The 5 Best Furniture Dog Crates Australia: Tested & Evaluated 2024

The best dog crates don’t have to look like doggy gaol! When used correctly, a crate is a source of comfort for your dog. There is no reason why it shouldn’t look like it too. Say goodbye to ugly wire cages and say hello to tasteful dog crate furniture instead.

In today’s guide, we’ll discuss how you can make a dog crate a natural part of your home. To discover the best furniture dog crates in Australia, we teamed up with veterinarians, canine behaviourists and dog parents to research and test the most popular options. After several weeks, we were able to come together and finally agree on the contents of this guide. 

Ahead, we’ll discuss how you can make a dog crate a welcomed part of your home. You’ll get to see some very nice ready-made options hand-selected by our team of independent experts. So let’s start!

Australia's Best Dog Crate Furniture Reviewed

Now that you know what to look for when shopping for the best dog crate furniture, it's time to see some of the amazing options out there. These are the crates that truly impressed our team of independent experts whilst providing our dogs with a safe, comfortable and stylish place to retreat.

Teddy the Designer Dog Crate is the coolest option in Australia when it comes to dog crate furniture. This is not just a dog crate disguised as a living room table or a cabinet, it’s a designer piece in itself.

The solid birch plywood top of the Teddy does allow it to be used as a table, a shelf, or even an additional seating area in your home. Similar to our second choice ahead, the crate is very well-made and stable, meaning I didn't have to worry about putting too much weight on it.

But the most important part, of course, is the space it provides for your canine companion. The Teddy features a back wall made of perforated birch plywood and side walls made with spaced-out plywood columns. The door, on the other hand, is made of perspex - high-quality acrylic panels which are transparent and chew-proof.

It might sound complicated, but it all came together nicely to create a crate that was airy and cosy for my dog at the same time. We also loved how it's available in a variety of sizes. Natural birchwood finish is the favourite of our panel of independent experts, but there is also a black option available in case that works better in your space.

Kustom Kennels is another Australian company that focuses exclusively on high-end dog crates. The Single Crib crate features the most neutral and versatile design, but there are also other options to choose from for small dogs, big dogs, multiple dogs… they truly strive to make a cozy home for every dog. 

Now, this crate looks just like a rustic cabinet. It’s made of solid pine wood. The doors and sides are made with rebar (in other words, very strong steel rods). And as you'll soon see, it offers much more customisability than our number one choice above.

A standout feature of Kustom Kennels crates is that I could make it match the rest of my home. I got to choose from a wide variety of natural and colourful finishes for the wood. And that’s not all - I could also choose what type of door I’d like, whether I wanted a rubber infill for the bottom of the crate (easier to clean), or perhaps a drawer added on top for extra storage.

Overall, it’s a decent option if you are willing to invest in a quality crate.

Let’s start with a disclaimer. This crate is made of plastic! That’s not usually what we want from our furniture, but truth be told, this Ecoflex crate looks pretty good. It's designed to imitate wood, and can pass for a wooden crate until you look very closely.

Ecoflex is actually the name of a special type of polymer that New Age Pet uses. They say it mixes reclaimed wood fibre with plastic… We are not sure how that works, but it does look good.

The material comes with some advantages too. For starters, it’s very durable and completely water resistant. You can soak it in water and scrub it as much as you like and it won’t budge. That’s not something you can do with the wood crates in our number one and two spots.

The crate features a front door on the narrow side and a removable top to make cleaning easier. The windows on the crate are closed off with stainless steel tubing. The crate currently comes only in grey, but can be easily painted into any colour your like.

This Zoovilla dog crate was designed to be as convenient as possible. For starters, it’s very easy to assemble, with no special tools needed.

Once everything is put into place, you’ll notice that the crate features doors both on the long and the short side. A double door on the side works great for letting your dog lounge freely in the crate, but the front door is also completely functional. Depending on the setup of your room you can use one or the other, or even both.

Unlike some other crates, the top is not easily removable. However, there is another feature that allows for even easier cleanup: the sliding bottom. The bottom of the crate features a tray that slides out easily so you don’t even need to get inside the crate to clean it.

Overall, it’s a great option, especially for the price. However, it should be said that, like our number three choice, this is not the toughest of crates. If your dog is very energetic and likes chewing or rougher play, the crate might not withstand the attack.

Compared to custom-made wooden furniture dog crates, this option from Unipaws is pretty cheap. But it does look amazing, similar to our number two pick!

The frame, top, and bottom of the crate are made of pressed wood. While not the fanciest type of wood you can find, pressed wood is the perfect middle ground between expensive quality crates and cheap plastic knock-offs. You can choose between a natural wood finish or a grey one, to make the crate fit better into your home.

This crate features sturdy wire mesh windows everywhere. The mesh is present on each wall of the crate as well as on the doors. I noticed that meant my pooch was bound to get enough air in there while still feeling sheltered.

