Having a staycation in September and was wondering if the crate fans are effective and worth buying. We are going to Cornwall which is a long journey from our home and of course don’t know what the weather will be like. We will have numerous stops of course on service stations. Don’t want to waste my money if they are no good.

I've never bothered with this - we have air con   Provided the dog isn't sitting in the back in the full sun, he should be fine in the crate alone - and you could always cover part of it to keep him out of the direct sun.   Covers are cheaper than fans!!   It's good you are thinking about his comfort back there - all too often I've travelled behind a car with the passengers up front in the cool, with the family dog panting away in the back.  Our cars are always tinted, side and back windows which helps keep our hounds cool when travelling too.   And the crate our Whippet is in for local trips is located cross-wise behind the front seats, so she's never in the full sun.

You could use those kids' suction cup sun screens too, to help keep the temperature down back there.

Just to add it might be worth buying a travel water dish to put in the crate if you don't have one - not that dogs know to drink when they are getting too hot!  But it would help keep him hydrated en route.

I have used cafe fans for nearly twenty years as my dogs have a decent coat on them including a water proof under coat. They don't cost much nowadays, I also use window shades with the suction cups as well, dog has cotton bedding for coolness, I have a windscreen silver cover I put on top of the cafe for shade, I also put a cool coat on the dog as well in hot weather. They also have a dish of cool water available as well.

If it is hot for you it is really hot for the dog with you, there is no wrong or right answer it depends on type of dog you have, how well they travel and how hot it is.

My thoughts are there is no thing as taking to many precautions when traveling with your dog on a long journey in hot weather.

One good trick is get an empty plastic bottle pop squash type half full it with water put in the freezer and freeze it and just before you leave full up with cold water and place in cool bag it works as an ice pack for you and cool water for your dog.

Also if  they are battery powered take spares with you

Tip I saw somewhere is to try and put an icepack in front of the fan so it blows cool/cold air instead of just stirring up the warm air.

We use a car fan when the car is stationary. We have high grade rechargeable batteries (the photographic type), and carry a spare set. The silver suction windscreen covers work well, and in my obedience show days we covered the external car roof with a silver sheet too. If your car is a hatchback, you can buy a spacer bar which allows you to leave the tailgate safely locked, but open just a little to allow a flow of air. Mine is a Cool Dog Car Lock from https://maryray.co.uk/product/cool-dog-car-lock, (I hope this is allowed admin), but there are other companies. They come in various sizes - for safety, don't get one that is too long!

Thanks everyone. We already have a cover for the crate with a foil exterior. She is a Shetland sheepdog, so lots of fur. We also have a clip on water bowl. Not so bad when the car is moving as we can have the windows open which creates a nice drought but of course there are times that we will have to leave her when we need to spend a penny on the services. All our holidays are usually abroad but don’t feel at all confident to fly at the moment. We have hired a cottage in Cornwall for all the family including the family dogs. Great fun.

I absolutely love my Ferrex fan from Aldi, waiting for them to come into stock again to get another. They run off a tool battery.

> I absolutely love my Ferrex fan from Aldi, waiting for them to come into stock again to get another. They run off a tool battery.

Is this a normal fan or one small enough to attach to a dog crate?

> We have hired a cottage in Cornwall for all the family including the family dogs. Great fun.

I hope you really enjoy your trip down here, but can I just ask if you will think about the locals who live near your rented property.  Having lived down here on the N.Cornwall coast for a number of years now (I am well into NIMBY now) I'm afraid I always heave a sign of relief when the visitors all go home.  And we tend to avoid going into town unless it's feeding time, when everybody has their faces in the trough.  Driving through town the other day there were people leaping off the pavements all the way through - nightmare!     As for bringing their dogs down ..... mess everywhere!   Yes we need the income, but sometimes not the rest!!

We have a family opposite who have a holiday home and when they turn up, it's nothing but car doors banging as they come and go, up to 4 times a day.   Thankfully they don't have riotous parties going on into the night!

They are big, they’re meant for workshops, but there’s a hook that you can hook onto the dog cage. Video review I just found:

https://youtu.be/hXnvTYRLPcI

It’s a pain waiting for them to come back into stock, I ended up getting a body from eBay and buying a compatible battery from toolstation.

Also, I live in Devon, and many of our facilities survive on the money that tourists bring in. At a time like this, tourists are especially welcome.

If you need to be told as a grown adult to clear up after yourself you aren’t going to listen to someone telling you to clear up after yourself.

I know how you feel Mamabas, we have  an open space in front of our bungalow and also down the side. My husband tires of going out to tell people to pick up after their dogs. Many times he is threatened. He also has to go out picking up litter just dumped by teenagers congregating. What a world we live in.

I have one of those fans from Aldi too, it actually is far better than my transcool I purchased, have to say being 2nd hand im gla di never forked out for a brand new one, not worth their pricing when this fan from Aldi is so much better at a fraction of the price

That’s good to know Sue, as I had looked at the transcool. But the fan does us fine for now anyway.

I guess it is not worth to buy a fan for the crate. There are many other ways to keep your dog cool in the crate. Several peoples have mentioned in this forum you can try them.