The Petco Classic Dog Crates is probably one of Petco’s best and most appreciated products. It also is the subject of our review today. Now, before we go any further, here’s what we know about Petco.
If Petco were human, it would be a middle-aged adult by now. The brand has been in existence for more than 50 years! That is 50 years of serving the entire pet republic and their owners faithfully.
The only reason for their existence as they know it is to create the healthiest and happiest experiences between pet and parent everywhere in the world.
It tries its best to produce only the highest quality of everything it offers. This also include advice and consultation services kinda like a shrink for your pets… Well, our words not theirs.
Nuff said, let’s get on with this review…
Table of Contents
Who Is The Petco Classic Dog Crate For?
If you just adopted your pup and are thinking of crate training or potty training him, this crate makes an excellent choice. It comes with dividing panels too, so you can make a cozy unit for your pup as he grows ever speedily into maturity.
This sure can take some level of beating. However, you might want to keep this crate for the mildly aggressive, mildly chewy dogs. If your dog is the very determined escape artist or a destructive chewer, he’ll still make mincemeat out of this even though it’s metal.
Aside from destroying the crate, if your pet is a chewer, especially, he could ingest some of the paint, which is never good news. So, as we said, keep this for the house trained, “only-misbehaves-once-in-a-while-like-all-pups-sometimes-do” dogs.
Features Of The Petco Classic Dog Crate
This crate provides so many benefits in the features that they offer. We will look into each of them and give you our honest opinion of how they impact the quality of this crate.
1. Access
This crate comes as a single door crate. It is relatively large and opens fully but then we have our reservations when it comes to single doors.
No matter how large a single door is, double doors are always better. They make crates a lot easier to use for whatever reason.
If you’re still potty training your pup, single doors would be somewhat limiting. Not that it would be a completely terrible idea though, but then there’s a reason the saying is “two heads are better than one” is said.
Also, in times of medical emergencies, two doors make it a lot easier to lift your pet out of the crate in a way that won’t cause further damage.
However, many customers still love this crate, either way, single door or not. So, we guess many people are making it work. And if they can, so can you too.
2. Lock System
What’s more important than getting your dog to love his crate? It’s him feeling and even more importantly, being secure in his crate.
Thankfully, the lock on this is pretty strong. Although, it won’t keep the best escape artistes locked in.
We would surely have been happier if this crate came with two locks like the Midwest Life Stages Dog Crates. But this is still okay and will work for most dogs.
3. Metal Construction
Well, this isn’t the strongest construction we have come across but they are pretty strong either way. It’s made of metal wire, so yeah, it isn’t going to get knocked down easily.
4. Baked Powder Coat Finish
Remember that metal still rusts. So, you need to protect it by applying the right finish.
These crates come with a baked powder coat finish. So, yes, the metal will remain protected.
Thankfully, the baking powder coat is safe for your pet. So, even if she begins to teeth and chew on her crate, she’ll still be safe somewhat. But to be completely safe, provide her with her own chew toy.
Thinking of her chewing on her crate just doesn’t sit right with us and you too, hopefully.
5. Foldable Crate With A Handle
This crate is foldable and they are also very easy to fold and setup.
So, why is a foldable crate such a big plus? The primary reason, of course, is portability, and then space too.
You want your crate to be portable for several reasons. For instance, say you’re going on a trip or you just need to move your crate around the house. Especially if you have a large crate, it would be pretty clumsy for you to pick the crate whole as it is to move it around.
But this crate folds down completely and it even comes with a nifty handle on top which allows you to to carry the crate like a suitcase. How neat… but then again, that brings us to one thing.
Ease of assembly…
The ease of assembly of a dog crate might not be easily recognized as a benefit until you’re in a hurry. Sometimes, there could be an emergency or you could just be in haste. In such situations, a crate that doesn’t fold down or set up easily just becomes a nuisance.
