Are you researching the best dog crates for car travel ahead of a road trip?
If you’re planning to go on a vacation and you want to take your furry buddy along for the ride, you’ll probably need a dog crate.
However, it can be overwhelming sorting through all the different crates on Amazon or other online retailers.
There’s so many options whether you’re looking at a steel crate, plastic crate or soft crate.
In this article, we’re going to take a look at the best dog crates for car travel to help dog owners find thei right crate for their dog and their car.
So with the introduction out of the way, let’s start by looking at some factors to consider when selecting a dog crate for car travel before highlighting some of our top picks.
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Things To Consider When Buying Dog Crate For Car Travel
Pitbull (Photo: Adobe Stock)
• Size – The size of the crate is an important consideration. Whether you’ve got a small dog, medium-sized dog or large dog, you don’t want a crate that’s too big for your pet. It should be an appropriate size. Your dog should have sufficient space to stand, sit, turn around, and lie down but not so much space that your dog could be thrown around the crate.
• Accessibility – If you’re taking a potty break, you’ll want to be able to access your dog easily from the trunk. Perhaps you want to slip your dog a treat while your partner drives the car. In this situation, it would be useful to have access to your dog from the top of the crate.
• Safety – Your dog’s safety is vital. So you want a crate that is soundly constructed. It’s a good idea to get a dog crate that is made from durable material, capable of withstanding an accident should the unthinkable happen.
• Durability – If you plan to place the crate in your car’s trunk but you’ll want to take the crate out of your car when you reach your destination, you’ll want a crate that’s made from durable material capable of withstanding general wear and tear.
• Ventilation – Your dog should feel comfortable in the dog crate that will act as their safe space when on the road. We have only considered dog crates for travel that have plentiful ventilation to keep your dog cool.
• Visibility – Dog crates should have some element of visibility so you can keep your eye on your pup. For instance, my dog gets car sick a lot so I like to be able to see my pet in case he needs a break from travelling on the road.
• Comfort – Some dog crates will provide items such as a bed, crate mat or padding to help make your dog feel more comfortable when they’re in the crate. Those bumps in the road will feel a little less bumpy.
• Ease Of Use – It should be easy to put the crate together, collapse the crate, move the crate, clean the crate and haul the crate.
Best Dog Crates For Car Travel 2023
Now that we know a little more about the things to look for when buying a dog crate for car travel, let’s take a look at our picks for the best dog crates for car travel.
1) Impact Collapsible Dog Crate
Where To Buy: impactdogcrates.com
Impact Collapsible Dog Crate (Photo: hellobark.com)
We like the Impact Collapsible Dog Crate for a number of reasons in the context of a dog crate for car travel. It’s been carefully and thoughtfully engineered to aide dog owners and their pets who like to travel together. It’s hassle-free to collapse and put back together – it took me less than 60 seconds so it’s easy to use. They’ve used high-quality aluminum materials to create their innovative crate. The reinforced material makes it extremely durable, while the military grade handles make it simple to move. Impact have also considered your dog’s safety. The rounded diamond shaped air holes allows for ventilation, while protecting the teeth of big chewers. The Impact Collapsible Dog Crate comes in four sizes and you can follow their online guide to get the right size for your dog. If you’ve got two dogs, the crates are stackable so you can save on space if you’ve got a big SUV, truck or you’re in a small hotel room. It’s got an average score of 4.9 stars based upon the reviews on their website (well worth reading the reviews to see just how durable the crate is). The Impact Collapsible Dog Crate is a premium, military grade option and starts at $899.
You can get 15% off your Impact Dog Crates order when you use our exclusive discount HELLOBARK at the checkout. To get this 15% discount on your Impact Dog Crate, click here.
