Since I got my tax refund, I'm thinking of using my "splurge" portion on a good crate for traveling. My future dog is crate trained, I already have a VERY sturdy nylon crate, and I got a seat belt car harness, but I'm told the dog gets nervous about the car. I think she might be more comfortable in a crate rather than the harness, and I don't want to harness an unpredictable dog. I've been reading through old threads on crates and have learned that a good wire crate would be best - I understand the lower the gauge, the better?
The problem - we have a 2000 Mecury Sable (that I HATE!), like this:
For some reason, I've always had issues getting larger things into the back seat. Even laundry baskets can be a challenge. It seems the doors don't open at a wide enough angle, among other things. You can see how the door opening is rounded, so things with corners just don't go in, even if their dimensions do fit once inside the car.
The dog is a German Shepherd, from what I can tell, I would say she's on the small side for GSDs. I would like to find a quality wire crate big enough for a GSD but will somehow fit into the car. Maybe one that collapses flat so I can wedge it in there and then open it up?
Any recommendations from people with large dogs and cars?
I'm not really sure how to go about this besides going to pet stores and asking if we can test the crate before buying.