I have a 7 month old BLF who is turning into an amazing dog both in he field and in the house. She behaves extremely well in the house, but I am having an issue in her crate. I have put two mud river crates pads in her kennel and she has chewed thru both (never chewed anything in the house). Any suggestions on crate pads that are chew proof?
what mwk said. when my pup was young I went through a couple of those plastic trays for the wire kennel and he even started chewing the carpet underneath. I've since switched an enclosed plastic crate with no mat and couldn't be happier. he's older now and I may try to reintroduce something to keep him more comfortable. He didnt' chew up a mat I put in his kennel run when he was at the trainer.
Not a crate pad but a crate mat that is cut from a horse stall mat. I buy the large, weigh a ton, 3/4" horse stall mat and cut it to size with utility knife. Never ever had a dog chew throw it and it gives enough padding and insulation to get dog off the plastic. Just make sure to cut the mat to fix snug in the kennel, that along with the weight of the mat the dog will have a hard bending it at all to chew on it.
I put these mats in my trailer for my dogs, they are great. A bit heavy to work with until you get them cut to size. They have a strong rubber smell to them new, but if you let them set on your drive way for a few days, that goes away. My dogs do not chew them, they are easy to clean, etc. Only $40 for one that will cut around 3 mats. You can find them at any Farm & Home store.
NON TOXIC.Our crate pads are safe for your beloved pet.We only use non-toxic closed cell foam inside a Primo Pad.Unlike open cell foam, which is used in most pet beds, our closed cell foam will not compress flat after use and it will not expand in your dogs stomach should he find a way to ingest his pad.No harmful gasses, so you can feel confident of your pet’s safety./QUOTE]
Sounds like the manufacturer knows of some chewing of their pads.
Did you get the heavy 3/4" one from Fleet Farm? It must weigh over 20 pounds and if cut right I don't see how they can even come close to getting a grip on it. The clawing, well the only thing to stop that is an aluminum or stainless crate then or a concrete run.
I used anti-fatigue mats at first and had no problems with chewing. One thing I have noticed with the 3 dogs I have had is that after they reach 2 yrs old they stopped shredding their pads. I know have Avery crates pads on top of the mats and my dogs haven't even tried to chew them. They also love their beds in the house and don't chew on them either. Before they were 2 I couldn't keep a pad or bed more than a couple of days.
My rule is that chewers get NO MATS, period! I have had the horse stall, anti fatigue mats, etc., shredded. When they learn to behave themselves, they get a nice Kong mat.
Thanks for all the input. I am not sure what I am going to try, she is sleeping in a wire crate in the kitchen and she is up at 4:15 daily (I usually get up at 5) and my wife thinks that if she has a pad or blanket that she may be more comfortable and sleep longer, but I think she is still a puppy! Thanks for all the ideas.
My dogs seem perfectly happy with a towel tossed in the crate. Most of their bodies are usually on a hard surface and their heads on the towel if that. I don't see any value to a full kennel pad in general. If you spoil the dog, perhaps a full padded kennel is of benefit, yet perhaps not.
Probably not much that could potentially be worse on a dog's stomach than a big pile of shredded towel.
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