Petmate Pet Taxi Traditional

This product was extactly as it as described. It is easy to take apart and put back together. When assembled it is easy to pick up and carry with a small dog inside. It seems to be sturdy and held together with a dog inside.

We have two of these for our two chihuahuas, and used them for crate training. Just be sure you get the right size (check with your vet). We have used ours for traveling in the car, staying in hotel rooms, and even as a pet hospital when one of ours was on bed rest for a month.

We keep a blanket that can be washed in the bottom of the crate and will frequently find our dogs curled up inside taking a nap.

I have never used ours on an airplane, but can assure you that for home use these are sturdy and are well designed.

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I bought this kennel for kennel training my beagle pup. It snaps together easily and you can have the door swing either right or left. The little black plastic pieces that slip over the wire for the latch will fall off. So, plan on a dab of glue to fix that ahead of time. I'd recommend this kennel to all.

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PROS:

Easy assembly

Durable for daily use for trips to the sitter

Easy to clean

Clips that hold the top & bottom of the carrier are secure and pops open easily.

CONS:

The flooring of the carrier is a bit thin (when carrying from the handle, the floor bulges slightly with the dogs weight.) Not a big problem but just an FYI.

Definitely would purchase another Petmate-brand carrier in the future.

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I believe the "meets airline travel requirements" is for in-cabin travel, or it's entirely possible that this was the fault of the gate agent at United, but for animals flying as checked baggage, the airline would not accept these carriers. Bear in mind this is not clear at all from United's website, but they insisted that the carrier be held together with bolts and plastic screwtops vs. the plastic flexible bindings that are meant to be used to secure the two halves of the carrier together (and were not included with our purchase). So imagine the fun of getting to the airport, finding out you can't fly without new carriers which United is happy to sell you "without profit" but for a little over $150 dollars for two... not to mention getting the cats back out of the carriers, trying to stick the puppy training pads into the new ones... but that's a review for United.

The problem is, they're not wrong about these carriers. Even with the plastic zip ties holding the two halves together, a heavy weight on top can cause the sides to bow outwards and the door will pop free. I drilled additional holes and added extra zip ties (especially around the door) but I still wasn't comfortable with how much give these had when weight was applied. I'll admit that I was going overboard (I sat on them) but fall heavy objects happen when they're in cargo.

They're roomy, though, so if you're looking to kennel train or take someone to the vet they're just fine. Did not work for international air travel as checked baggage, though, and I would be hesitant about traveling using these without reinforcing them yourself. We bought a medium and a small.