Consumer rights info - Dog cage

pmfrench

Morning all

First post on here.

6 weeks ago I bought a dog crate(cage) from an independant pet retailer. Everything has been fine but the dog has now managed to chew her way out of the cage in a single night.

To me, it seems that the cage is not fit for purpose but I wanted some advice before I went back to the shop - as I think it's important to know this before hand so you can state law in case the shop decides to be a bit funny over it.

Am I right in saying that it's not fit for purpose - how can we say what is maybe poor craftsmanship or design versus a very determined dog? Is that important even.

Any advice appreciate.

unholyangel

What is the cage and what purpose did you buy it for?

Is the dog accustomed to being kept in a cage? What kind of dog and how old?

pmfrench

It was purchased as a den for the dog as when she left with free run she was constantly damaging and soiling the house. So, the intended purpose was a safe den for the dog, for her to sleep in a stay in when we're all out of the house. For 6 weeks she has been perfectly fine with it - no concerns at all before this, and no evidence of any previous attempts at escape.

The dog is a 2yo Jack Russell.

Padz_2

What brand of cage is it?

How old is the dog? I'm guessing around 14 weeks - get dog at 8 weeks - buy cage at same time then 6 weeks later when dog is bigger/stronger it gets out.

As previous poster said the type of dog is important here too. If it is a chihuahua then you might have a case. If it is a large/giant breed then you might not.

Plus it depends how the dog got out. I've had 3 crates over the years and all of them said "Do not allow your dog to chew the bars." I'm not trying to be unhelpful or sarcastic just pointing out what it said on the ones I bought.

Padz_2

Didn't see your post before I posted mine. Will get back to you later.

pmfrench

Just to give a bit more info...

We've had for 2 years and she was very inconsistent. She'd go weeks and weeks without doing anything and then we'd get up in the morning and things would have been damaged. The last straw was when she ripped up the carpet in the room scratching at the door.

So, she was quite old at the time, but for 6 weeks she has been brilliant with it. No evidence of chewing or distress at all. We've just moved house a week ago and she does seem very anxious and wanting to be with me all the time.

Before the move, I disposed of the box so I can't refer to it for any instructions or guidelines.

unholyangel

Is the cage marketed/sold as being for this purpose, does it make any claims with regards to keeping your dog in?

Or is it just marketed as a travelling/sleeping cage/crate? Do the retailer sell online at all? If so, perhaps you could link to the product in question so we can take a look at the specifications? If not, is it possible to provide the make/model number so we can try find out some info?

How the cage is sold is basically what you have to rely on here. If you specifically told the retailer you need a cage to keep the dog from damaging the house then you might have a case as (in my opinion) it would be unreasonable for them to sell you a cage that wasnt going to stand up to a dog that will be likely to damage it!

Of course, if it was sold in person, proving who said what can always be a difficulty.

If you can provide us with more information we may be able to help. Of course, even if you dont have any legal grounds to return the cage, theres nothing stopping you contacting the retailer and asking for a goodwill gesture Sometimes reading the nightmare posts on here, its all too easy to forget that some companies/businesses DO offer excellent customer service.

unholyangel

pmfrench wrote: »

Just to give a bit more info...

We've had for 2 years and she was very inconsistent. She'd go weeks and weeks without doing anything and then we'd get up in the morning and things would have been damaged. The last straw was when she ripped up the carpet in the room scratching at the door.

So, she was quite old at the time, but for 6 weeks she has been brilliant with it. No evidence of chewing or distress at all. We've just moved house a week ago and she does seem very anxious and wanting to be with me all the time.

Before the move, I disposed of the box so I can't refer to it for any instructions or guidelines.

We seem to be constantly crossing posts!

I love animals, especially my parents dog. She's extremely intelligent and did (when she was younger......coming up for 3 on valentines day!) have a habit of chewing things, digging up my mums potted plants. They tried keeping her in the kitchen when they were out by closing the door and even by way of a baby gate.......she wrecked the place (westie btw so small dog also). I stayed at my parents when they were on holiday and although I closed the bedroom door, my sister kept going into the room and forgetting to close the door when she left.....I came home several times to chewed things (including a £300 pair of shoes and the charger for my 2 week old mobile phone).

Is she having plenty of walks? Does she have plenty of toys? Jacks are usually very intelligent and active dogs. They constantly need things to keep their mind busy. That coupled with a new house.....its quite understandable she's perhaps "acting up".

My parents dog has a basket full of toys that is low enough so she can go and pull them out (although its a struggle to keep the place tidy as she'll watch you put away her toys, look at you and then walk over and pull them all back out!). They gave up trying to keep her in the kitchen and eventually she did settle down.....she now usually sits on the back of the sofa at the window so she can watch out of the window. They also used to leave the TV on for her (i know it sounds strange but i swear she does watch it sometimes!) more for the background noise than anything.

They did try and keep her in a carrier box thing at nights but she managed to get out. They now have a dog bed at the side of their bed which she lays in.

Where did she sleep in the old house?

Padz_2

We had a puppy pen when our labs were small/ teenage. It was quite expensive at the time (somewhere between £100 - £150) but has been worth its weight in gold. It gave them more space than a crate to roam and play in. That came from Barjo the company set up by Barbara Woodhouse. The older ones amongst us will totally recall "SIT!!!!" LOL.

Our crates came from Croft Online and were strong and well made but again not cheap.

Hope you get it sorted by the shop. A crate should certainly be able to hold a JRT without any trouble. Did she bend the bars? Or chew through them?

peachyprice

OP, you haven't said, what was the crate made of. Was it steel, plastic coated wire, wood? It's quite an important factor.

jumpedtheshark

One of our dogs used to suffer from extreme separation anxiety. She chewed through the plastic latches on her crate in less than 4 hours (how long she was left home alone). It was this design: http://www.hagen.com/uk/dogs/addinfo/petcargo.cfm

Our credit card came with free purchase insurance within 60 or 90 days, so paid for a replacement crate. We then sold that 'as new', and a work colleague gave us a much older crate which, whilst worn, didn't have have plastic latches. Quite what the point of such a strong grill is, I don't know, if all an intelligent dog has to do is chew off the latch. When I checked up on her, she had completely trashed the house - smashed ornaments, chewed and broken CDs and cases and, worst of all, she'd ransacked the bathroom, and was pacing the house with wide eyes. Because we couldn't be sure what she'd eaten, she had to have her stomach pumped and be kept in overnight.

Crate training is quite common, and an ordinary, arguably even recommended use of a crate. So, if you were using the crate to train your dog to be comfortable being left in the house, I'd say you're due a refund/replacement. Arguably a refund under the Sale of Goods Act. If they offer a replacement, you might want to do what I did - sell it, and look for a better design!