i know croft are a popular make but i wondered if anyone had tried these ?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=390300878747&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I used this as a whelping area and then puppy pen, plenty big enough for small breed and her pups.[mine doesn't have the internal divider]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Heavy-Duty-dog-puppy-pen-whelping-cage-tray-/220755352508?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Dogs&hash=item33660b5bbc

There is a similar cheaper one that has to be bolted together which wasn't available when I got mine.

Many thanks for your reply. They're quite similar aren't they, i was looking at buying 2 extra panels as well to make it a bigger pen.

I use the plastic one from warwick whelping , I once had a pup get her leg stuck in the cage and it was lucky I was in the same room at the time or we could've had a broken leg.
I do use crates but not until they are a lot older. I'm sure a lot of people use this style without problems though :)

I bought a couple of these: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/HEAVY-DUTY-DOG-PET-PUPPY-WHELPING-PEN-CAGE-125x80X90-/110669887274?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Dogs&hash=item19c470772a#ht_1166wt_1145  but WOULDN'T recommend them to anybody, two of my dogs have now caught their legs between the panels on the corners nearly breaking their legs, I've now gone back to Croft Freedom Pens, they may be more expensive but definitely safer.

Sharon M, how do they differ from the freedon pens ?

where the panels join in the corners, the cheaper versions there is a gap, whereas the Freedom pen fits tight together

Someone on here (can't remember who) recommended these, which I have book marked:

http://www.doghealth.co.uk/collections/puppy-pens/products/puppy-run-big-foot

They look really good.

Used Dog Health Big Foot Puppy Pen recently.8ft x 4ft but can be reduced to 4ft x 4ft until pups grow.They also sell matting to cover the floor area which can be bought as a package with the pen on E-Bay.Very good quality and a good investment especially with larger breeds and bigger litters.

Celtic Lad, can you tell me:  With the Big Foot pen, does it have to be some sort of hexagonal shape like it is in the photo??  Only that would be quite a difficult shape in our house.  Also, it sounds like you're saying you can leave panels out of it and create smaller pens if necessary, is that right?  Is it flexible in terms of what shape pen you make out of it?

Just be careful as to whether it has a tray bottom or not, I bought a Special Pets pen last litter because they were much cheaper, and although the pen was identical and completely satisfactory, I hadn't realised that it did not have the tray base that the Croft one has. They very kindly let me have some rubber matting free, and then I sold the whole thing after the puppy joined our general household. I won't be breeding for another few years, so I decided to take the money now and buy a Croft one with base next time, as although the matting did keep the laminate floor in the lounge clean and dry, it was a constant worry!

I don't think it does have a tray as a base, LucyDogs, is this a useful feature which we should look out for?

Big Foot Pen does not have a base as explained in my post.You can buy rubbing matting for this.However next time I will buy some cushion flooring which is easily washed.If it is a small breed of dog I would go for a cage with a plastic base.However for larger breeds it is ideal.

Sorry just noticed post regarding the shape.It can be 8x4,4x4 or hexagonal as required.However remember the matting you can buy is 4ft wide and different lengths can be purchased.This is a substantial and well made piece of equipment.I extended it from 4x4 to 8x4 when pups were older.Remember 8x4 is big!Trust me it seemed to swamp our kitchen area.We measured everything out before buying this.As i say I would buy some vinyl/cushion flooring as a base next time.Rather than the matting which is ribbed and can be difficult to keep really clean.Hope this helps.

As my last litter got older I used a 'baby dan' children's play pen. it is very similar to the big foot in that it can be moved to any shape. We had it here already because of the grandchildren and whilst the gaps are too big to contain tiny puppies for a larger breed they are great. There is no base but I spread a tarpaulin on the stone tiled floor.

hi all many thanks for your replies, they have been extremely helpful.

thanks
claire

I recently saw a litter in a Warwick box - yes, great size but the base worried me, pups slipping about even when dry so it wouldn't do for me I'm afraid. 

I had a large wooden box made to my own specification.  When pups are older I attach a puppy play pen to it to give them more room - works really well - you can see them and they can see all what's going on too.

