Paint The Crate?

[Guest Mamacita]

I am preparing to adopt my first greyhound and I'm getting the supplies ahead of time. I saw a crate on craigslist.com that will fit a grey, but it's been outside- it's rusted and needs to be painted.

If I remove all the rust and use a non-lead based spray paint, will this be a safe thing to do? Has anyone done this before?

Gracias para la ayuda!

[ahicks51]

You could remove the rust with steel wool, and see if it holds up without any paint. If it's a stainless steel drop pin crate, that may be plenty. If it's an epoxy or hard coat over steel, if it's kept dry that may be enough. In other words, once it's been cleaned, if you keep it dry there may be no need for paint.

 

If you are compelled to paint, most paints on the consumer market are safe once dried.

[Guest Tigonie]

First of all,

 

Hmmmm...how much are they charging for the used crate? The rusty used crate sounds like a lot of work and some risk. You will want to remove the rust (and hope none of it has rusted through the bars too much) before you paint. You are taking a risk that the crate is salvagable and not weakened to the point where the dog might chew through the bars. The paint will cost something. Plus your time is worth something.

 

Personally, I would buy a new crate. You can get a decent new one through PetSmart for around $99.00. Also, many greyhounds don't use the crate for very long (a few weeks or a couple of months before transitioning out). Some groups rent out a temporary crate for a small fee. If you plan to use it on the short-term, it may be worth looking into renting or borrowing a crate if you'd prefer not to buy a new one.

 

Congratulations on your pup!!