The Advantages:
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Our Version of the Red Sea
About a month ago I came home from work one morning, opened the door and found my entire 18×24 foot kitchen literally soaked in blood. There were puddles of blood, doggie footprints in blood and spots of blood from one end of the room to the other. I had no idea breaking a toenail could bleed so much. The first time he broke a nail we’d been to a friend’s country home where there was that tall brittle hay-like grass in hard patches that I knew Riley had been in. When he hopped into my SUV, I saw his foot was bleeding and found the broken nail. I called the vet, she told me what to do and a few weeks later he was fine.
When I came home to the sea of blood and I didn’t find either dog bleeding from their heads or upper body I immediately checked for toenail injuries and found Riley’s left rear inside nail was broken and poking out sideways. OUCH! That had to hurt a LOT! It was early on a Saturday morning so I couldn’t reach my regular vet, got their recording to call the eVet in Madison which is about 45 miles away. I didn’t feel this required life or death (very expensive!) emergency treatment but knew he needed a vet so I called around town and found another vet who agreed to see us 45 minutes later. The bleeding was so bad that they had to cauterize the nail (horrible experience!) and even that didn’t stop the bleeding so they finished treating it and then wrapped it and sent us on our way with instructions for how to care for it.
Since there is nothing else in our house for him to have hurt himself this way, we figured what had happened was that someone probably walked by the house while I was at work and in his hurry to fulfill his self-appointed duty as our Official Head of Security, he’d charged our of the crate, mis-stepped and caught his nail on the top wire along the bottom of the crate. It’s the absolute only thing that makes any sense whatsoever as to how this happened. See the arrow in the photo on the right. Just so there is no confusion, their crate doors are left open so they can go in and out as they wish during the night while I’m at work but are gated off from the rest of the house so they have the kitchen and the dog room when no one is at home.
My partner had been away for a week on a business trip. When he got home, the dogs were understandably excited. A few hours after our reunion I thought everyone had calmed down enough that we could all relax and go to bed. I took the dogs out, got Fenrir settled in his crate, then went into the other room to finish getting ready for bed.
Part of me feels like this could be one of those “know thy dog” type of situations. Maybe metal crates are just not a good fit for certain dogs. On the other hand, it could take just a single incident to make dog owners regret using metal crates. Even if your dog has been using them safely for years, that doesn’t guarantee that nothing bad will ever happen.
Fenrir was a dream to crate train, especially when compared to my papillon Kitsune. I remember Fenrir’s first night home with us. Much to my surprise, he almost slept through the entire night. Fen seemed to love his crate from day one. Even to this day, Fenrir is 6 years old now, he spends quite a bit of time each day napping or otherwise relaxing in his ‘room’, as we call it. But when Fen was around 7 months old, something happened that caused me to ditch the wire crates forever.
We lucked out. I was able to quickly free Fen’s paw, which was unharmed. But the experience lead me to do some research and I found that we were not the only ones who have had this type of experience with wire crates. I found reports of other dogs getting their paws/toes caught, and even an old petition about a dog who got her teeth caught in her crate, broke her jaw, and had to be euthanized due to her injuries.
I remember I was in the bathroom brushing my teeth when I heard Fen screaming. Not his typical “hey I need to get out of here and use the bathroom” whine, but a panicked wailing. I ran to the bedroom, where Fen was, and found that one of his paws had gotten caught in between two of the wire bars of his crate.
Dog Crate; Wire vs Plastic
If it’s time to get your four-legged friend a new crate, you may be torn between a plastic or a wire dog crate. In this guide, we will go through all the differences and the benefits and disadvantages of both types of crates. When you are finished reading, you should have a much better idea of what you need and why!
A wire dog crate can come in a variety of sizes, and it has very large areas for a dog to see through. The wire crate is a more open way to contain your dog in that it allows them to see the world around them. Wire crates generally have a plastic bottom that you can take out and clean. The wire edges of the crate are a thick wire, and they are painted with a smooth finish. You should always inspect a wire crate to make sure it is built well, but you should not have trouble with the wire hurting your dog in any way.
Wire dog crates range in size. The most common models range from 24 inches up to about 54 inches. Depending on the size of your dog, you will need to change the size of your crate. If you purchase a large breed puppy, you will want to choose the larger crate to make sure they have room to grow into it.
Most wire crates are relatively standard rectangular shapes with a plastic-type tray at the bottom. The crate usually has one door at the front that will have one or multiple latches to keep your dog secure. There are a few wire crates on the market that offer a fleece pad on the bottom. Most are left empty for the owner to place toys, bedding, etc. inside the crate.
Wire crates are heavy simply because they are made of wire. Some models are available on wheels, but they will cost quite a bit more. The one great thing about wire crates is that they usually are foldable and can be stored away quickly and easily.
Depending on the quality and the features of the crate, you can spend anywhere from $20 up to $500. The majority of wire crates are going to fall in the $100-$150 price range.Pros
A plastic dog crate helps to create an excellent den-like environment for your dog. The visibility for the dog on a plastic crate is much less than it is on the wire crate, but that may be a good thing. Plastic crates are easy to move around and work for both small and large dogs. A plastic crate usually has one door at the front that will have one or more latches on it.
Plastic crates are available in the very same sizes as wire crates. Since the plastic crates can feel a little more enclosed than a wire crate, make sure you are getting a size that properly accommodates your dog.
Most plastic crates have the same style. They provide limited visibility but a comforting den-like environment for your dog. If your dog struggles with anxiety or you are traveling to a new area and don’t want to upset your dog, the plastic crate can work very well. Plastic crates are not usually foldable like the wire crates; however, they can generally be taken apart when you are finished with them.
Plastic dog crates are much lighter than the wire dog crates. You will have no issues moving your plastic crate to another location in your home. If your dog is smaller, you can use the plastic crate as a carrier for trips to the vet or the park. The plastic crate will not add very much weight when carrying a small dog around.
Plastic crates can cost anywhere from $25 to hundreds of dollars. Most of the time, the price of the plastic dog crate will vary based on the size you are purchasing.Pros