2) Diggs Revol Dog Crate
Where To Buy: diggs.pet
The Revol crate by Diggs (Photo: hellobark.com)
Next up we’ve got a Diggs Revol dog crate that looks completely different to Impact’s Collapsible Dog Crate. The Revol is a more modern take on the wire crates you can find on online retailers such as Amazon. It’s a lot more attractive than most collapsible crates available on the market right now. While it may look nice, they haven’t sacrificed safety. The Revol crate was inspired by baby industry quality standards. Putting the crate together (the first try took 15 minutes but once set up, I was able to collapse and set up in less than 60 seconds), it was clear Diggs have used premium materials. it has an ergonomic design with easy-to-use doors. They’ve got a diamond-shaped mesh pattern to prevent injury to jaws and paws if you’ve got a dog who likes to chew or gets anxious when on the road. If your dog gets car sick like my Klee Kai, the Revol has a removable tray to make cleaning the crate simple. It’s travel friendly with a carrying handle and wheels. You can purchase the Revol Dog Crate in four sizes and it starts at $375.
We can offer helloBARK! readers 11% off their first Diggs order when you click this link.
3) Amazon Basics Dog Crate For Travel
Where To Buy: www.amazon.com
Chihuahua stands in dog crate (Photo: Adobe Stock)
We’ve highlighted two premium dog crates in this feature so far. I wanted to include a budget option if you’re unsure whether you’re ready for a big outlay. Perhaps you’re taking your dog on the road for the first time and you want to see how they fare before investing in a luxury dog crate. The Amazon Basics 2-Door Top Load Hard Sided Dog is a budget option that lacks some of the innovative features and some of the enhanced safety features that the other two crates in this article have. However, it can still do a decent job. It’s made of plastic with steel wire doors and screws that keep the top and bottom securely attached. There’s a door at the front and a door in the ceiling to give you access to your dog while on the road. There’s air ventilation on the sides, top, and back of the crate. The dog crate is ideal for small or medium dogs and starts at $39 (available on Amazon).
How We Picked Best Collapsible Dog Crates For Medium Dogs
Pitbull (Photo: Adobe Stock)
There’s a lot of choice online if you’ve been looking for the best dog crate for travel. Just a quick search on Amazon will yield hundreds of results.
You can also head to your local pet store where you’ll likely find some classic options for your four-legged friend such as wire crates.
But I wanted something a little extra from a dog crate for travel so I started to research the best options for dog crates if you like to take your dog on vacation.
With that in mind, we carefully read expert advice, researched online reviews and the latest dog crate technology to create a list of leading options.
Once we had a shortlist, we took into consideration factors such as size, materials, entrances, portability, ventilation, functionality and appearance.
The list above represents what we consider to be the leading options for dog owners searching for the dog crates for travel.
We update this list regularly for accuracy and integrity.
Wrapping Up – Our Final Thoughts
Greyhounds in dog crate (Photo: Adobe Stock)
We’ve reached the end of our feature on the best dog crates for travel.
My top pick would Impact’s Collapsible Dog Crate based upon my experience using the crate for travel.
It’s made from high-quality materials with an innovative design that provides peace of mind my dogs are safe and secure in their Impact crate in the trunk.
I appreciated the ease of use – you can collapse the dog crate in seconds and carry it using the military handle. It’s easy to pop up once you get to your car’s trunk or hotel room.
However, it’s a premium option so you’ll have to be prepared to dig deep into your pockets but it does come with a lifetime guarantee should any of the parts prove faulty.
The good news for our readers is that you can save 15% on your first order when you click this link.
With that said, you won’t go wrong with the Revol by Diggs. I like how you can access your dogs from the roof of the crate if you’re sat in the back seat and need to reach back.
Your dog will be more visible in the Revol than the Impact Collapsible Crate thanks to the wire-mesh design so that’s another consideration.
It’s a cheaper option than Impact’s crate and you can save an additional 11% on the Revol when you click here.
So there you have it, our top pick is Impact’s Collapsible Dog Crate closely followed by Diggs’ Revol crate. For those on a strict budget, you could consider a starter travel crate like this Amazon Basics option.
