Dog Crate for back of RV-7A

Hey - I am looking at doing my first Pilot-N-Paws mission and as struggling a bit to find a crate that will fit well behind the seats in my 7A.

Anyone out there have one that works well?

Thanks,
Jason

One more thing.... anyone near their plane that can measure the dimensions of the rear baggage area? Mine's 20 min away.

Thanks,
Jason

Jason we do have a crate here in NJ. TK was an active PnP member and transported several dogs. If not urgent I can take it and bring somewhere in between NJ and Illinois. In couple weeks or so...

Vlad - thanks for the offer, but I am looking to find one that I can hang on to... if all goes well, I can see doing this on a regular basis.

Thanks again,
Jason

crate

Jason - Have you talked to the people at PnP? When I started doing the missions a few years ago, they sent me a crate free of charge compliments of their sponsorship by Petmate, makers of crates. I just told them I was going to start doing missions and they sent me a crate.

I have a -7A and I just checked on my crate size. I got the Petmate "Large". The dimensions are stamped on the side, and they read 26L x 18.75W x 16.5H. Here's a link: I think this is the one I have, size large: http://www.petmate.com/deluxe-vari-kennel-jr

That is probably the biggest crate that can go in the baggage area. If you are going to limit yourself to just using the baggage area, you will greatly reduce the number of missions you can do. When it comes down to it, only the smallest of dogs can fit back there. I've done maybe 10 or so missions, and only once did I use the crate in the baggage area. I usually take the passenger seat out and make a make-shift bed using a few old blankets. Then I put the bottom half of the crate in the baggage area and cover it with a thick blanket (old comforter). I can usually coax the dog to walk under the seat support, and then I strap them to the passenger seat belt attach point. I give them just enough slack to lay down with a little left over. I have plenty of pics if you want to see what the setup looks like. It sounds like a lot, but it was all trial-and-error. Now, I can convert to PnP mission ready in about 30 minutes.

Jason,

Here's the one I have. It fits snugly in the back of my RV-6. It totally folds down flat and you can unfold it in place in the baggage compartment. Comes with carrying bag. Leaves a little room in the baggage area to insert the dog into the carrier. Dimensions are 22.5" x 18" x 20". I paid about $60 for it on www.on-line-superstore.com. It is model number NDP1011-L.



I just went online and note that they don't sell the large one anymore. But search under Petco, you might find something similar.

Like Dave says above, I rarely have to use it, most of the time I just have the dog in the passenger seat beside me tethered to the seat belts/shoulder harness. But it will come in handy for puppies, especially if you have 4 or more.

I think Tanya has documented around here somewhere the large soft crate that she uses. Of course she modified it for top loading . I'm sure she'll be along shortly, after work, to expound on my ignorance.

Pop Up Crate

I tried a hard-sided crate and was discouraged by how limited I was with the size of dogs I could carry and the difficulty of the loading process. I ended up getting a large pop-up crate, which basically molds itself to your baggage area. You can push it down on itself to get to the door to load the dog. I went further and added a zipper on one side with the 'screen window' to be able to load from the top.

Target, Walmart, online, etc...Mine is about 20 x 20 x 30


Here is what it looks like in the back...He was so calm that we opened up the zipper to pat his soft head.


Two more things I do are 1) use a reusable zip-tie to hold the zipper ends together, and 2) tether the dog to a baggage tie-down just in case they get a little spunky. That way, they can't come be a co-pilot if they chew through the crate. I haven't had one even think about that yet.

I just flew my first Pilot N Paws mission this weekend with my daughter. It was a two leg mission. The sending rescue knew that I didn't have any crates, so they sent two 24" crates with the dogs for me to keep for future flights. I have a RV-10 so I can't help you with size. Ask the rescues for assistance. They are glad to help in exchange for the transportation.