Portable Kennels Fit the Dual-Purpose Goals of an RVer

When you live in RV, you quickly learn that things that have more than one purpose are golden. This also applies to pet supplies. When we needed to crate train our newest puppy, Cricket, we realized that a properly sized portable kennel (sometimes referred to as pet carriers), like the Petmate Pet Taxi was just such an item.

This versatile plastic box has come in quite handy for crate training Cricket as well as transporting her and our cat in the car. We love that it’s plastic because it can be taken apart and cleaned very easily in the case of any potty training accidents – of which we have only had one. I have put in a very cozy bed and blanket for Cricket to sleep on and she has taken to it quite well. Crate training has been a breeze with it!

But we have always also been sticklers for pet safety in the vehicles. We spend too much time in vehicles now to neglect that. One quick stop and a loose dog can get severely injured, not to mention be a very inopportune distraction for the driver.

Cricket rides in the Pet Taxi while in the car. The plastic sides have vent holes and the front has a metal door so when it gets warm, the breeze can blow through it to keep her cool. When it’s cold, we can cover it so that Cricket can stay warm. The front metal door also helps keep Cricket safe when we stop. She has learned to wait in the crate while we open the door to put on her leash so that she won’t dart out of the car.

Although the Petmate Pet Taxi has a handle on the top, I choose not to use it as it doesn’t feel strong enough to hold the entire kennel with Cricket in it. I’ve learned to simply hold onto the sides where the top and bottom are attached, in order to carry it. Even though the handle might be strong enough I don’t want to take a chance at dropping the kennel and giving Cricket a jolt.
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The Pet Taxi has worked well for us for crate training, potty training and transporting Cricket. It fits our requirement that an item must have more than one use while in the RV so having one versatile pet carrier/crate/kennel is easier than trying to have a metal crate for the inside of the RV and a separate transport kennel for traveling in the car.

Note: It is generally recommended that to be properly sized for crate training, a kennel should be large enough for the dog to stand up and turn around, but not large enough for a dog to relieve him/herself and get away from it. Dogs don’t like to soil their own dens instinctively. This also happens to be the correct size to safely transport a dog or cat. The dog or cat should be able to be comfortable, but the kennel should not be large enough for the pet to be thrown about in the kennel. The kennel should be placed or fastened so as to not be able to be thrown by sudden movement in the car.

You can find the Pet Mate Pet Taxi at Amazon.com.

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• What do you use to crate train or transport your pets while in the car or RV?

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