Especially if you’re getting these crates to be moved around a lot, you’d appreciate how easily this folds and sets up. Even someone with arthritic fingers can have this up and running in seconds.
6. Dividing Panels
There are dividing panels for all sizes of the Petco except the extra small crate which might be just as well. Why do we say so? Well, extra small dog crates are already really small. Plus extra-small breed dogs rarely ever grow way past their puppy size.
The large breed dogs are actually where you have the biggest problem. Those pups grow like a weed. Like, one moment they are just puppies, and the next, they are large and completely unrecognizable. So, this is where you need dividing panels, primarily.
So, did Petco do well to only put the dividing panels on other crates beside the extra small ones? Well, we don’t see any big whoop with Petco’s choice. And we’ve explained why that is so.
Should they have added a dividing panel to the extra small crate, it would have been thinking but not totally necessary.
So, as for dividing panels, these crates do just great.
7. Removable Plastic Pan
This crate comes with removable plastic pans in them. These pans make it easier for you to clean up in case of an accident.
Now, while potty training your pup, there’s bound to be one or two cases of accidents here and there. And if you don’t understand that your pup needs to “go” at regular and close intervals, the risk of accidents automatically increases.
To enhance training, experts will tell you that you need to clean up the “scene of the crime” thoroughly. Once a dog catches a whiff of his urine scent in a place, he’ll keep going back for more.
It would be pretty difficult to clean up the “scene of the crime” if it’s just all crate. But when there’s a removable pan, your work becomes a whole lot easier.
So, yes, it’s great that a removable pan is included in this crate. But here’s our one concern.
This pan is plastic. Will this pan be able to stand the antics of a large, burly dog? Or isn’t it possible for your large dog especially to break this pan in a moment of excitement? If that happens, the crate can become a potential hazard to your dog.
So, for this reason, we would have preferred for the pan to be a metal one. And yeah, let’s not forget the chewy dogs. Gifting them a crate with a plastic pan inside is like gifting them their very own chew toy.
So, generally, we would have preferred a metal pan but we guess the plastic pan would have to do.
8. Rounded Corners
Now here is why metal dog crates scare us, a careless mistake on the part of manufacturer and pet and owner can suffer dire consequences. And you know what they say about when the elephants fight, your pet suffers it.
One major feature we look out for when we check out our crates for review is if they come with rounded corners. We don’t think we need to tell you how many ways protruding metal edges can be harmful to you and yours.
First, while setting up, you’re sure to sacrifice one or two trickles of blood. Two, keeping your pet inside a crate with such jagged edges is grossly irresponsible of you as a pet parent.
Dogs can get excited, other times, they just want to paw on the surrounding walls around them. Especially when left alone for super long periods, a dog has to keep himself busy.
Isn’t it sad to think that a simple pawing his crate or leaning on the crate in any form can cause him an injury. It might just be an ouchie but still, it’s going to hurt a bit.
So, yes, these rounded corners definitely score highly in our books.
NB: You should still inspect your crate upon receipt to check for sharp edges. Your pup’s safety is way too important to play dice with. Ensure that you always check and probably keep a pair of pliers on hand.
9. Various Sizes Of The Petco Classic Dog Crates
These crates come in a range of sizes beginning from extra small to extra extra large. So in all, the total number of size variations you have add up to 6.
Of course, you need to do a proper sizing first before you pick out a particular size for your dog. Now, there is actually a stepwise process for sizing your dog.
But we will lend you our knowledge and give you a general idea of the different sizes of dog crates and dogs that would most likely fit into those crates:
Let’s begin here…
i. Extra Small: This crate measures at 19 inches and does not come with a dividing panel like the rest. It is best for extra small breeds like a Chi, a Maltese, or a Pomeranian.
ii. Small: This measures at 24 inches. It is best for small breeds such as the Jack Russel Terrier, Bichon, or a Pug.
iii. Medium: This measures at 30 inches and is best for medium-sized breeds such as the Dachshund, Basenji, and French Bulldog.
iv. Large: Measuring at 36 inches, this is best for large breeds like the Border Collie, Vizsla, or the Chow-Chow.
v. Extra Large: Measuring at 42 inches, the following extra-large breeds will be well suited to an extra-large dog crate: the Siberian Husky, German Shepherd, and Chinook.
vi. Extra Extra Large: It measures at 48 inches and is the best size for the following dog breeds: Irish Wolfhound, Leonberger, the Great Pyrenees, and other similar breeds.
