Why large breeds need specific crates (quote/ excerpt from Parade Pets)
- jmethomas
- 6 days ago
- 2 min read
May 31, 2026- Leslie Leon- Parade Pets
Executive Director, jme, was quoted in a recent piece from Parade Pets on crates that are best for large dog breeds.
"While they are sold as the solution, retail XL crates can be unsafe for giant breeds. According to Jme Thomas, executive director of Motley Zoo Animal Rescue, “It’s not that you cannot use a typical store crate for a large dog, but the key is whether the dog is calm in the crate. Some dogs bounce and wriggle around and can collapse the pop-up metal wire ones.”
Despite being a larger size, these standard retail crates aren’t equipped to handle the many movements of a dog, especially those of a large or giant breed...
The kinds of crates that should be used for large dogs that are either busy or struggling to crate (which may need intervention if it is separation anxiety, etc., and crating may not be possible) are ones like the Impact brand or something like this,” Thomas says. “There are other brands, but basically these are hard-sided, do not flex and cannot collapse on a dog.
A large dog run can be the perfect solution for pet parents with access to a large space where their dog can move around safely. “A covered dog run could also work for a large dog instead (and may cost less than an Impact crate),” Thomas says.
She adds that when using a dog run, you have to consider whether it’s able to be secured to the ground, as well as take into account if your dog digs. For example, she says a covered dog run on concrete could easily shift and crash around, whereas on grass it’d be harder for it to move around."