What to Look for In a Wood Dog Crate
Since you are looking at a wood dog crate, there are some considerations that don’t exist with the typical plastic crates that are so prevalent in pet stores. While wood dog crates are much more beautiful and adaptable than the standard they do have some drawbacks, we will cover both the positives and negatives here.
Positives
One of the primary advantages of a wood crate is that you can ask the designer to match your current décor. There are stock models of wood crates to chose from, but you can usually contact a handyman and have something truly unique made.
From different woods to unique shapes, each wooden crate is a product of love and hard work. That means that you can have a crate and still have it maintain some anonymity when not in use.
You can really get a crate that is designed specifically for your pet. Instead of being one of the crowd you can have an artisan make you something unique.
If you have a particularly large or small dog, they can be more easily accommodated with something made of wood than a preformed unit. Wooden dog crates are often disguised as pieces of furniture. Whether your dog resides in an end table or an urban pet cube, the final impact is unique.
Negatives
Wood, unlike plastic, is inclined to harbor bacteria. If you have a plastic crate, you can haul it out to the yard and turn the hose upon it. With a wood crate, you need to keep a careful eye towards cleaning.
Wipe out the unit regularly and dry it thoroughly, or you may unintentionally promote unhealthy bacteria. The joints in a wooden crate are particularly sensitive to trapping materials, so keep an eye on them.
Wooden crates are heavier, relative to size than plastic or wire units. That is because they are made of better quality material and wood just weights more than wire. If you are going to need to move this crate around a lot, you may not want to consider the wood crate, but other than that, the weight and stability can only help if you have a rambunctious dog.
General Information
Just like any other crate, try to get something that is large enough for your pet to stand and turn around in, but no larger. This restricts movement and reduces the chances of your dog having accidents and getting into trouble.
Put a few favorite toys into the crate, and a bone with peanut butter tucked inside. The bone will keep a persistent dog busy for hours. A small source of water helps if your dog will be restrained for more than a couple of hours. Finally, make sure to get an appropriately sized pad or small mattress to place inside the crate to ensure a nice soft surface for napping.
Aside from needing to clean it more thoroughly and the potential weight, a wooden dog crate is a much prettier addition to you home. It still provides all the security and safety you need, but does it with more panache.
Whichever you decide, be sure to make you dog's crate as comfortable as possible. Add soft dog crate pads and slightly raised dog feeders for more comfort.