My 10 year buddy Corky, the Corgi/Chihuahua cross, finally succumbed to Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever last week, after a month of treatment that got everything back to normal but his heart. He was in the later stages of heart failure. I have to say he was totally happy until the last day, and he made 'the decision' while we were at work. We found him curled up in our daughter's room on some laundry. At least it wasn't a long, drawn-out painful process. He had a good life and we have a lot of happy memories with him.

After a few days of intense grief, I finally got around to visiting the Humane Society to get another companion dog, and Molly chose me. She is a Lab/Husky mix, and Corky's medium kennel was not going to fit her. So on to Walmart to buy another kennel. I knew what I was going to get before I left--a Pet Porter. These are the trusted names in crates/carriers, if you ask me. I like them better than wire crates because not only is there less for the dog to get hung up in (no wire sides, just ventilated plastic sides), but there are a lot fewer drafts to deal with in these crates, so I'm sure in the winter these are more cozy for the dog.

The Pet Porter (mine is size large, which is 36" x 24" x 26") comes with the top half flipped upside down and set inside the bottom half. Between them is the wire door and bag of bolts and plastic wingnuts that hold the top and bottom together. Also included are two separate white snap-on water/food cups (4.5" x 4" x 2"). This size Pet Porter does not have a handle on top like some of the smaller sizes do.

I would say assembly is a snap, but it is more of a twist. :) It involves no tools. All you do is flip the top over and settle it over the bottom half of the carrier (they're molded so that the bottom rests underneath the lip of the top), then slip about 10-12 bolts through holes that go through the top and bottom plastic halves of the crate. To secure the bolts, you hand-tighten plastic wingnuts over the ends of the bolts. We even had a few extra nuts and bolts!

The plastic is thick and durable, and the door is heavy duty wire, so no dog is getting out. The door is a little awkward for me to use, because I have small hands. To open it, you have to squeeze two bars together (one up, one down) and pull the door towards you. There are several inches between the two places you have to squeeze, and my hands just don't cut it for the job, so for me it's a two-hand operation to open the door (a minor annoyance). The door stays shut when the wire pins at the ends of the squeeze units thread through holes at the top and bottom of the door opening of the crate.

The hinge part of the door looks the same as the side that opens, except the wire pins don't shorten--they stay threaded through their holes in the top and bottom of the cage; you have to install the door as you are putting the top and bottom of the carrier together, by making sure to poke the wire hinges through their holes before screwing the two halves of the crate together. Since the hinges are thick wire pins, they give no resistance at all to opening. It is very easy to swing the door open once the squeeze pins are released.

The crate is well ventilated, with openings all around the top half of the crate--about as big as you can get without being big enough to get dog body parts through. I can get all of my fingers through at one time (sideways), but that's it. I'd feel safe using this in the bed of a truck.

To clean these, I just add some dish detergent, hose them out, and stand them up to drain (yes, with the door open even, and they've never bent or anything!).

There are accessories available for these carriers: sheepskin pads for the bottom of the crate, airline travel kits, double and single water/food cups, and kennel training manuals. Our crate came with two "live animal" stickers and stickers to note when food and water was last given/to be given to the pet (for airline employees' use, etc.), assembly instructions (as if it wasn't intuitively obvious), and a five-year guarantee.

When I come home, Molly goes nuts, wagging her tail and jumping around (as much as she physically can) inside her carrier, and it doesn't move around much. She paws at the door, but it's really strong, and I don't even think twice about it. There are no sharp edges anywhere on the carrier, no openings big enough for her to put anything through, nothing to pinch her, nothing to scratch her, just a place for her to curl up and feel safe while I'm gone. She must like it. The fourth time I said "bedtime" (fourth use of the carrier) she trotted right in with no resistance, like it didn't bother her at all. And last night she went in there for a little while of her own accord. Of course, it might have had something to do with our busy little toddler. . ..

Recommended: Yes