Impact Dog Crates (Stationary, 450 Model, X-Large, Customer Assembled, TAN in Color

The media could not be loaded.    Okay, I swore to myself that if I purchased this ridiculously expensive crate that I would follow through and write an extensive review for anyone who is also in need of doggy alcatraz (me and my fiancé’s nickname for this monster).Anyone who wants just the basic info, skip to the end. I am going to discuss why I bought this crate, some tips and tricks I used to get excellent results out of my dog, and my review of the crate.First some background. Me and my fiancé adopted our first 50 lb husky from the shelter. Siberian Husky was a new breed for me, but I thought that our dog, now named midnight, was beautiful and I was ready for the challenge. I have had an extensive past in training various animals, and felt that I was ready for anything that our Texas stray was going to throw at me. I live in a 3rd story apartment unit, and midnight most definitely had her first couple of hiccups (she was scared to go up and down stairs for a few days!). However, the major problem came when me and fiancé both had to return to school. I have a home security camera which I set up to watch midnight (we had some issues with going to the bathroom in the house) which will play a critical role in my training process. Midnight howled, and howled, and howled (an issue in our apartment) and was rather destructive.Midnight is a rather mellow dog when we are with here, so I definitely used my security camera to monitor her progress throughout her training when we are away. I am going to spare a lot of boring text by simply stating that I went through four different crates that were broken out of by midnight. She also costed hundred of dollars of damage by ripping up carpets and such (say goodbye to that deposit). Despite countless of hours of extensive training with our dog, we could not stop her from damaging furniture and crates! We trained midnight with each crate, but with no avail. That leads us to doggy alcatraz….Before I talk about this kennel, I want to give a fair warning. If you are experiencing that your dog (specifically husky or german shepherd) is being destructive, howling, or just being a “bad dog” when you are gone I encourage you to read up on both “crate anxiety” and “separation anxiety.” These are real things! Not only do they cause the dogs to perform behaviors that we do not like, it also makes the crate, and any time you leave the house, a living hell for your pet! This kennel is not the solution to your problem if your dog is breaking out of crates, howling, ect. Rather it is a necessary PART of the solution. What I mean by this is that you will NEED this crate to help your dog overcome these issues, as your dog will need a kennel they cannot break out of to even start training, but please for God’s sake do not just throw your dog in this crate and leave. It is important to “crate train” your animal. I encourage to do some reading on this. If done right, it should only take several weeks (but this can vary based on your animal as well). Also, follow the advice to get your dog to play within the kennel. Once again this will vary by animal, but I would encourage Kong Toys or a large (non splintering) animal bone (I would really be safe and only go with reputable brands from stores like petsmart for this). Thats enough chatter, lets talk kennel!—— for those who skipped my rant, here is the discussion about the kennel — — If you have a husky or german Shepard that is breaking out of kennels, it is important that they are kennel broken. What I mean by this is that they must actually learn that they cannot break out of a kennel! If your dog has gotten out of several other kennels, guess what, you have shown him that he CAN get out! So it will take some time for your animal to realize that this kennel is something different. It is also important to note, this kennel IS different! I do not believe that any dog could escape this crate if it is assembled properly. Which means that there will be some struggling in the crate initially. This is important to consider, because if your dog can get their teeth around the bars or any lips of a kennel, they could break a tooth! So (please see my photos) this is what brought on my first good impression of this kennel. The bars are close enough that my dog cannot get her teeth around them! She has definitely tried (see picture A). Despite this good initial impression, there is a lip around the door on the kennel which she did initially chew on and bend out of place (see picture B). I had to watch this closely and put toys and other objects in front of this lip to encourage her to avoid it. To be honest this was my ONLY complaint with this kennel. This lip really should have been folded in at an angle and welded to the front plate of the kennel to prevent dogs from chewing on it, and with a kennel this expensive I kind of expect that every part of the kennel’s design would have been well thought out (this is what lead to the subtraction of one star). Despite that lip, the build quality is good. However, as others have mentioned not all of the screw holes line up! This is frustrating at first, but with a little bit of elbow grease , you can definitely get all of the screws into the kennel. Annoying, but not a reason to deduct a star. Also, the door quality is pristine! The door opens and closes extremely smoothly. The locking mechanism is beautiful and makes a reassuring “clink” when it locks into place. One concern I had was that the door locks in the middle rather than on the top and the bottom. I was worried that this would give the kennel door a “wiggle” when she was initially clawing at it. It did not! So I am more than satisfied with the quality of the door and locking mechanism. One other piece that is not highlighted well is the base of the kennel. The base of the kennel is at a slight incline so that there are no sharp edges or points where your dog can dig at, cut themselves, or chew on (they should have thought about this around the kennel door)!Ultimately, your dog will NOT get out of this thing. My only concern is that lip which surround the interior of the door, and if your dog is showing symptoms of crate/separation anxiety make sure you watch this lip CLOSELY. You do not want your dog chipping a tooth on this lip!I will update my review if any issues arise! Best of luck with your little escape artist!