Finally, this furniture crate also features a slide-out tray. Everyone on our team of independent experts loved that this makes the cleanup much easier in case there was a mess, just like with our number four choice.

Everything You Need to Know About Dog Crate Furniture

As you probably already know, dog crates are not meant to be a form of punishment for your dog. A crate should be a place where your dog feels safe, a space of their own:

Many pet parents who give crate training a try find their pets enjoy having their own “room”. But with that comes another problem, what to do with that ugly cage in your living room. Well, if you want your room to keep looking nice and put together, you have two basic options: 1) camouflage the crate and 2) get a crate that fits with your home decor.

Standard wire crates are very common because they are convenient. They can be used indoors and outdoors, put together and taken apart easily etc. However, if you don’t intend to move the crate out of your home, there is a whole world of other options. How about a wooden dog crate cabinet or a dog crate table? Yes, these are entirely viable options.

But, finding a crate that vibes with both your dog and your home can be an extra challenge. Going through the list of criteria below our team of experts suggests will help you get a better idea of what you need to look for:

Features to Look For in a Dog Crate

#1 Size

This excerpt from a canine behaviour reference book summarises the question of crate size extremely well:

You’ll often hear the advice mentioned - “the dog should be able to stand up, lay down, turn around” - and yes, that’s the absolute minimum of space a dog crate should offer.

But, as dogs grow older and more used to crates (and not going potty inside them), they can start to enjoy having some more space. A slightly bigger crate is often beneficial and means there is space inside for your dog to have a snack or play with some toys while you are away.

As it’s often the case, there is no universal answer. It might be a good idea to try out a few different crate sizes before you settle on a permanent option for your home. Wooden dog crate furniture can get expensive, so you might want to find out what size works best for your furry friend before investing.

#2 Functionality

The purpose of a crate is clear for your dog. But furniture crates are usually multifunctional. In other words, they have some use for humans too. Will the new crate pose as a cabinet, a bedside table, or a coffee table?

This depends on the size of your dog and hence the size of the crate, of course. But it’s also worth thinking about where you want to place the crate in advance.

Central, well-frequented rooms in your home are often the best location for a dog crate (3). This way, your canine companion won’t feel isolated while still having a time-out area. However, there are no hard and fast rules. Some pet parents find it’s best to keep the crate in their bedroom, while others prefer the kitchen, the living room, or even the hallway.

If you know which room you are going to place the crate in, it will be easier to find one that blends in seamlessly.

#3 Materials 

It goes without saying that your dog crate should be made from materials that are sturdy and durable.

But, that doesn't mean it has to be a metal cage. Wooden dog crates are typically the best solution for home use. If well-made, they can be just as sturdy as any other option. And as a bonus, you get to introduce a nice natural material into your home.

#4 Comfort

Comfy bedding is great, but crates are not just about that. A dog also needs good airflow and a pleasant temperature in the crate to be comfortable (4). This gets more difficult to control with furniture-style crates, as they often have more solid walls than classic crates and carriers.

So, make sure the crate has enough openings to ensure good airflow and give you the ability to control the temperature inside.

#5 Doors

Doors are a very important part of a crate! There is a good chance your dog will sometimes hang out in the crate with the door open, while at other times it should be securely closed. As you are trying to incorporate a dog crate into your space, this is another thing to think about. For example, swinging doors might be fine in some spaces, but a sliding door works much better most of the time.

#6 Assembly

You’ll probably need to assemble your dog’s crate only once, so ease of assembly shouldn’t be the most important feature. Still, it’s good to know what you're getting into. Some timber dog crates don’t require any tools to assemble at all, while others are the complete opposite.

My Final Say

Looking for a crate that will actually mesh with the rest of the furniture in your home? As you can see, you are not the only one. There are plenty of options out there, but our team of independent experts' absolute favourite is Teddy, the designer dog crate.

We love it because it’s more than a dog crate - the Teddy is a modern piece of furniture that happens to provide a home for your dog too. If the design is not your style, though, one of the other options on our list ought to do it.

References

1. Madson, K. January 6, 20243. “Crate Training Your Puppy or Adult Dog: Everything You Need to Know”. Preventive Vet. Retrieved January 23, 2022. https://www.preventivevet.com/dogs/everything-you-need-to-know-about-crate-training-your-puppy-or-adult-dog
2. Martin D, Campbell L, Ritchie M. 2017. “Problem Prevention”. In: Martin, D., Shaw, J., Eds. Canine and Feline Behavior for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.: Chichester; pp. 145-203
3. Scott, D. December 5, 2022. “Crate Training A Puppy: 6 Easy Steps”. Dog Naturally Magazine. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
   https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/crate-training-a-puppy/
4. Blumenstock, K. September 24, 2018. “How to Make Your Dog’s Crate Feel Like Home”. PetMD. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
   https://www.petmd.com/dog/care/how-make-your-dogs-crate-feel-home