How to choose the correct crate size for your dog or cat?

Choosing the correct crate size for your pet, specially if it is the first time can be very confusing. What many pet parents don’t know is that IATA (International Air Transport Association) has published a manual on air worthy pet containers. In this manual is explained in detail how to calculate the correct size.

Source: IATA

The first step would be to measure our pet. We need to take this measurements:

A- From the tip of the nose to the root of the tail (Pay attention you measure only till the root of the tail, it is a very common mistake to measure the whole tail)

B- From the elbow to the ground

C- The width at the widest point

D- From the floor to the tip of the ears of the top of the head, whichever is higher)

Second step would be with this measurements in hand to calculate the minimum INTERNAL box dimensions:

Container length: A + 1/2B

Container width: C x 2

Container height: D + bedding (if any)

There are some considerations in addition from the size we have to take into account when buying the kennel:

• Snub-nosed breeds require 10% larger container.

• Ears must not touch the top of the kennel in animal’s natural standing position

• The container must be strong enough to protect your pet during transport, be secure enough to contain it and have sufficient ventilation on all four sides, to ensure the air quality in the container will not deteriorate.

• The door must be secured in such a manner that it will not open accidentally or your pet cannot open it during handling and transport. Plastic container pins must engage by at least 16mm.

• Your pet’s nose and paws should not be able to fit through any ventilation opening or door mesh Maximum opening in the mesh 25 x 25mm for dogs and 19 x 19mm for cats. In the case of cats and small dogs these may have to be covered with mesh to ensure they are nose and paw proof.

• Water container must be present and affixed within the shipping container with outside access for filling that does not require opening of the shipping container. The water pot must be secured and in proportion to the size of the pet but not take up too much of the floor space.

If you are still confused on how to calculate you can write to us at julia@flyyourtail.com and we would be glad to help you to calculate and to choose the best option. We also have the option of building custom crates for the pets that are bigger than an standard PP100.