More than anything, you are paying for piece of mind. Never could I ever had imagined spending close to $800 for a dog crate but after my Border Collie mix escape artist broke through a wire crate, a traveling crate, and yet another even more firm traveling crate, I finally decided that I needed to be able to relax and not worry about her escaping while I was gone and destroying my home...again.I can't begin to explain how relieved I am to have her in a crate I know she will not escape from. I am finally able to take breath. Although it's not necessary, I put the padlock on it for extra security. I know you are all thinking ...MY dog can escape from EVERYTHING! Is it really worth the investment? YES! I don't worry anymore and THAT is worth the almost $800.Two problems though:1. Constructing it will take approximately 4-5 hours, even with help. The bolts and holes do not line up.2. Do not leave the crate in your bedroom during the nighttime if your dog tends to move a lot. The sound of your dog moving/ playing with toys and accidentally hitting the crate walls will scare you to death. It sounds like your house is crashing in.

Excellent Product. This product was recommended to me by my dog trainer as I just got a high drive puppy - a Belgian Malinois. Previously I had a plastic crate and I was really concerned about my pup getting injured. 2 things happened almost immediately upon getting this product... 1. after about 15 minutes, my pup gave up trying to figure out how to get out 2. my pup (and I) got some much needed sleep.After a few days, my pup was going into the crate voluntarily to chill out and nap. Initially it took positive reinforcement, but soon it became routine.Yes this product is pricey, however, my dog trainer put it in perspective... dental surgery, stitches, ear amputations are a lot more, I have over $12,000 invested in my purebread (between purchase price and training), so the money on this crate is following right in line.Impact Crate also gave me excellent service. Service from Tommy Mohler (Impact Crate) was excellent and he did a fantastic job.

For anyone with an insane dog, this is the go-to crate. My boxer is an escape artist. No matter how many clips, zip ties, or other reinforcements I used, he would escape his wire frame crates, destroy my apartment, and then run up and down the hall. While this is an expensive crate, it's worth the price if your dog will escape any other and reign destruction. The crate is solid and in over 6 months, appears utterly escape proof.I would only caution buyers that the "stationary" version does not collapse like the slightly more expensive version. I intended to buy the foldable version for portability but mistakenly bought this one. However i don't need to move the crate often and I've ben quite happy with it.

Finally......after 1400.00 worth of cages destroyed....a cage my dog hasn't destroyed. She tried....she bent the lip around the door on top and bottom but I believe has given up. The cage is sturdy (not movable) It is very heavy...the light color makes it cool. It did come missing screws and the protective edges. I did need to make a few calls to get them. But they did deliver what I needed. It's so comforting to know my houdini has met her match. I got the stationery cage because I felt it would be sturdiy....it is. I would recommend this cage to anyone who has a dog that destroys cages.

Poor design. Nuts holes do not align properly need to drill new holes. Otherwise nice crate. This is my second one first came already put together.

Perfect for our little escape artist Husky rescue dog. Now she cannot injure herself trying to break out of a wire or traditional plastic kennel anymore. Door closes securely and holds up well even with a daily 15 minutes of scratching and biting at the bars in the door. Expensive but worth every penny.

Just not what I thought the product would look like and it came damaged.