[tripledogdare]

I have a 2019 crosstrek and I'm looking for crate for my dogs that will fit with or without the seats down. I've looked at gunners and ruffland and I'm leaning toward ruffland simply for the price but unfortunately they aren't crash tested. Has anyone with a crosstrek used a large sized ruffland in the trunk?

 

[PScooter63]

Is there some reason an airline cargo-approved kennel wouldn’t work? Are the standard sizes for your breed too tall for the vehicle’s interior?

 

[tripledogdare]

.

 

[tripledogdare]

Is there some reason an airline cargo-approved kennel wouldn’t work? Are the standard sizes for your breed too tall for the vehicle’s interior?

I have a GSD and a malinois. I have both the cargo aircraft style crates and the wire crates inside for them. I’ve tried them both and they are too tall.

 

[Skyfix]

I've looked at gunners and ruffland and I'm leaning toward ruffland simply for the price but unfortunately they aren't crash tested.

After doing a bit of research on your question, the video I found suggested that the Gunners Kennel did better in a "crush" test than the Ruffland Kennel.

(As you may already know, Gunners Kennels did very well in crash tests. (They also did well in the crush test.))

Regardless of which kennel you choose, crash tests won't matter if the kennel isn't secured in the vehicle to prevent it from becoming a flying object in the event of a collision. So as part of the decision process, I would be looking for tiedowns/cables/seatbelt that would help keep the kennel secured in the vehicle's interior. (If you had a kennel hit the back of your seats after slamming on the brakes, the kennel isn't secured properly - which isn't safe for the pet.)

When it comes to my family, which includes pets, I would choose safety over price.

Hope this helps

 

[AstroKats]

We've had a few threads about pet safety. Dogs are safest secured on the back seat or in a crate secured on the back seat. Not in the cargo area in case of a rear end collision, and certainly not jumping around all over the car.

 

[tripledogdare]

We've had a few threads about pet safety. Dogs are safest secured on the back seat or in a crate secured on the back seat. Not in the cargo area in case of a rear end collision, and certainly not jumping around all over the car.

I have three dogs and two of them are large. The seats will have to go down to fit them all in their crates. That’s why I’m trying to see what will fit.

 

[AstroKats]

I have three dogs and two of them are large. The seats will have to go down to fit them all in their crates. That’s why I’m trying to see what will fit.

Got it, then I'm guessing as far forward as possible and secured down somehow?

 

[Skyfix]

I have three dogs and two of them are large. The seats will have to go down to fit them all in their crates. That’s why I’m trying to see what will fit.

Gunner Kennel Dog Crate: Large

INTERIOR: 21.75" (L - Floor) x 14.5" (W - Floor) x 15.5" (H) / 16.5" (W) at kennel's widest interior point
EXTERIOR: 24.5" (L) x 18.625" (W) x 19" (H) / 20.5" (H) with carry handles
EMPTY WEIGHT: 27 lb.

With the rear seats down, you should be able to fit two large Gunner Kennels side by side in the rear of your vehicle. (Be sure to leave enough room so that the hatch can be closed without hitting the kennels - you don't want to shatter the glass.)

That should leave enough room for you to open a passenger door and place another kennel behind the driver/passenger seat, either sideways or length wise. Exterior length X 2 gives 49" or just over 4' of length end to end. Exterior width x 2 for side by side is 37.25" or just over 3' of space.

With my rough measurements, including having my driver seat set for my 6' height, I came up with about 43" of depth/length and about 41" of width (narrowest point). So my best estimate is that I would have enough room for three large Gunner Kennels in my Crosstrek.

The way I would position them is the first large kennel would be placed sideways behind the driver/front passenger seat - with the kennel door facing a passenger door. Then I would position the two large kennels in the rear with the kennel doors facing the hatch. If my very rough measurement is correct, positioning the kennels in this manner would mean that they took up just over 43" of length, (24.5" + 18.625" = 43.125" or just over 3.5 feet). So I would have to move the driver seat forward a few notches.

You mentioned having two large dogs and a smaller one. So my guess is that the third kennel wouldn't be a large - which means you would have more room.

As you may know, the dimensions for the kennels can be found on Gunner Kennels website at:

Man's Best Kennel | The Safest Dog Kennels | GUNNER

Also, after figuring out the size of the kennels, I would encourage you to recheck my numbers with a measuring tape.

It is very important to measure the length starting from where the top of the hatches seal starts - the hatch is angled and I've seen people shatter the glass because they didn't factor that fact in. You don't want the top of the kennel breaking the rear glass when you close the hatch!

I hope this helps!

 

[rascoelily]

The large gunner will not fit in a 2020 model crosstrek. I bought it and tried it in my car and it's just way too tall. Not sure what vehicle I'll need for the crate but no chance the large will fit in a crosstrek if it has the same dimensions as mine.