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Is your crate safe? What are your thoughts?

Basenji Training
  • ComicDom1C

    Since I brought the subject of crate training up in another post, I think it would be worthwhile to discuss the different kinds of crates, construction, and the safety issues related to them. Different crates have pro's and con's. Would your dog be better off in one kind or another?

    Jason

    Get your Basenji Fanconi DNA tested today!

    https://secure.offa.org/dnatesting/index.html

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  • tanzaT

    My personal choice are wire crates (except for airplane travel since they require vari kennel types for baggage and sherpa types for in coach). I like the General Cage the best, they are of good size and constructed well (obviously for the behaved dog, as on that has extreme anxiety will be able to destroy anything)…
    My crates that I have in the house are 15yrs + old, as are the ones that I travel in the van with (one size smaller then the house/RV crates 300 size model for the house, 200 size for the van) I like them because they fold up and are easy to store. Now the 200 size that I use for the van and show/coursing, are starting to show wear on the welds and will need to be replaced soon, I think. I also use a 400 size as a whelping box, just take off the door and put an xpen around it... my pups are very used to a crate and xpen since they are born in and grow up in one....

    Pat Fragassi

    Tanza Basenjis

    www.tanzabasenjis.net

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  • BDawgB

    We used a black wire crate with Lexi. Until one 4th of July, she managed to break free from it. She apparently was able to push her nose under the door enough to escape– but not without injuring her nose... we came home and found her in the closet shaking, her nose bright red and significantly swollen.

    So now we have a heavy gauge steel (silver colored) crate. We haven't had any issues with it so far. But we've also added a dog so hopefully she doesn't have as much anxiety now as she did then either.

    Miles & Lexi's Mom

    www.stelladot.com/barrick

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  • agilebasenjiA

    Kennel Aire's. Definately KA's for the car. In the house, Digital is loose, Jet is in "his room" (xpen) and Zest is in a KA crate.

    http://www.newworldbasenjis.net/kennelaire.htm

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  • tanzaT

    Oh yes… Kennel Aire's... of course they do not make the ones that many have from years ago.....

    Pat Fragassi

    Tanza Basenjis

    www.tanzabasenjis.net

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  • dashD

    Dash ate his way out of his plastic crate. He was left in it too long by our dogsitter. However, he also bent the bars on the expen too. Now we just leave him out and he's fine.

    Jennifer

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  • L

    The kids have their own room, so they don't get placed in their crates, but the crates are in the room (Wire Type crates) to allow them a place to nap and have alone time if they need it.

    To you

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  • ComicDom1C

    I guess we dare to be different. Miranda and I still use the old reliable Kennel Cab II for Roo inside the house. In the car we have a Nylabone Crate which is collapsible and is not manufactured any more. We also have an extra Nylabone that we bought to use for transportation of rescues. So far all of these have worked out great for us. Miranda and I have had absolutely no problems with their construction or durability. I think I have had the Kennel Cab for 19 or 20 years now. The Nylabone Crates appear to be highly sought after. I have noticed the Nylabone Crate selling for twice what we paid for them. At one time our local Petsmart had them but I do not know if they are still available there.

    Jason

    Get your Basenji Fanconi DNA tested today!

    https://secure.offa.org/dnatesting/index.html

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  • JazzysMomJ

    With Jazzy we used, with absolutely no problems ever, a Petmate plastic crate.

    For Keoki we started with a plastic.

    He chewed the living daylights out of BOTH crates.

    We moved him into an ex-pen, which worked for a couple of weeks, then he began to jump and push on it so that it was never the same shape when we got home. Then he started actually moving it around the room and eventually tore his little nose up in the effort to move it.

    NOW, we have a large wire crate that holds BOTH dogs, and he seems very content in that. I don't know that it's the crate or the fact that he is not alone? Either way, I am simply happy that he is happy at last!

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  • J

    We just use a Pet Porter. I have the medium sized one for traveling…Tosca fits in it just fine since you are not supposed to have a lot of extra room its probably actually the right size, but I feel it is a little small. However, it fits nicely in the back seat without taking up too much room. When she is at home and we are at work, she goes into a large Pet Porter. That way she has room to be a bit more comfortable, and she doesn't have accidents in it or try to chew it or anything. There are a few small scratch marks on the inside, but not enough that it ever did any damage. She is very content in her crate, unless we put her in there and she can hear us walking around, then she wants out!

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  • Robin_n_JackR

    We have a plastic crate…I think it is a vari kennel, but can't be sure- but it is at least that type. We had a wire crate in the beginning, but it was too big, he had enough room to make a messs and get away from it, so he got the point where he would go to the bathroom in his crate, and then lay down on the other side. So, we got the smaller crate. He doesn't mind going in his crate when I leave for work, but it is not his favorite place to be. He doesn't usually go in there without being asked to, but he doesn't try to escape.

    It was funny, when my parents were here, he got to stay out all day with them while I was at work, and then he was sleeping in bed with us. After the second day of this, at about 9:00pm, he got up from the couch, trotted over to his crate and lied down inside, with a huge heavy sigh, and took a nap. I think we were wearing him out.

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    @Janneke: Sorry.. but she hates her crate… and she has to be in it for 8 hours a day... And you don't walk her in the morning...? I would start with making sure your dog is tired in the morning before you put her in her crate. And maybe you can try to leave her loose in the house so she can move around? This is not only to you, but I read it so often on this forum that dogs spend entire days in their crates... I just don't understand that people can put their dogs in crates 8+ hours a day (I'm not including nights..) I agree with Janneke here - if she hates her crate, she may pee in it because she gets extremely unhappy there. Not all dogs need to be crated - I've never had a dog who was crated, and the two I have now are loose when we're gone because Shaye, who was 10 weeks when we got her, always hated it, never changed, and started breaking baby teeth on it. When we leave we leave them with a treat to get their immediate attention, and they usually sleep or keep themselves busy, with no damage or upset. Of course, we aren't usually gone more than 6 hours when we leave them.
  • dmeyD

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    I think I will buy a wire crate also. LIked that the plastic ones are more "den" like , but like you said I can just put a blanket at night… Thanks
  • cazC

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    When you feed him in the crate and close do you walk away? I had a foster that was terrified of the crate and also suffered terrible anxiety w/peeing in the crate too. So I would feed him in the crate and then close the door and sit right there with him. At first I only closed the door half way, did that way for about a week then was able to close it all the (without latching) for another week. I would sit right next to the crate and praise him for eating his meals. Then I would scoot a few feet back at one meal, move back at the next and do that for a for a few times. Then I would stay at the few feet back. It is a slow process but it really really helped him in his crate training process and getting him over his fear. I was soon able to feed him in his crate and walk away. He was running to his crate and sitting for his meals. He still had his anxiety for long periods w/the peeing problem but we even worked on that were we could leave for short times and he wouldn't pee in his crate
  • AnnA

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  • DiegosMomD

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