A dog owner has come up with an ingenious way to make an essential piece of dog care equipment blend into her home decor, and in half a day.

Anja recognized the necessity for a crate to give Cookie the Australian Labradoodle her own safe space. But the pet owner, who lives in Belgium with her husband and their dog, was dissatisfied with the crate’s appearance in her living room.

“I hated the ‘black cage’ in our living room, but Cookie really needs this as it is her own safe space to rest, ever since she was a puppy. So, my husband came up with the idea to cover it up,” she told Newsweek.

And with a bit of time and some DIY skills, the owners managed to upcycle the imposing item of dog equipment into a stylish piece of furniture.

Dog crates serve multiple purposes, giving dogs a secure environment for rest, training, and transportation. However, they have been subject to controversy, with critics raising concerns about prolonged confinement and potential misuse. Despite that, many dogs, like Cookie, find their crate to be a place of comfort.

Earlier this month a Shih-Poo called Cheddar melted hearts with the way he took himself back to his crate when he was done socializing.

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Anja’s project involved using strips of birch plywood, attaching it to the edges of the crate, to give it a chic Scandi-style appearance alongside the couple’s couch.

“We don’t really know [the cost] actually since we used a lot of materials we already had,” Anja said, but she added that the entire transformation only took around 12 hours.

“It really blends in now; it doesn’t bother me anymore. And it’s a fun and not-so-difficult project to do yourself,” Anja said, encouraging others to give the dog crate DIY a try.

The couple aren’t the first owners to do custom DIY for their pet, like the Montana-based dog owner who made a custom tennis-ball catapult for his dog Olive to play fetch with. Some dogs have even been caught on camera helping out their humans with a bit of DIY.

Anja shared the project on her Instagram page @cookie_the_doodle_ where people have been left impressed with the idea.

“Looks so nice!” said one user. “Amazingly beautiful.”

While another viewer wrote: “Ooh it does match better in the interior.”

“Omg how did you do this?” said another. “Our crate is such an eye sore in our living room I would love to do that.”

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