Dog Crate Buying Guide – What Dog Crate Size Do I Need?
While there are so many good reasons to have a dog crate but often, we are stucked on the question of “which size of the dog crates should I get for my dog?”
I’ve had this question when I bought one of our dog crates and we’ve had so many similar questions over the years. Since I am very confident with our crates and since we’ve had BINGO Dog Crates for so many years now with all common sizes available, it is a great chance to talk about what size of these BINGO Dog Crates you should be getting for your beloved dog?
Before we go into the topic, let’s make sure we understand below points as an introduction:
- Always choose a dog crate size according to your dog’s fully grown adult body size – not puppy size even when you are getting a crate while he’s still a puppy.
- Don’t force your dog to get into a crate especially when it is just freshly introduced.
- No crate would be suitable for any dog (especially larger breeds) that is prone to escape or just gets too anxious in one.
- Always make sure your dog is allowed to sit in the crate comfortably without his or her head bumping to the crate and they should never have to ‘try to fit into a crate’.
- Make sure they are able to turn around in a crate easily and they are able to lay down and stretch their legs freely – you could definitely tell if they are not comfortable!
how to measure your dog
There are 2 main ways to measure your dog, the official way:
While this is more official and it is recommended by airlines, I do prefer the easier way – since we are not choosing a dog crate to go on a plane right?
The easier way to measure you dog is to still find out 2 figures, both A and B:
A being the measurement between nose and the base of your dog’s tail; B being measurement of their height when they sit down in an upright position.
So the minimum length and height of the crate you required would be
A + 5 to 10cm and B + 5 to 10cm
Here is the list of common breeds versus recommended dog crate size from smallest 24″ dog crate to largest 42″ dog crate.
dog crate size vs dog weight
Although it would still be the best to refer to dog size measurement to find out the best suitable crate size for your dog, we may sometimes be able to recommend crate size according to their approximate weight:
| Approximate Dog Weight | Recommended Crate Size |
| Under 11kg (~25lbs) | 18” – 22” (~ 45cm – 56cm) |
| Under 14kg (~30lbs) | 24” (~61cm) |
| Under 18kg (~40lbs) | 30” (~76cm) |
| Under 31kg (~70lbs) | 36” (~91cm) |
| Under 40kg (~90lbs) | 42” (~107cm) |
| Under 50kg (~110lbs) | 48” (~122cm) |
24″ Dog crate-suitable for smaller breeds
Often being referred as size small, dimensions being 60 x 46 x 53cm, and it is recommended crate size for:
- Affenpinscher
- Australian Terrier
- Bichon Frise
- Border Terrier
- Boston Terrier
- Fox Terrier Terrier
- Havanese
- Jack Russel
- Miniature Dachshund
- Miniature Poodle
- Maltese
- Scottish Terrier
- Silky Terrier
- Toy Poodle
- Pug
- Shih Tzu
- Yorkie Poo
30″ Dog crate – suitable for medium breeds
Often being referred as size medium, dimensions being 76 x 53 x 61cm, and it is recommended crate size for:
- American Pit Bull Terrier
- Basenji
- Cairn Terrier
- Cockapoo
- Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
- Cocker Spaniel
- Cardigan Welsh Corgi
- Dachshund
- French Bulldog
- Irish Terrier
- Lhasa Apso
- Miniature Pinscher
- Miniature Schnauzer
- Shetland Sheepdog
- Scottish Terrier
- Tibetan Terrier
- Welsh Springer Spaniel
- Welsh Terrier
- West Highland Terrier
36″ Dog crate – suitable for Medium-Large breeds
Often being referred as size large, dimensions being 91 x 61 x 71cm, and it is recommended crate size for:
- Australian Cattle Dog
- American Eskimo
- Beagle
- Basset Hound
- Belgian Sheepdog
- Bulldog
- Brittany Spaniel
- Bull Terrier
- Chinese Shar-Pei
- English Springer Spaniel
- English Setter
- Finnish Spitz
- Harrier
- Keeshond
- Norwegian Elk hound
- Portuguese Water Dog
- Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
- Standard Schnauzer
- Welsh Corgi
- Whippet
42″ Dog crate – suitable for Larger breeds
Often being referred as size extra large XL dog crate, dimensions being 107 x 71 x 81cm, and it is recommended crate size for:
- Airedale Terrier
- American Bulldog
- Australian Shepherd
- Aussiedoodle
- Bearded Collie
- Belgain Malinois
- Belgian Tervuren
- Border Collie
- Bernedoodle
- Boxer
- Chesapeake Bay Retriever
- Clumber Spaniel
- Chow-Chow
- Dalmatian
- Doberman Pinscher
- Goldendoodle
- Golden Retriever
- Irish Setter
- Labrador Retriever
- Pharaoh Hound
- Siberian Husky
- Schnoodle
- Standard Poodle
- Sheepadoodle
48″ Dog crate – suitable for giant breeds
Often being referred as size extra extra large XXL dog crate, dimensions being 122 x 78 x 88cm, and it is recommended crate size for:
- Afghan
- Alaskan Malamute
- Anatolian Shepherd
- Bernese Mountain Dog
- Bloodhound
- Belgian Malinois
- Briard
- Bull mastiff
- Belgian Tervuren
- Collie
- Doberman Pinscher
- Giant Schnauzer
- Gordon Setter
- German Shepherd
- Greyhound
- Irish Wolfhound
- Kuvasz
- Komondor
- Neapolitan Mastiff
- Newfoundland
- Old English Sheepdog
- Otter hound
- Pointer
- Rottweiler
- St. Bernard
- Samoyed
- Siberian Husky
- Weimaraner
Well, yeah…I am sure you could easily tell I bought a dog crate at a much bigger size than what my dog needs. I have a Maltese and this is a 42″ XL BINGO Dog Crate for him. Hmmm…I had a good reason though as I wanted something to fit this large plush dog bed, his toys and his water bowl on the side, so I needed a dog crate with much greater length than measurement A we talked about above.
He really liked it as you could see I normally just left latched door open and he wouldn’t wanna get out at all. He was a such a good boy and just simply enjoyed his own space without me experiencing any harsh moment with introducing something new.