer condition than the others you'd see on craiglist).

I'm wondering if anyone knows the cause of this behavior so maybe I could perhaps rearrange the crate or do something else that would make him want to sleep even if the door isn't closed.

Currently the crate is under my bed (so it's covered up) which he greatly preferred over having it out in the open. His only bedding is a bath towel as he really doesn't like pillows and would prefer to just sleep on the hard crate bottom but I needed something to trap the hair on the tray.The crate is a 42 inch long wire crate which is one size larger than what he could safely fit in because he runs in his sleep and would get his paws caught.

How about hanging a towel over the door opening?

Have you tried bending the crate so that the door will stay closed? You could also try putting a bit of folded paper under the corner of the crate to affect how the door swings.

You might also try putting a layer of cloth tape under the wire of the hinge to make the door less "swingy".

Hmmm...Not sure how to help, but I do know that dogs can be funny about their crates. We recently bought a larger crate for Kira and because of it's size, it was in a different direction than previously. She started barking/whining nightly when she was put in her crate for the night...something she never did before. Rotated it back and all is quiet again...

 Quote: Debbie Bruce

How about hanging a towel over the door opening?

What a good idea! Or any kind of this cloth than he can push aside.

I'm not sure from your description if the door of the crate is still straight and just doesn't want to stay in the closed position because the hinges or the crate are bent, of if the door itself is actually bent. But I'm wondering, if there's any part of the door that easily comes in contact with the crate itself, without being forced, would it be possible to somehow (securely) attach a magnet in such a way that it would hold the door closed?

The crate isn't visibly bent up but it's not closing anymore. I've tried to repair it and have tried various things in the hinges, I can't seem to fine where it's "broken" so fixing it has been tough. I'll certainly try that magnet idea, I have a shipment of earth magnets coming for a project soon anyway ^_^ I'll make a little mount with apoxie (so the magnets don't come off and become a swallowing hazard)

I tried the towel for the last two nights...I thought it was working...buuuut Ryuk doesn't seem to agree, he keeps yanking it down and kindly stuffed it out the back of the crate.

I just fine the behavior sort of strange in general. I'm unsure why the door must be closed? I know he's not uncomfortable or stressed in the room to a point that he needs the safety of his crate (he's perfectly happy to sleep on my feet but I've been working in clay and if I drop it on him it gets stuck in his fur lol). It's not like he has trouble sleeping out of his crate. On the road he's slept on my lap in the middle of a busy rest stop, we've slept in hotel bathtubs, in tents, outdoors, he'll sleep under my table at conventions, he's not a dog who typically feels unsafe when he's not closed up in his crate, which is why this confuses me.

Maybe he thinks it's his job to close the door?
How about marking his being in the crate with the door open.