The Midwest Life Stages Metal Dog Crate Review is nearly 11 years  in the making.  In fact it’s my first puppy product purchase ever!

Flashback to January 7th, 2005: The day I picked up Linus from the Carson Animal Shelter. I began my search for a puppy on December 5th, 2004 and after browsing PetFinder.com I came across an Australian Shepherd/Labrador Retriever mixed puppy with a white spot on his chest. Little did I know that this little puppy would be my best friend for the next 10+ years.

What does all of this backstory have to do with a MidWest Life Stages Double-Door Folding Metal Dog Crate? (affiliate link) Well, after I decided Linus was the puppy for me I ran over to the local PetSmart to purchase all of the essential supplies for my first puppy.

I wanted to crate train my puppy so one of my purchases would end up being the MidWest Life Stages Dog Crate (affiliate link) and the only item from that day that I still use to this very day. In fact, Linus will still meander into his crate on the off day we do not have a puppy in training.

Midwest Life Stages Metal Dog Crate Review

From Amazon.com (affiliate link)

Product Details

•  Exceptionally versatile metal dog crate with adjustable divider panel
• Double doors for side and front access; slide-bolt latches; rounded corners
• Easily sets up and folds down to portable size; 2 plastic handles for carrying
• Durable satin-black electro-coat finish; ABS-plastic pan included
• 1-year limited warranty

Product Description

Whether starting with a new puppy or starting again with an adult dog, this folding double-door metal dog crate cuts housebreaking time in half and reduces behavioral problems. The exceptionally versatile unit features a divider panel that allows for adjusting the length of the living area. Keeping the living space small enough reduces the chance of the puppy eliminating in one end and sleeping in the other. Choose the size of crate that the dog will need when it reaches its full adult size, as the divider can be adjusted as the puppy grows. For easy placement in an automobile or in the corner of a room, the dog crate also comes equipped with convenient double doors, which allow both side and front access. Other highlights include safe and secure slide-bolt latches, a durable satin-black electro-coat finish, 1-1/2-by-5-7/8-inch mesh, rounded corners, and two plastic handles for carrying. The unit easily sets up and folds down to a portable size for suitcase-style carrying, and an ABS-composite plastic pan for easy clean up comes included. The dog crate carries a one-year limited warranty.

Amazon Reviews

Lets start off by doing exactly what I do when looking to buy a new product and that is looking at the customer reviews on Amazon.com (affiliate link).  The Midwest dog crate has over 5K reviews with an average of 4 1/2 out of 5 stars, not too shabby!  The second thing I do is I look over the 1 and 2 star reviews to see what problems customers may have had with a product.  Here is a comment that sums up most of the complaints I read:

We bought this crate 5 months ago for our new GS puppy but did not use it for a few months since it was so large. Now just three months into use it is unsafe to continue to use. The clips can be popped off by my puppy who tries to eat them. Not only that the front door never sat quite right and just continues to get worse. At this point my puppy can pop it right off. Last it is rusting out all over the place which makes no sense since we use it in our sun room not outside. I wish now we would have bought two plastic crates (we bought our other puppy a plastic one which has held up great)…

Reviews like the above only made up a small percentage of all the reviews which were mostly positive like this one:

I am very pleased with this crate. It erected easily within moments, is extremely sturdy and big enough for all but, possibly, the giant breeds. My Rottweiler can lie down stretched out, if that is her preference, and can stand up without hunching over. She loves this crate far better than her plastic airline type crate as she has better visibility and I believe that she feels less confined. It is also much cooler in the heat of the summer than the plastic crate…

It’s interesting to read such polarizing reviews about the same product.  It’s important to read as much as possible about anything you are looking to purchase whether it be for you or your dog.  Even more interesting is I’ve had 10 years of experience with this product and seeing that I’ve continued to use the MidWest Life Stages Dog Crate (affiliate link) I bet you can guess which camp my review will fall in.

My Review of the Midwest Life Stages Dog Crate

Since picking up Linus 10+ years ago I’ve only had one crate until recently (I bought a second Midwest Life Stages Dog Crate) and that one crate is the MidWest Life Stages Dog Crate (affiliate link).  During those 10+ years I’ve probably had over 100 dogs use the same crate!  That’s right…OVER 100 DOGS!!!  Yes, the crate has rusted from a time when one of the puppies was trying to chew on the metal wires, but besides that it’s been plenty durable.

So what dog breeds have used my crate?  Off the top of my head:

• Labrador Retrievers
• Golden Retrievers
• German Shepherds
• Australian Shepherds
• American Bulldogs
• Dachshunds
• Chihuahuas
• Yorkshire Terriers
• Mixed breeds (fosters pups)

I’ve been a guide and service dog puppy raisers for the better part of the past 10 years and the majority of the puppies and dogs that come through our house are Labs and Goldens although we do foster mixed breed dogs from a local rescue from time to time.

Lets get to my pros and cons of this dog crate:

MY PROS

• This crate is collapsible making it easy to store and transport.
• The plastic tray is removable and easy to clean if you happen to have a mess in your crate.
• Because it’s a wire crate it is breathable.  Air is allowed to flow through the crate.
• It’s been very durable for me, but check customer reviews on Amazon.com (affiliate link) as others have found it not well made.

MY CONS

• Read through the one and two star customer reviews on Amazon.com (affiliate link).  Durability, dogs escaping, poor quality, and sharp corners in the crate seem to be the most common issues amongst reviewers
• Our crate has some rust on it, but it doesn’t bother me or the pups.
• When using the crate with my young pups I have had one or two get their paw caught up between the wires.  While they have been able to quickly remove their paws they did let out little squeals.  This could probably be remedied by buying a smaller version of the same crate for my pups and something I may do in the near future.

While others have brought up some major issues with their dogs and this crate I have not had any real problems with our Life Stages dog crate.  However, I can see how some exceptional dogs may escape, destroy, or have issues with this crate and for that matter any crate.  I’ve even had friend’s dog chew through a plastic crate in attempt to escape!

I’d like to add that on top of my praise for the Lifestage wire dog crate I recently had the need for a second crate and without hesitation I ordered my second MidWest Life Stages Dog Crate (affiliate link).  I’ll let you know in a future review if it’s as good as the first one 🙂

So that’s it folks!  Do you crate train your puppies and if so what type of crate do you use?  Tell us about it in the comment section below.