Dog Crate: A Guide to Proper Sizing

It can be rather difficult to choose the right dog crate for your dog. Many pet owners have an inclination to choose a crate larger than what they actually need, because they want their dog to have plenty of room to get comfortable. However, you may be asking for trouble when buying an improperly sized dog crate, even one larger than what you need.

Things To Consider

The fact of the matter is your dog only needs enough room to turn around, stand up, and comfortably lie down. Buying a crate too small for your dog to comfortably do this is a problem for obvious reasons; your dog will be uncomfortable and may possibly even be at risk for health problems from being in a cramped crate for an extended period of time. On the other hand, your dog may have lots of room to move around in an oversized cage, but they are also more at risk of sliding around and even suffering injury from sudden starts and stops while in a cage during travel. This is why it is crucial to picking the right size for your dog crate.

General Size Ideas

Between the dog’s breed, weight, and length from snout to end, most pet shops can help you find an appropriately sized dog crate. For dogs up to around 10 or 12 pounds, a small dog crate roughly 20 inches long (or shorter, depending on your particular breed) is usually recommended. With dogs this small, you can also usually get away with crates made of lighter material, such as plastic or even tent fabric. From there, add about six inches to the crate size for every 20 pounds more your dog weighs (give or take a few pounds). For example, a dog from around 10 to 25 pounds should probably be fine with a 24-inch dog crate. Moving farther up the scale, a dog 41 to 70 pounds should probably get a medium dog crate about 36 inches long, and a dog weighing around 71 to 95 pounds should get a 48 inch, large dog crate.

If you don’t know what your dog weighs, there are many pet supply stores (especially on the internet) that will let you shop by breed. They will help to pick a crate that will work best for your particular breed of dog. Be aware though that there are differences even between breeds of dogs, and crates advertised for a specific breed are based on an average size for that breed.

Dog Crates For Puppies

The same size standards apply for puppies that apply for adult dogs. However, many pet owners don’t want to purchase a stream of new crates as their dogs continue to grow. Also, buying an adult sized crate and letting them sit in the extra space is a bad idea, even when not traveling, as it can make it harder to house train the puppy. Luckily, they have crates to remedy this. You can purchase a crate large enough for what your dog will need when full grown, and simply use dividers inside to set the size of the crate appropriately as your puppy grows.