Home Best Dog Crates for Extra Small Dog Breeds

Best Dog Crates for Extra Small Dog Breeds

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Silhouette of 3 miniature dogs next to a dog crate on white bg
XS dogs require an extra small crate

If you’re looking for the best, all around great crate for use with your dog, you can’t do much better than a wire dog crate.

They are by a long way the most popular type of crate in use today, but what makes them so good and so popular?

At a Glance: Our Choices of Best Crates for XS Dogs

Note: The links above take you to more information, current prices and customer reviews on Amazon.

Why Metal Wire Crates are The Best

Cost is an obvious consideration when it comes to buying anything, and metal wire dog crates are some of the best value on the market today. But you shouldn’t base your decision on price alone.

However, you needn’t worry as they are the best crate choice for many other reasons too, the more important of which we’ll quickly discuss just now.

Wire Crates are Extremely Strong and Long Lasting

As I’m sure you don’t need telling, metal is a very hard-wearing and long-lasting material, much more so than other materials some crates are made from such as wood and plastics.

A good quality metal wire dog crate will last many, many years, often longer than the lifetime of an average dog. They can take a lot of scratching and biting abuse almost without any marking or damage.

Wire Crates Are Very Easy To Clean And Keep Hygienic

Wood, fabric and plastics can suffer with absorbing odors and collecting stains, but this isn’t the case with metal wire crates though!

For a routine cleaning, or perhaps after an unfortunate accident with a puppy, it takes little more than a good hosing down in the garden, or perhaps a quick rub down with god old soapy water followed by a rinse, and brings a wire crate right back to pristine condition. It couldn’t be easier.

Though Tough And Durable, They Are Also Highly Portable

Almost all wire crates – and certainly the ones recommended below – have the feature of being easily collapsible without the need for any tools.

In just a few quick seconds you can collapse a crate into a rectangular ‘suitcase’ looking state that is easy to carry and move around, or perhaps to put into storage.

Yes many fabric and perhaps even plastic crates are more portable and suited to travel, but wire crates are also easy to collapse for travel and combined with the many other benefits above are a great all-rounder.

They Can Be Resized With the Included Divider

Many dogs will need different sized crates throughout their lives: perhaps a 22″ as a puppy, a 30″ crate when adolescent and a 36″ crate as an adult. So from birth to 18 months old, you may have to buy 3 different sized crates. this can get expensive.

Wire crates though come with a divider than you can place inside the crate to reduce the available space in a larger crate to suit the needs of a puppy.

So you can buy a crate to suit the size of an adult dog, resize for your puppy and increase the room available as they grow. This can save you hundreds of dollars in the long run.

Maximum Ventilation and 360 Degree Views

Any dog inside a wire crate has full panoramic views of their surroundings, important for many highly social and alert breeds.

And if they’d like a little more privacy, you can simply cover the roof and a wall or three. You don’t get this flexibility with any other style of crate.

Additionally, no other crate has offers such a high level of airflow and ventilation, so overheating in summer months isn’t a problem, which cannot be said for many plastic and fabric crates.

Tips For Buying The Best Wire Crate For Your Needs

There are literally hundreds of different brands and model of wire crate on the market, but not all are good quality, not all are even safe, and even fewer still will be suitable for your particular breed of dog.

Below are some simple tips and guidelines to follow that will ensure you end up with a crate that keeps your pooch safe and secure, will last for many years and is a perfect fit for both yours and your dogs needs.

  • It must be the right size: Of course it mustn’t be too small – that would be cruel. But it also mustn’t be too large. If a puppy has too much room, they can toilet at one end while sleeping clean at the other. Not good for your house training hopes.
  • Check all wire ends are rounded. Some crates have feedback from owners that the needs of wires have been left quite sharp. This can easily result in yourself or your dog being injured in or around the crate.
  • Check the metal is coated or stainless: A good quality crate will either be made of stainless steel, or the wires will be coated with a very hard-wearing and non-toxic coating. This is a must see feature.
  • Look for an easily removed base tray: A good quality wire crate should have an easily removed, easily cleaned bottom tray so cleaning and hygiene is simple.
  • Tool-Free assembly and folding: Whether you will frequently fold your crate for storage or travel depends on your lifestyle and routine, but it’s a very nice feature to have if the crate can be assembled and folded with ease and with no need for tools. Some crates can be, some cannot, but they cost the same so you may as well look for this feature.

Best Dog Crates for Extra Small Dogs

Note: The crates on this page are handpicked to be perfectly sized for the following breeds:

Bichon Frise, Boston Terrier, Brussels Griffon, Chihuahua, Maltese, Pomeranian, Papillon, Pug, Shih Tzu, Toy Fox Terrier, Yorkshire Terrier.

Midwest dog crates are the single most popular crates for sale in America – and it’s easy to see why.