I would never use a crate for a litter.

It's up to you really, personally I prefer to have the base, but if it doesn't worry you and you can just spread paper or rubber matting on the floor, it's not a problem. I just preferred the base as extra protection for the laminate flooring!

I must admit I've never had a problem with my Warwick , my pups don't slide about , maybe the base is different on mine. I also have a wooden one which is older , though it was good it is not big enough for my larger breed and I like the fact I can disinfect the warwick thoroughly.
I think everyone has their own preference , but I personally wouldn't use a crate either.

I have a big breed and use Croft puppy panels. I have about 14 and 2 with doors and so can build any shape or size I like. Simple zip ties keep it together and I use some of them to build an outside run that is about 12 x 8 ft. The inside run (For nights and wet weather is 10 x 6 into an alcove at the wides part and I bought a large ofcut of cushion floor to go underneath.) It sits in my dining room just right. I love the flexibility of building my own size and shape to fit the odd alcove in the D/R. The panels are 3 ft x 4 ft I believe they come in other sizes. I paid about £10 each for the plain ones and slightly more for the ones with doors.
It is strong enough to keep a large litter of Berns contained....
Aileen

I used the puppy panels for my first litter, but I had two puppies get their jaws caught in the squares trying to pull a toy in from outside (which caused all kinds of mayhem with screaming baby and 3 adult dogs all vying to get to it), and I had another who climbed (at 7-8 weeks) and played superman flying out of it onto the sofa.  So I've purchased 2 of the heavy duty ones (not from Croft, from another company at a show - they were out of spare panels so sold me the second pen at the price of 2 additional panels!) to fit together downstairs.  I also picked up a 2nd hand heavy Croft one.  I haven't tested yet whether they'll work together, but if it turns out they don't that's not a problem, I have ideas... :)  I'm hoping with the way the 'bars' are set there will be no caught jaws and no climbing/flying puppies.

I use dog health's K700 http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/K700-Dual-coated-puppy-pen-48-x-30-x-28-H-dog-cage-/250801224172?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Dogs&hash=item3a64eaf9ec there is also a K900 which is taller. I have two with trays in the house as the puppy pen & whelping area and two in the garden ready for puppies to play safely outside, they join very easilly. Dog Health are also superb merchants with great customer service. two joined give an area of 78 x 78 inches so just over 6ft square. There are many other combinations like 8ft x 5ft. Well worth the money. There is now a larger puppy pen which I think is 8ft x 4ft for about £150 (no trays) and meant for outside. The pens are non corrosive so will last for years.

I purchased a black powder coated pen off ebay several years ago and it has only been used for 2 litters, been stored inside and is badly rusted. :(  Can somebody recommend one of the above mentioned pens that has been well used and not rusted please.  I think I need to get a new one as although I like the size and it is quite heavy duty, I cannot cope with the rust!

I have had the galvanised crates/puppy pen from Dog Health for nearly 5yrs and they look like new, I was warned to stay away from the powdered coated ones as when the coating cracked and moisture got underneath they would rust so I paid a bit more for the better quality ones.

The Croft puppy pen panels in the gold zinc plated don't seem to rust as I have used our panels inside and out.

Thanks, I looked at the gold zinc ones, but they don't look very heavy duty?  My pen is about 4' square, made of  box section and square mesh, it has a door in one panel and is overly high at about 3'6".  I only have a medium size breed., but with a litter of 5 it was too small for the last 2 weeks, they are also very lively and I bought some of the pets at home puppy panels for the garden which they were knocking over in 5 minutes, so I took it straight back and took this one outside.  I was looking at the croft freedom pen, but do like the look of the dog health one jasper posted the link for, would be interested to know how long you have had it and how well it has kept its no rust promise, as I am going to need 2 so not cheap and don't want to make another mistaken purchase.  We have a litter due any day now and while I am ok using it to contain the whelping box, I won't feel happy once the pups are moved into the pen, so I have about 4 weeks to sort something and make a decision.