Your pup is more than a simple animal companion. He is a veritable member of your family, a pet that you can call one of your best friends, and one of the best chums to have during moments in which your priority is to create long-lasting memories. Naturally, therefore, you might want to keep him around during your travels, and ensure his safety while moving from place to place. But there’s an issue. If you want to travel long distances via aeroplane, the rules imposed by Australian airlines state you need to secure your pup in an IATA-approved dog crate.

High-quality crates might not look too appealing at first glance. After all, who wants to see their pet buddy locked in a small cage for hours on end? But, when you think about it, crates are one of the most important purchases you can make to ensure the security of your pup, and in the long run, they represent a way to spend more time with him, and build long-lasting memories that you will keep close to your heart.

Is a Dog Crate Necessary?

It depends. You don’t care about travelling? Then a puppy pen could be a better choice. However, if you are someone who travels a lot, and you are planning to visit the varied landscape of our country by plane, the only solution to bring your dog along would be to invest in a quality dog crate. Currently, Virgin is the only major Australian commercial carrier that permits small dogs and cats in the passenger cabin and even then, eligibility is limited to pets of a maximum of 8 kg (https://www.virginaustralia.com/au/en/travel-info/specific-travel/pets/pets-in-cabin/), who will still need to be carried in a crate.

For aeroplane travel, general airline rules and the aviation safety standards based on the IATA’s live animals’ regulations state that dogs, cats, and other pet companions must be fully crated and secured in the plane’s cargo bay, unless they are treated as service animals. But what if you don’t travel by plane? While laws vary by state, it is generally legal for your dog to travel in the cabin of a car without a crate. But do you really want to do this?

Your pup doesn’t understand the concept of travelling by automobile and has no way to brace himself for a sharp turn or an unexpected brake. While it could be slightly unpleasant, crating your dog when travelling via personal car is simply the responsible thing to do. It’s all fun and games until you need to avoid an impact and your fluffy bundle of joy gets hurt simply because he’s unsecured in the cabin. It’s entirely avoidable, and it’s on you to ensure something bad doesn’t happen.

Is a Dog Crate Suitable Only for Travelling Purposes?

No, in fact, with my dog, we have purchased a dog crate even though we are not planning to travel anytime soon. Crates are a way to restrict your pup’s exploratory nature, which is great when you are around, but it can become problematic if you are not there to supervise him. My pup, for example, managed to chew through two sets of Internet cables and started exploring our cleaning supplies before we finally purchased a portable, HDPE-constructed dog crate (https://www.petshopdirect.com.au/shop/category/dog-crates-kennels-puppy-pens).

Crates, while not that glamorous in appearance, can prevent accidents when you are not around, and if they are used sporadically and not as a punishment, they should have no lasting impact on your pup’s cognitive development. But that’s not all:

• A quality dog crate can act as a safe zone for anxious dogs and give them shelter to retreat to during periods of stress. My pup, for example, uses his crate as a shelter during thunderstorms, while my gf’s pup uses it as a safe space when new guests are present
• Crates can also be a way to accelerate your pup’s house-training process (https://ivhsspca.org/potty-training/). Pups, and most pets for that matter, avoid soiling their sleeping area, so they hold their pee in for as long as possible until they are finally released from their crate.
• Naturally, there is a limit to this, and in the first months of life, dogs don’t have too much control over their bodily functions. But, as a general rule, crates can be a useful tool to speed up your dog’s training process and make him less likely to have an accident.

What About a Puppy Pen?

A puppy pen is basically a fenced-off area that gives a puppy more freedom than a crate, but still restricts his movements to a safe area that’s free of objects with the potential to harm him. Do you live in a small apartment, and space is at a premium? Well, I do, and at least for me, a dog pen is not exactly a solution, as I don’t have enough room for it. But, if space is not a problem in your case, pens, at least in my opinion, are a more preferable option to crates, at least if travelling is not involved.

Why Choose a Puppy Pen?

A puppy pen gives your dog more space to roam around, play with his toys, stretch, and supervise his surroundings. Just like crates, a pen is a good choice for house training your dog; it can be useful if you are worried about your pup chewing cables or toxic products while you are away, and it can also be a way to introduce your fluffball to other animal companions in a controlled environment in which he feels fully comfortable.

Why Choose a Doggy Crate?

A crate is more secure for travelling and it can be a place for your dog to retreat during periods of anxiety. A puppy pen, on the other hand, is more spacious; it’s better for high-energy puppies, can still be useful for potty training, and it can allow you to slowly introduce your dog to certain rooms in your house that you want him to become familiar with. They are not perfect, and they take up more space in your home. That said, depending on how you want to use them, they can represent a fantastic purchase.