Should have called him Houdini

[labgirl]

Merlin was in his zip-sided crate last night. I could hear him scrabbling at something, but didn't give it a thought.

It was mum who first said "I think he is unzipping the crate"

I laughed it off. The zips are on the outside for a start and they have to be drawn up to open it.

So imagine my surprise when 10 minutes later a grey puppy sits at my feet! He had completely unzipped one side of the crate door!

 

[Silaria]

Aww, someone missed you.

Smart little critters our pups are. Yours is not the first to figure out how to unzip a crate. Someone else on the forum mentioned they had to put a luggage lock on the zipper pulls to stop their Sheltie from opening the zippers.

 

[Phebe*DD]

I don't think any zipper is truly Sheltie-proof, if the dog wants out. I've posted before about Phebe getting out of a crate with a locked zipper, not by ripping the crate or breaking the zipper, but by simply poking the zipper with her nose to pop open the teeth. I've been thinking about what I could to the zipper to make it less likely she could pull this stunt again, but for now we're using a wire crate when I need to leave her unattended at a show or in the house.

 

[seashel]

Normal dog rules don't apply to shelties - they're smarter!

 

[SheepOfBlue]

I always try to get the zippers to the top.... less leverage and not as easy to see.

 

[SheltieChe]

oh yeah, zippers are not Sheltie proof. When we went camping Che kept popping out of the tent so I had to bring a crate inside of the tent... this way I knew Houdini will still be there in the morning... was not fun sleeping curling around the crate though

 

[take4roll10]

Zippers are no match for a sheltie!

Many moons ago, we went camping with my sheltie angel. We left her unattended in our tent for an hour or two. When we returned, we found her laying down in front of our tent. Thank goodness she was a good girl with a low herding/prey drive, so she had no interest in running off. If it was Bailey, she would've been long gone chasing a squirrel, bird, car or ball.

 

[Hurtseverywhere]

LOL

Well he is Merlin the magician now isn't He. What... did you really expect him to stay in

 

[Ann]

Ages ago when I only had a soft crate, Barkley figured out how to unzip too. Nothing I did after that could keep him in. Now we have wire crates and the plastic travel crates for the car. It's a little harder to figure out how to reach a paw outside and slide the latch open! But I'm sure some day a Sheltie will figure that out too....

 

[k9kreationz]

Okay, where is the post about the dog who opened up a wire crate by using it's teeth/tongue and paws to move the latch?

Granted, mine don't do this, but it seems zippers won't stop a Sheltie, that's for sure. I can't believe you actually thought he was safe in the zippered crate, Oh you will learn fast......just how smart this pup is. Granted, you may learn a little slower than him, so good luck.