The company has been trading and producing dog crates now for over 90 years and in that time have truly perfected the art of creating high quality, feature rich yet affordable crates for all.

I’m sure nobody would argue that Midwest Homes for Pets are the most highly respected industry leaders in the space. Therefore we feature and recommend their two most popular models.

Following this are two great alternatives, from Proselect and precision pet. Very similar feature sets to the Midwest crates and certainly up there matching in quality.

Midwest Life Stages Folding Metal Dog Crate

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The Midwest life stages crate is the most popular crate from the most popular brand of crate manufacturers in America. There’s no other crate received such huge numbers of high praise and good reviews all over the web as this model.

Notable features:

  • Double door crate, for easy access from the front and side.
  • Tough, protective black electro-coat finish ensures good looks, durability and long life.
  • Easily removable and easy to clean, tough ABS plastic tray in the base.
  • 2 slide catches for closing the crate, rounded corners and no sharp edges – Safety and security is foremost with this crate.
  • Complete with divider panel for re-sizing a larger crate to suit a puppy.
  • Extremely easy to set-up and break down, with no tools required.
  • Folds down into a suitcase size, complete with two handles, for ease of portability.

Click to learn more / check pricing.

Midwest iCrate Pet Crates

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The 2nd most popular crate from the same company, Midwest Homes 4 Pets, the iCrate series has a very similar feature set to the life stages series above, but there are some notable differences:

  • The wire bars and grid on the life stage crates are a little thicker and closer together. This makes the life stages crates a little heavier, but more durable. In a Side by side comparison, the life stages crate just looks ‘tougher’.
  • The iCrate model is also slightly narrower with a lower ceiling than the life stages for crates that are otherwise the same length.
  • Due to slightly fewer materials being used, the price is lower in the iCrate series than the life stages.

Don’t let what seems like negatives above put you off! The iCrate is still a high quality crate that receives high praise from all. It’s just more suited to less boisterous (and less destructive) dogs who like maximum visibility from the inside of their crate.

Notable features:

  • Double door for flexibility in positioning in your home, and two methods for access from the front or the side.
  • Stylish looking, durable, protective black electro-coating.
  • Easily to clean and tough ABS plastic tray.
  • Secure slide bolt catches, no sharp edges, built with safety and security in mind.
  • Divider panel with the larger crates – a crate that grows with your puppy.
  • Simple, tool free set-up and fold down in seconds.

Click to learn more / check pricing.

Proselect ‘Easy’ Wire Dog Crates

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The ‘Easy’ line of dog crates from Proselect are a great value, great priced series of crates combining all the necessary features to make them a highly secure and safe crate to use with your dog or puppy.

Great feedback with over 200 4 and 5 star reviews on Amazon from previous owners, this crate earns high praise indeed from the people who matter – people using the crates day to day with their pets.

Notable features:

  • Slide out floor tray for easy and convenient cleaning. The wire crate itself has a black coating that’s simple to wipe clean with a cloth.
  • Divider panel included as standard to resize the crate as for a puppy and increase space as they grow.
  • Dual sliding bolts for securing the door – extra protection if your dog is a wannabe Houdini.
  • Easy assembly with no tools needed, and folds extremely easily for storage or transportation.

Click to learn more / check pricing.

Precision Pet Two-Door Great Crate

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Another great value, high quality wire crate providing maximum ventilation and visibility from within.

Extremely good feedback and reviews from previous owners, testifying to the crates quality, durability and great value.

Notable features:

  • Double door crate providing flexibility for placement against different walls and easy access to your dog inside.
  • Removable, easy clean plastic tray for a base.
  • Divider panel included for re-sizing the crate to suit your puppy until they grow.
  • No tools needed for assembly
  • Effortlessly folds and includes a carry handle for easy storage and portability.
  • Rounded corners and no sharp edges to ensure the safety of both you and your pet.
  • Stylish looking, black epoxy resin coating that is easily wiped clean and durable.

Click to learn more / check pricing.

Product image credits: © Amazon.com

Top Picks For Our Dogs

  1. BEST PUPPY TOY
    We Like: Calmeroos Puppy Toy w/ Heartbeat and Heat Packs - Perfect for new puppies. Helps ease anxiety in their new home.
  2. BEST DOG CHEW
    We Like: Bones & Chews Bully Sticks - All of our puppies love to bite, nip, and chew. We love using Bully Sticks to help divert these unwanted behaviors.
  3. BEST DOG TREATS
    We Like: Crazy Dog Train Me Treats - One of our favorite treats for training our service dog puppies.
  4. BEST FRESH DOG FOOD
    We Like: The Farmer's Dog - A couple months ago we started feeding Raven fresh dog food and she loves it! Get 50% off your first order of The Farmer's Dog.

For a list of all the supplies we get for our new service dog puppies check out our New Puppy Checklist on the PuppyInTraining.com blog.

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