When we made the decision to get a Great Dane puppy, we knew she would need to be crate trained. The idea of a metal XXL crate wasn't terribly appealing so my wife suggested I build a piece of furniture. My skills are above beginner level but I had never built a piece of furniture. I started with the dimensions for the metal crates (54"L x 37"W x 45"T) and put pencil to paper. We agreed we wanted somewhat of a rustic look for the finished crate. I decided to use pine 1×4's, 1x3s and 1x2s, pinned and edge glued together. For ventilation I chose the black metal banister rails. The bottom of the crate is a sheet of sub floor covered with sheet vinyl. I lined the inside of the crate with hardware cloth to deter chewing on the wood. The top is made of tongue and groove carsiding, I had left over from another project. The 4 sides are finished in Dark Walnut Stain. The top has the same stain plus 3 coats of Satin Urethane.
