Amazon Basics Folding Portable Soft Pet Dog Crate Carrier Kennel, 26 x 18 x 18 Inches, Grey

We have purchased two of these - the 36" and 26" for transporting our cats on longer car trips to the WSU vet hospital. I would first say that the quality of the carriers is exceptional, and nicer than other brands at twice the price. One of the vets at the hospital asked us about the carrier and said he was going to get the same one (26") for his small dog.Neither of our traveling cats are natural travelers, so we wanted room for them to be comfortable. We purchased the 36" carrier first, wanting maximum space for a bed, small litter box and food for comfy and complete travel needs. It is HUGE for one cat. Look carefully at the overall dimensions to see how big it is and the overall volume (also see photos for comparison). The 36" size is not easy to carry with a passenger, although the shoulder strap helps. Because it is a soft carrier, any creature bigger than about a 15lb cat will make it doubly difficult. Small suitcase style roller wheels would be a wonderful addition.We made a second purchase of the 26" carrier when we needed to transport 2 cats and weren't sure if they would enjoy the togetherness of many hours in the car. The 26" carrier has room for a small pet bed at the back and a bit of space left in front. Space for a pet bed made a big difference in travel comfort. It was easy to carry into the vets, taking center of gravity into account. It also has a pouch, sized smaller that the 36" carrier. Will add photo on update of this review.I have attached photos of the two carriers side by side to compare the volumes. Ten inches does not sound like a tremendous size difference, but the 36" carrier is probably double the volume of the 26" carrier. We have a mid-size SUV, and needed to drop the back seats to fit both. Sde by side, the two carriers filled the cargo space width.Which carrier did the cats prefer? Our alpha cat is not a great traveler, and does not like to see the scenery going by at 70mph, so he did not appreciate the great view through mesh panels on all four sides of the big carrier. (Or rumble strips on the road. Or my husband's driving, apparently.) On both trips, he began yowling very insistently at the scary view out the front and back, and we ending up throwing a dark cover over the sides and back so it was more like a safe, dark cat cave. This worked so well I plan on sewing a permanent four-sided cover that can travel in the zipper pouch (which, by the way, is also great for carrying food, harness, leash, and a bit of water, but must be flipped up to access the door easily). Our second cat was fine in the smaller carrier, and I have come to firmly believe that cats prefer smaller, safer cave-like spaces. We ended up in a hotel room with one of the cats for 4 nights pre- and post- surgery, and he regularly went inside the 26" carrier to sleep in his bed. It was also not hard to put him in there when he was a bit reluctant. The door is big enough that a cat can't do a giant 4-way leg spread extravaganza to resist being shoved inside.Both carriers are highly recommended for longer car trips and for times when you need to restrict your cats activity level for awhile. Just make sure to consider the comparative sizes. For our cats, I would not go smaller than 26" for longer car trips. We do have smaller under seat size carriers that we use for local vet trips - these might be overkill for that.

Amazon no longer sell this particular model new, (only used). They only sell a basic one with no extras for the same price. I bought this used like new because I like having all the extras. This travel dog crate is perfect. It well built, easy to assemble and pull down to transport. It comes with a crate mat, a padded shoulder strap to use when the crate is assembled as well as a padded hand carry strap. It also has 2 removeable zipper pouches for snacks etc… and a water bottle slot and tiny pouch with window to put pet info inside. When closed for transport it has a hand carry strap and buckle closure to hold it together. This one when compared to the basic Amazon one being sold is imo better made (I’ve seen both) and comes with extras.I like this carrier as it’s easier to break down and assemble when traveling and much lighter and easier to travel with than my dogs wire crate. If your dog is not crate trained or a chewer this is not for you. My dog loves this crate and is secure in it as the zippers lock.Two things I would change if I could (not a deal breaker). Amazon should have made extra loops on the carrier so that you could carry the crate on your shoulder when it’s folded up so you can hand carry or shoulder carry. Sometimes ur hands are full so carrying on the shoulder would be convenient. I’m gonna try to figure out a way to use the strap to shoulder carry when the crate is folded.Amazon should also use something other than regular rubber bands to hold the support arms in place when folded up. Over time that’s gonna break from continuous use. When it does I will just use Velcro ties to hold the arms.I am very impressed with buying used like new from Amazon at a cheaper price. The box was not perfect and delivery took forever (it was late) but all the contents were really like new, in good working order and it wasn’t missing any parts- I even got the instruction booklet.

I recently moved cross country with two cats and a large dog. My two cats cannot go into the same crate even though this would have been plenty big enough for both of them. I bought two of these (one for each cat) to travel 1900 miles in the back hatch of my Subaru Outback. It was a tight squeeze but I managed to get BOTH crates in the back hatch (one of the crates I had to release the top frame bracket to squeeze it in). Each cat was able to have a small litter box to the rear of the crate, a small bed and a small bowl of water and food to keep them comfortable for the trip. These crates are big and roomy (taller than I needed but that's ok) and the top and sides were mesh, so the cats didn't feel too confining and were able to receive light and look out from the top since the sides were blocked by the hatch door and sides. They were also able to get proper ventilation as I also purchased two small USB fans to plug in the back hatch so they wouldn't get too hot back there. These crates also contained any messes that happened during the trip, such as spilled food and litter being kicked out by either cat, so it didn't get all over the back of my vehicle. These crates were also fairly lightweight for me to carry from the vehicle to the hotel rooms...... a bit bulky but lightweight enought that I didn't need assistance carrying despite their larger size. I also love that they fully collapse for storage, waiting for the next long car ride :)These would be great for small to medium dogs too.