What We Love About The Petco Classic Dog Crates
There are so many things to love about these crates. And we’re sure you’ll be really psyched to get this crate once you get to know them. So, without further ado, here they are:
1. Baked Powder Coat Finish
It keeps the metal durable and it’s also safe for your pup.
2. Easy Assembly
It’s super important to have a dog crate that is easy to assemble. And we’re pretty sure you know all the reasons why. These crates fold very easily and very swiftly too.
3. Dividing Panels Included
These crates come with dividing panels (except the extra small size). This is super important to us because it matters to us that you spend less.
Plus, pups usually grow to get accustomed to their crates especially during crate training. With dividing panels, you don’t need to keep buying up as they grow. You also save some change too and your pup can keep the crate he loves.
4. Rounded Corners
We do not need anyone drawing blood just because a dog crate came into the picture. And that’s exactly why the rounded corners are a really big plus to this crate. It also shows a deliberate effort on the part of the manufacturers to keep this crate safe for all the users.
5. All Sizes Available
There are so many sizes of this crate available. So, you will definitely find something in your dog’s size. So far, we’ve not had any complaints of a misfit – the crates are quite true to size.
What We Don’t Like About The Petco Classic Dog Crates
1. These crates come with rounded corners but still, Petco left out some corners. So, be careful because you’ll find a few sharpies on this crate. You don’t want to draw blood from yourself or your pet.
This seems to be a common problem with many pet crate manufacturers. So, general advice might be to always check any metal crate for any sharp points. You know, just to be sure.
2. It only comes with a single door. Another door would have been a very nice addition.
3. Apparently, the plastic pan included isn’t as durable as other parts of the crate. There was an isolated complaint of the tray breaking after a while.
4. The latch could actually be more secure even though they appear to be well made. If you’re going to buy this anyway, figure out a way to make the latches work. You could try adding a clasp or something.
5. Now to the dividers, some say it feels a little flimsy. And we agree. It could actually be a little sturdier.
6. The metal wire appears to be a little too thin in some cases. They actually do tend to bend quite easily. So, of course, we won’t advise this for a rambunctious pet.
Alternative Options
More Affordable Option — The Petmate ProValu Wire Dog Crate
Honestly, there isn’t much of a difference between the Petco Classic Dog Crates and the Petmate ProValu Wire Dog Crate. They are both metal dog crates and frankly, there isn’t even much of a difference in their prices either.
However, we suggest this as a more affordable option because…
Firstly, it is more affordable, even though it’s just by a teeny bit. And at this price, this product gives us double doors. But that’s not even all.
This comes with a 5-point lock system unlike the Petco Classic Dog Crates’ 1-point. So, obviously, the Petmate ProValu Wire Dog Crate is more secure.
Now you see why this is our more affordable option. So, if, for any reason you can’t afford the Petco Classic Dog Crates, then the Petmate ProValu Wire Dog Crate is not a bad idea at all.
Higher-End Option — The A4Pet Soft Collapsible Dog Crate
If your tastes run a little more high end, then why not consider the A4Pet Soft Collapsible Dog Crate? It’s a soft sided dog crate but it’s quite durable though. The material it is made from is pretty tough so it will endure prolonged use.
It comes with two doors as you’ll find in most soft sided dog crates. There’s a door on the top and another in front which makes things pretty convenient.
Also, you can easily take off the cover and wash it conveniently in your washing machine. Nothing too fancy about the features here, it’s just your regular soft sided. But hey you said you wanted high end. So here’s a more high end option for you.
