There are definitely some very shitty pet owners around. There's a dog we walk ours by that is out all day on a wire lead whether its family is home or not and it's constantly pulling on it and jumping around because it's clearly full of energy that it can't expend. I doubt it's enough to call the humane society and have them do anything about it unfortunately.

Our two dogs are very well-loved. They sleep on the bed with us, get the food our vet recommends (a brand called Taste of the Wild) and we have a dog door so they can run around their big yard. I've had four dogs in my life and I'd like to think I've treated all of them as well as, if not more than, I could be expected to reasonably do so.

I sure as fuck would never smother one of them any more than I'd smother a relative dying of cancer.

I would imagine that if you've never heard of anybody doing that where you live, it's a culture thing. Certain places have different practices on how they handle dogs. I want to stress though, much of the US doesn't just do it because it's simple and easy without any regard to the animal (at least not any good dog owners). To you, it may look like a prison, but to a dog properly crate trained, it's more like a safe and comfy bed they can relax in. The positive effects crating can have on a dog is heavily backed by science, and I'd recommend looking into it, it's actually kinda fascinating.

Of course, that all assumes it's being done properly. Crates are a tool, and like any tool, they can be misused and abused. So it's not always where they feel safest, it all depends on how you train them and certain issues a dog might have (claustrophobia, heavy anxiety, etc.). Generally, from what I understand, you never want to associate the crate with negative emotions or consequences (i.e. don't send your dog to the crate as punishment). It's supposed to be a safe place, not a jail cell.

Google it if you're curious. The science is there.