I thought I'd share with you my DI(a)Y (do it almost yourself) dog cage. I wanted to buy a rugged, but light cage that would fit in to the booth of my Freelander. I also wanted it to be big and comfy enough for my doggy. No luck. Either too big, too small, too flimsy… So I decided to build one myself with a lot of help from my buddy who knows how to weld aluminium.
So here’s the final product:

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Looks a good setup, how much odd it cost you to do?

My only criticism is your dog is trapped if your rear ended and the boot doesn't open, maybe a second basic door which could be accessible when the seats backs are dropped  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Price for the material (aluminium) was approx. 50€, the rest was free (felt, latch.. and work). I think it would cost somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 € without DIY factor.
That "escape door" is a very good idea...

Last edited by Troha on 4th Dec 2013 3:34 am. Edited 1 time in total

Well... I almost forgot the most imprtant part, the owner :

Looks great, a similar spec from TransK9 would be in the region of £ 350 up so I reckon you've got a bargain there

I use these http://www.dogtran.co.uk/landrover_freelan...x_item-218

Just two huge problems with that cage, the bars and possibly size . Why? dogs tend to push their noses through bars,even round ones, and consequentially the sides of the muzzle gets rubbed on them. This results in at the very least sores and at worse sever bleeding requiring vet treatment.

As having owned boarding kennels for over 20 years (and many dogs at once for nearly 50 years), initially when we purchased the kennels they were of similar bars and caused no end of the above problems. So we quickly changed them all over to mesh where dogs just could not get their muzzles through. PROBLEM GONE

Take it from a professional,(THIS IS MY JOB) never ever use bars for dog kennelling in any form especially for car dog cages. Dog put paw through bars and car sway, result broken dog leg and heavy vet bills,a dog maybe never able to run and play properly again or even amputation could result.


Troha

My strong advice is change the cage to mesh and scrap the bars

Tip

Never get a travelling dog cage way too big for your dog, your dog could get thrown around in it if having to corner or break sharply. Apart from causing the dog discomfort the pet could easily get injured . So get a cage big enough for your pet to turn around in obviously, but don't think or make the mistake that you have to fill the whole of the cargo area with a dog cage, a very common mistake.

If we have to take a dog boarding with us to the vets we have several different size cages we use so we can use the correct size for the dog.

My credentuals?

AS already mentioned owned many dogs over a long period of time- bred- raced (for fun)-training- involved in dog rescue- TV and advertising- Boarding(21 yrs) - worked with police,armed forces and prison service for drug/firearm dog finding suitable ones in the past-etc etc, so speak from considerable experience Ex 2010 Freelander2 GS-e Diesel manual Silver owner

Wow... easy there!! Relax.
First off, you don’t know the size of my dog, or how he behaves. This cage was made for 36 kg (80 pounds) Pit Bull. Not 2.5 kg Chihuahua. This is not a run-of-the-mill, one-size-fits-all cage. It’s specially made for one and only one dog. OK?
Bars are close together and no way can he squeeze his snout, or any part of his body, though. And since this cage is tailored for only one dog, rest assured that it’s perfectly sized.
Oh, yes… this is where I volunteer: http://zavetisce-ljubljana.si/
So believe me, I too have enough “credentuals”. My dog was rescued from drug dealers and it took us few years to properly socialize him. So I guess I know something about dogs. And transporting animals. And kennels.
No offence, but I’ll keep the bars.

We have one of these, http://www.dogpods.com/ made originally for the SF but I did a bit of modifying for it to fit the FL2 as in Troha's version it is built to fit the car and dog. Yes not as cheap but we have had it for nearly 5 years now, the mod cost me a bit of time but as it is made of steel mesh and dipped, an arc welder was all that was needed and a hot air gun to replace some of the hot dip plastic my PC is slightly to the right of Genghis
2012 HSE SD4 In Orkney Grey now gone, best car ever.

I had almost the same cage but got rid of it immediately after a freak accident on Ljubljana – Maribor highway.
Here’s a summary:
A Frenchman was transporting his dogs to a dog show in Budapest, when he rear ended a parked truck on a service lane. Frenchman survived the crash, along with his 5 dogs. But due to poor rigidity and toughness of foldable mesh cages, all dogs escaped. He went after his dogs, when a Romanian van hit him. He was killed instantly. Later 2 of his dogs were ran over and killed also.
So I opted for more rigid structure that can withstand light car accidents.
In the news (google translated):
http://goo.gl/DFQsGJ

With respect Troha, those cages are for static use, not transport, the mesh is 25mm or greater and the gauge of wire is poor. If the dogs were in the red van then even your cage could have been found wanting, may not have opened up but could have crushed and stayed crushed. Due to lack of space ( the FL having seats) I doubt that the cage would gain the momentum to split open. I am reasonable happy with my cage construction especially the securing springs and the number of them on each join. Had I had a TIG or MIG welder I may have gone down your route as it is a simpler construction, and I wouldn't worry about rubbing his nose, he just sleeps in the car, Commercial dog kennels are a different proposition no dog is completely happy in them. my PC is slightly to the right of Genghis
2012 HSE SD4 In Orkney Grey now gone, best car ever.

I agree... no cage would withstand that crash... I just feel more at ease with rigid cage in the back. It’s probably just me.

And let’s hope we never find out how either cage performs in the crash.