Opposite Spectrum — New Age Pet ecoFlex Pet Crate
We found this really nice wooden pet crate that comes in a beautiful espresso finish. But you know what really sealed it for us on this crate? It can also double as a side table.
This will easily fit into any home décor without looking like a dog crate.
Green parents especially are going to love this crate because as the name implies, this is made from recycled materials. The ecoFlex in the name of this crate is actually the name of the material used to make it.
ecoFlex is a combination of recycled plastic and wood. It never cracks, warps, or splits. And no, it is not toxic at all. So, yes it is pretty durable and safe. All the same, this isn’t a chew-resistant crate. So, it’s not ideal for teething puppies or aggressive chewers.
There are other finishes you could choose from if espresso isn’t the best color for your space. You can choose between antique white, russet, and grey.
More User-Friendly — Giantex Metal Dog Crate Kennel
The Giantex Metal Dog Crate offers the height of convenience when it comes to dog crates. It’s a bit on the costly side but if you consider all the convenience this crate offers, you might understand why it costs so much. You might even see that it’s worth more.
First, this is a heavy duty dog crate so it is a good match for all kinds of dogs irrespective of their size and dispositions towards chewing and escaping. This crate will match them strength for strength and one other thing is sure – durability.
Next, this comes with 4 casters, and of these 4 casters, 2 of them can be locked into position. So, Giantex offers you both convenience and security. You don’t want the kids stumbling into this and turning it into the car you wouldn’t get them just yet.
The removable pan included in this model is actually a sliding tray. Yup! All you’re doing is sliding in and out. Convenient, right? There’s more.
Lastly, this crate comes with two doors. And they are quite humanized and very secure.
This crate only comes in one size but in many different shades of awesomeness. We could hardly find a more worthy user-friendly option.
Quick Comparison Table
| Featured | More Affordable | More High End | Opposite End | More User Friendly | |
| Product |
Petco Classic Dog Crates
|
Petmate ProValu Wire Dog Crate
|
A4Pet Soft Collapsible Dog Crate
|
New Age Pet ecoFlex Pet Crate
|
Giantex Metal Dog Crate Kennel
|
| Material | Metal wire | Metal wire | Fabric | ecoFlex – recycled plastic and wood polymer | Heavy duty metal |
| Sizes Available | All | All | 24 inch and 31 inch | All except extra small | Large – 42 inches |
| Colors Available | Black | Black | Green | Antique white, espresso, grey, russet | Black |
| Assembly Required? | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Best For | All kinds of dogs except aggressive chewers and escape artists | All dogs except escape aggressive chewers and escape artists | Only for crate trained dogs | Not for chewers | All kinds of dogs |
What Are Customers Saying About The Petco Classic Dog Crates?
Customers really love this crate especially because it is so affordable. The general consensus is that it is a pretty great crate with good build quality.
The single door thing is a small issue for some customers because it reduces convenience. But it wasn’t enough to be a deal-breaker for many.
Another small issue some pet parents had with this crate was with the lock system. A lot of dogs were still able to make their way out, though. Some parents had to do some serious dog crate hack to make the lock system work for their pup.
But besides the issues here and there to be expected in any affordable dog crate, this crate was an instant hit with many pet parents and dogs.
Conclusion
What do we think about the Petco Classic Dog Crates? Of course, we love this, or what’s not to love?
Nevertheless, there are a couple of hacks you might have to perform to make this crate the best it can be.
First, get a tool to file the sharp edges that the manufacturers overlooked so that you and your pet will be safe around this thing.
Next, you might want to change out the removable plastic pan for a metal one. Apparently, this isn’t very durable and might break easily if your pup gets excited or even after prolonged use.
Once you fix all these things, you should have a perfect crate in your hands. No buyer’s remorse whatsoever!
It was nice creating with you but now, we’ve got to leave you to go on and make that purchase. Ciao!
