Step 1: Get the Right Material
There are two main materials you can use to make a crate divider: corrugated cardboard or plywood.
If your puppy is a big chewer, you’ll want to go with plywood for your crate divider.
It’ll be stronger and last longer if your puppy decides to gnaw around the edges.
Corrugated cardboard is also an option, if your dog isn’t interested in chewing.
Make sure not to use regular cardboard, which is flimsy and could break if your dog lays against it[2].
The Purpose of Crate Dividers If your crate doesn’t come with a divider and you don’t want to make your own then you can buy one. Click this image for more info!
When your puppy is eight weeks old, they’ll be super tiny.
Even large breed dogs will start out smaller than you might expect, which is why crate dividers are so important.
Many dog owners, myself included, want to invest in a crate that their puppy can grow into.
That means skipping the small and maybe even the medium sized crates.
It’s a budgeting move that’s completely fine to make, as long as you use a crate divider when your dog comes home.
The divider will limit how much space your puppy has to walk around in their crate, preventing them from peeing in one corner and sleeping in another.
This is crucial to ensure proper crate training[1]. Dogs won’t want to go to the bathroom where they’re also lying down, so limiting the space of a large crate is the best thing you can do for your puppy.
Standard crate dividers will come with the crate you buy, most of the time.
They’ll be made out of the same metal material as the walls of the crate, except it will be one stand-alone panel.
The panel will have hooks on three sides, leaving the fourth to line against the crate tray. Check for instructions that should come with your crate for specifics, but there’s a general way to install a crate divider.
After you’ve completely finished assembling the crate, slide the crate divider in through the doggy door.
Attach the hooks on both sides to the walls of the crate, right in the middle of the crate tray.
After the hooks are attached to the crate walls, there should be hooks on the top of the crate divider that will hook onto the top of the crate.
Once that’s completed, you should be able to jiggle the crate divider and even apply pressure without it slipping out of place.
Step 2: Measure the Crate
Use a tape measure to determine where the halfway point of the crate is, or wherever you decide the divider should go.
Measure from one side to the other on the inside of the crate to get an accurate width measurement.
Then measure from the bottom of the crate to the top for the height.
Mark these measurements on the cardboard or plywood, so you have the basic outline of your crate divider.
FAQ
Should you use a divider in a dog crate?
How do you make a dog crate divider?
