Midwest Crates - Have you had issues with the safety? - Page 1

I'm really curious if I am the only one who has experienced potentially serious problems with the wire Midwest Crates. 

As my dog was growing up, there was a couple times where his paw  (sometimes the front...sometimes the hind) would slip under the gap that is right above the slot where the pan comes out.   I tried to home remedy this by using a firm, thick pad that rose above the "danger zone".   The crate in my car - I would roll up a towel and stuff if between the pad and the wire as extra security.   This seemed to solve the problem, but it was something I always had to be conscience of.

Well, last week my dog went to jump out of the car, and his right hind paw still managed to slip thru that damn gap, and he basically was hanging at a horrible angle by his right hind paw with his front legs barely on the ground.  I pretty much reacted and lifted his 95 pound body  into the air to release the angle and leverage so he could get his foot out.  As horrible as the moment was, and of course the noise he made, it was unbelieveable that he didn't have any injury to that foot.

The trainer at the club got a 2 x 4  and cut it so that I could block the gap better.  (Thank you Karen)

As soon as I can find a large wire crate from a different company that will work, I am trashing the ones I have..  Between the two crates I probably have close to $300 bucks into them, but it's not worh having permanent injury to my dog.  I feel that this last incident was my final warning.

Has anyone else had problems with these crates?  I'd be interested to know.  I already emailed the company and said they need to redesign them if they are going to continue to advertise how "safe" these crates are.

PS:  Tomorrow I will post pictures of the crate and the described gap so you can see what I'm talking about.

Hi there,

I have the same crates, I use a baby crib bumper pad to block the gap.  My dog was getting her back legs stuck under when she would stretch out at night.  I actually have a friend whose dog broke a leg this way in a similiar crate.  Please let me know if you hear anything more from the company.

Shannan  :)

Use vinyl :) no problems there. I been using wire creates for quite some time now, but they always pose some extra risk comparing to vinyl :). Changing to different manufacture won't help there is always some chance of injury. Good luck.

I've been trying to insert the pictures...but for what ever reason the editing program won't upload...I'll try again later.  Thanks for your response Shannan :-)   I'll let you know what the company says...

Hi ...

I went to the wire crates because of the size.. The vinyl/airline crates were too small (floor space).  My dog travels with me when I go to work, and can be in his crate for extended periods thru out the day - also the air flow is increased with the wire crates as opposed to the solid.  I usually put shade cloth over the wire crate to cut the direct sun too. 

If I could find a vinyl crate with more ventilation......  :-)   ?

Thank you for your reply

I know what you mean :) I use Vinyl for car trips, and in home I have Wire the bigest one I can find, is just a fact they are not the safest thing, if you find one that posts less risk let me know, so far they all look the same to me :). Good luck.

 All spaces that confine anything, unless in a four walled room with nothing in it, have the potential to present a hazard to people or animals. It is that simple. Custom made, very expensive aluminum crates can minimize the hazard, but no one wants to pay that kind of money either. If I must be certain a dog is safety confined, they are in one of those aluminum crates, or in the kennel which was designed with safety in mind. Sadly, nothing is fool proof, or accident proof. One must always be vigilant.

Ideally  would LOVE to redo my car and put in the inserts...  (I'd better start playing the lottery...lol)  and yes, I know someone who had the aluminum crates...and the dog got injured on the latch-  go figure. 

Thanks for the opinion Hodie :-)  

You can increase the ventilation of the VariKennel type crates with a drill and a hole saw.  Drill small holes (use the hole saw that's about the size of a quarter) on the top and lower sides of the crate, and the ventilation improves greatly.

Yes, Hexe is absolutely correct about increasing ventilation by this method. However, just be careful because doing so also weakens the integrity of the crate and airlines, for example, might not be willing to take it either. So don't go drill crazy.