Barjo cages - worth the extra cost?

Hi,

I've been looking at crates for the house and the car, and I've seen plenty of different makes/models for between £50-100 for my size of dog. But they're all pretty flimsy-looking things, and I'm wondering if the Barjo 'heavy-duty' cages are worth three times as much (£220)? It sounds expensive but if it'll last the lifetime of the dog then it might be worthwhile.

If any of you have experience of the Barjo heavy-duty models (or know of any 2nd hand examples!), I'd be dead chuffed to hear about them.

Thanks,
Al

I bought a van last weekend already fitted out with Barjo custom crates, [ thats why I bought the particular vehicle in fact ]. The crates are absolutely solid and very well made indeed, [ and the previous owner had them coated to match the van, bless `em ].

There are other companies however which do produce equally good quality and often at cheaper prices as well as some others producing flimsy things which you would`nt put a stuffed toy in.

Some for you to compare which I have either seen myself or have been highly recommended by other agility people :

http://www.hamsterbaskets.co.uk/dogcages.html

http://kirkbyk9.co.uk

www.dogcages.uk.com/

This one [ Steve Tubb ], is very highly recommended and is a rescue dog supporter

www.doggycages.com

I also have an old Croft crate which I`ve had for nearly 10 years and was secondhand to me, which is as sturdy as ever. They have various models/ qualities suitable for different levels of likely wear and tear

http://www.croftonline.co.uk/scp/Dog...og_crates.html

HTH

what dog is it you own? gsd's are the worlds worst for crates and sometimes spaniels they will find all ways to get out so in that case i woud if i were you. has it been cage trained? if not the yes to heavy duty if it has then it shouldnt matter what cage.

Hi - I had a barjo for my previous car and currently have the guard and tailgate. They are excellent quality and well worth the money - well made and last forever. I didn't have the heavy duty so unable to give any feedback n those.

Their customer service is superb too.

For a house crate not sure if I would go for a barjo unless you are using as a multifunctional ? but then I didn't crate train any of mine. I have used the crufts puppy pen for when they were babies though.

The Barjo last many many years!

good luck - there is such a choice isn't there

Also to add try ebay for second hand models they sometimes have them!

Hi Metz,

In fact I haven't got the dog yet (I'm pacing around like an expectant father, getting everything ready) - it's a working cocker, ready in November, and I'll be using the crate right from the start. I'm thinking about getting the heavy-duty crate for the car, and then making a decision about what to get for the house.

Thanks for the links Patch - most of these models are also 'reassuringly' expensive! I also noticed that Barjo have a cheap range too, which suggests to me that there must be a notable difference in quality between the two ranges. Or I'm a sucker for a marketing trick...

Thanks,

Al

Hi Al

I think the Heavy Duty range are probably larger than you will need for your cocker?

We had the VK4X for two setters which was well suited for the job! Why don't you ring Barjo and talk to them about your needs? They are very helpful and won't oversell I'm sure!

Rachel

Bless! Have you met your puppy yet?

I'm a big fan of puppy pens for in the house. Don't know what we would have done without it while Bongo was little. It helped with house-training more than I expected, as she actually treated the whole pen as her bed, and didn't toilet in it unless she really couldn't help herself.

My mum uses Barjo crates, and they seem great. We favour the airline-approved moulded-plastic jobs, largely because we may have to take the beast on ferries, and we'd rather she didn't see too much of what was going on round her in those circumstances.

barjo are great ....croft is a very good make as well

Hi Rachel - you're right! I called Barjo and, sadly, even the smallest crate in their heavy-duty range is too big for my car (a large estate car!). Shame. They've offered me a VERY expensive build-to-order one, or one of their 'lightweight' range. It's very dissapointing to be a lightweight. Bummer.

Don't feel bad - most of us are 'lightweight!'