I have been driving myself mad looking at crates on Amazon for a bout a fortnight so I thought it might be time to ask the experts! Is there a brand anyone can recommend as even the crates with hundreds of good reviews have a few horror stories about puppies breaking the bars or getting their teeth stuck in them etc. Also, what size is best as a starter? I know if they are too big the pup might make a toilet area so I don't mind starting small and buying more than one in the future. I appreciate these questions have probably been asked a million times before, so thanks in advance.
Hello there I think your best safety measure for making sure a puppy or dog is safe in a crate is to train it properly to relax in a crate. While some dogs are ok from the get go, properly training a dog to relax in a crate is a really worthwhile thing to do. It should be possible to leave a dog in a fabric crate (which would not withstand a serious attempt from a dog to get out) and the dog should be absolutely fine. A dog should never attempt to leave the crate. I think a dog that made a serious attempt to get out of a crate would cause itself injury no matter the design of the crate. So as long as you choose a crate that is sturdy, and has no sharp bits, you should be fine. Myself, I use Croft Product metal crates, http://www.croftonline.co.uk/, which are far from being the cheapest but I've been very happy with them, and Maelson soft dog kennels if I stay in a hotel or holiday cottage with my dog.
Ellie Bo are good crates and, once they are grown up, 42 inches is best. JulieT is right - the pups need to be trained to be happy there. Even if you don't intend to use a crate at home. My Twiglet has never slept in a crate but I taught her to settle in one as that's what they need to do when they are at the vets. She was recently spayed and absolutely fine in the vet's cage. Here are lots of good articles - http://www.thelabradorsite.com/crate-training-your-labrador-puppy/
I bought Ellie-Bo as well for Juno starting with the 24" which lasted until she was around 4.5 months old. Then moved on to the 36" and then the 42". For the larger sizes I also bought the crate mattresses which I now use in the back of the car for her to curl up on.
Having used crates for all our puppies and later the adult dogs, just make sure they are happy in it. We have found that it helps to start with feed the puppy in there for a few days, it will know it is a nice place to be. We started with a 24" and then bought a 42", the adult girls would go in that one. At the moment we are using the 24" with the new puppy, the other day Bella 3yrs old was in there with the pup?? Make sure you buy one with a metal tray, the plastic ones don't last in our experience. Sue.
Thanks everyone, I now have an Ellie-Bo crate on its way. Hoping it gets here before the pup but we've got 2 weeks so it should be fine! Counting down the days now.
Hi Kezza 85, I am from italy and I think I have the same problem. I have a puppy of Golden Retriever and I would ask you wich type of crate are you using. I have a plastic crate, but my puppy is cryng as hell . I don't know what to do, actually. Furthermore I have the problem of the closed doors... any suggestion is precious. Thank you!!
