I don't understand. A dog crate with pee pads in it? That is not exactly a novel idea. I bought pee pads for Gracie when I first got her. I quickly decided to buy the frames for them as they are way too much fun for a puppy to pull around and play with on their own. Once the pee pads were locked in the frames she stopped trying to pull them all over. She knew right away that this was where she was to go potty. I just had to have her in the right area. The older she got the farther away she could get from her potty and still find it in time. If you are going to be gone quite a lot an area large enough for sleeping and pottying is necessary. I would get a pen big enough for a pee pad frame and a dog bed and a food and water area. I don't know how big of a pen they are selling for a small dog but you probably could find a better deal else where and probably get a bigger pen.