You should get which ever one is bigger.
Holly and Lewis have a wire crate each down stairs, Holly sleeps in hers at night and is sometimes put in it when no one is home while Lewis is only in his during the day if no one is home, at night he has a plastic crate up stairs in the sunroom off my parents room (he barks if left downstairs, he needs to be near people). So we own both types.
The wire crates both have blankets over them so they are fully covered on three sides (sides and back) so only the side with the door is exposed (they have two doors but we only use the one on the long side).
I think the advantages of the wire crates are:
- They can be easier to clean, maybe (easier to put the bedding in as the door is bigger - on ours it is anyway)
- You can have them as covered or uncovered as you want (could be important in warm weather if you need more air circulation)
- Easier to move (the wire crates fold down flat which can be useful if you are traveling with the dog)
- Light and visibility (because one side is completely uncovered you can see into the crate easily and lots of light gets in - this can be adjusted by adjusting the coverings).
I can't think of anything more but someone else might.
Advantages of plastic crate:
- More cave-like (a lot of dogs like this).
- Enclosed but has built in ventilation (it would be hard to have side ventilation on a wire crate without leaving the sides uncovered)
- Don't have to add any coverings (also good if you want it enclosed but worry about ventilation/making the crate too hot).
- Might be easier to clean (I think the type of mess would actually determine which crate is easier to clean, the plastic crate has less bits for mess to get stuck in but the wire is more open and has less surface area - also if the wire crate has a covering then that needs to sometimes be washed).
- Can go on planes (probably wont actually be an issue unless you plan on flying frequently).
I can't think of anything more but someone else might.
I think overall it doesn't really matter what kind of crate you get, both have some advantages in certain situations (eg, for traveling) but there isn't much difference. It just comes down to personal preference.
or
