Canvas crates?
 

i am getting my very own 5 month old chocolate yorkie shipped to me on friday! im really excited and trying to get everything together and im looking into crates for him. i saw some canvas crates online that i liked. i like that they are not as much of an eyesore and look a lot less like a prison cell than the metal ones do. however, i was reading online reviews and people were complaining that their dogs ripped them apart and broke out of them. im sure that with some breeds of dogs thats possible within minutes but i was thinking it may be different with a 5lb yorkie. does anyone have any experience with canvas crates or recommendations on the subject? id appreciate the help! thanks! :aimeeyork

I use only canvas crates now... mine never even try to get out so I have no isses there.

It really is up to the individual dog though, my moms 6 pound poodle can get out in seconds, :rolleyes:

I had one with a zipper door. Ruger ate the door, and after I fixed it he discovered that if he kept jumping against the sides he could move the crate around the room. It seemed like a great idea at the time, but he's doing much better in a normal travel crate.

The problem is WE look at the crate and see a prison, but the dog doesn't see it this way. You just have to take your time, and using treats get the dog to go into the crate on his own. Ruger will now go in with the command Crate, but I still give him a couple of treats for going in.

BTW, congrats on your new baby.

While some feel that canvas crates are nicer over a metal crate....There are some draw backs.....During the summer air doesn't circulate as well. Cleaning requires complete hose down with a good disinfectant as they do absorb smell, then letting them to air dry out in the sun. They aren't a stable as metal crates, several Kennel Clubs have banned them from show sites, as dogs have escaped from them. There are nice crate covers that you can purchase and/or make to make them a bit more pleasing to the eye.

Hi and welcome to YT. Congrats on your new baby. :) I have a canvas crate that I use on the boat. While it is nice, it is not very study. If for some reason the dog got rambunctious, he could roll the crate over! As someone suggested, air doesn't circulate as well as in a wire crate. You could also look at getting a expen. You can put the canvas crate in there so your puppy can go in to sleep but then have the pen for a bit more room to play and potty on a pad. :) Also, if you have a bed bath and beyond near you, they have the canvas crates there. I got one from there a year ago. I am sure that they still have them there. :)


Where abouts in Baltimore are you? There are several of us in MD and we are planning a meetup in the Annapolis area soon. :) Bo

I bought 2 at Bed, Bath & Beyond about a year a go for about $20.00 each.....I use them in x-pens for daytime, just a place where then can go rest.

My little 2lb baby chewed/clawed her way out of a canvas crate in about a week. I thought it would be nicer than a cage but I guess she disagrees. Or she just hates to be confined. Just my experience. They don't call our little munchkins "terrors" for no reason:-)

thank you so much everyone for the insight! i decided to go against the canvas crate and went with the metal crate and im so glad i did. i have had him for about a week now and i have realized i have an escape artist on my hands because he can get out of his metal crate! i feel bad about it. he cries and barks when he gets in there at first but after a while he stops... so i kinda feel bad :( is this normal? i grew up with my mom and her 3 yorkies but my mom is against crates and her dogs are only pad trained so this is really my first experience trying to crate and potty train a dog... anyone have any tips as to what i should do?

Have you tried putting a toy in there with him? I used to put a kong and a fleece toy in with Hot Rod. We wound up getting a expen for him by the 2nd week we had him. His crate, pad, water and food were in the xpen with him. I liked this better as he could stretch his legs and I knew that he could go potty if needed when we were at work or were running late getting home.

yes i put different toys in there with him but he doesnt show any intrest. when i bought him from the breeder she described him as "very playful" and thats definetly not how i would describe him. he is extremely laid back and doesnt really play. he just follows you around and when he realizes you are staying in the room for more than a few seconds he lays down. i kinda just thought maybe hes still stressed from moving here but its been a week and hes still just laid back. my moms 3 yorkies are crazy so this is a complete turn around from how i thought about yorkies. the only time he goes crazy is in the crate. i just may have to try the xpen. i just want to housetrain him and for him to be happy all at the same time. and also, is it normal for him to have accidents in the crate? i heard that dogs dont mess where they sleep and i understand that they have small bladders and are accident prone but most of the time he has to get in the crate he messes in it. i clean it really well and get the smell out but im worried that the longer he continues to do it the harder housebreaking is going to be. i would hate to be doing more harm then good...

Hi, In my experience, canvas crates are good, but the other kind are more practical. You can use it more since it has a handle and it washes out easily. Dogs actually feel secure in a crate if they are trained with one. I've had both, but now I only use the regular crate when I need one. Have fun with your new puppy :)

The crate needs to be small, so all he can do is turn around. If you are wanting to train him to hold his bladder then you cant allow him room to go. If you work and he is left alone for a good bit of the day, I would put a old tshirt that I have worn and the smell helps the pups feel safe. Also, maybe have someone come in to take out to potty mid day. I have both kinds of crates. I got the canvas crate after Kobe was house broken so he would have a place to sleep in the bedroom. I didnt want to have to move the metal crate room to room and when I leave the house he goes in the metal one that is in the living room. It took him a few nights to get use to the canvas one, but I put in my tshirt and he was better and stopped trying to break out. Now he just goes in on his own and waits for us to zip it up. at frist i did put a clasp on the zippers cause I was afraid he would figure out how to unzip it. I used the motion blinkin heart shape thing you can put on a dogs collar to see them at night, well I have never used it so now it is on one of the zippers and he likes to hit it when he is ready to get up. He is our alarm clock, every morning at 7 am he hits it and lets me know its morning lol.

I just realized you got him at 5 months... I am surprised that he was not already trained some at that age by the breeder. Kobe was 3 months old when he came home and by the time he was 4 months he was house broken.