Hi all,

I need an Intermediate size crate to ship my Springer from the UK to Van & was on the verge of buying a 2nd hand one from eBay for a great price, but the courier will make it not far off buying a new one with free delivery.

My research seems to take me to the Petmate Vari Kennel all the time. Anyone have an idea of an alternative brand, before I commit to the purchase & stop worrying about it!!

Cheers, Katie

I looked at them all last year, including having one made. I don't think you can go wrong on the varikennel tbh.
We got one on ebay, paid 30GBP for it plus 30GBP in diesel to pick it up. So it was cheaper but to be honest not sure it really was worth saving the money considering the hassle of going to collect it.

Too bad you couldn‘t find someone going the other way and just hand it off - those kennels are about $25 at the right garage sale but you can‘t find something just because you need it. I agree Varikennel is a good brand, but I‘ve used an Air Canada crate too and they‘re ok, just not quite as substantial; they‘re more squat, but still disassemble and nest for storage. They used to be about $60 and came with wheels so you could pull it. Did you put a WTB ad in your local buy and sell websites? Better to spend $30 than $100.

I'm in the Vari kennel club....my three cats and Cairn terrier are off in them tomorrow...and yes the moment I get to Canada they will be for sale on Kijiji! I had a springer a few years ago and when we moved we had to have a crate made, but it was so awkward and cumbersome we could barely move it. Best of luck!

Jerry...Jerry...Jerry....Jerry.....Oh.

Not that Springer.....

Best of luck for your pets journey!

Thanks for your replies, have decided to go with a vari kennel as more searching wasn't getting me anywhere.

So £77 and free delivery & my girl has her new temporary home.

It's that balancing act of how much money do i want to save, against the hassle I'm going to cause myself.

A kennel like that is handy for all sorts of things besides air travel. I keep one even though I don‘t have a dog anymore, just in case I get another. Free delivery is nice - problem solved!

Exactly right, cheers!

On a slightly different note, what have people done about their dogs food? My Lilly is on dried biscuits, gluten free working dog mix.

I'm making an assumption that dried dog biscuits can't be imported and I'll just have to find a suitable alternative?

Thx again, katie

I have a springer with digestive problems so food was a concern. But don't worry their are loads of good pet stores with a large stock of good quality food.

Cheers Stu. Did you take any dog food over from the UK? Or do I assume correctly, that you can't?

Katie

Hi Katie, you can't take food in from the uk!!! And you can't put any food into the crate either.
We made up sealable packets of food and attached them to to outside of the dog crate for a meal when the dogs landed.
Then it was just a case of finding what we could from the first Safeway or Walmart until we found what suited him.

Thanks!

I am fortunate as husband is over there for a few more weeks before he returns and then we go over together, so he will have to search for a Canadian equivalent before he comes back

Katie