Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I am giving this 5 stars for now, because for my purposes so far, this seems to be a wonderful product. However, it is NOT going to be the right choice for everyone, and I do have a few concerns regarding it for my own use. I'll explain. I ordered 2 of these playpens. (They CAN connect to each other to extend the length, but they CANNOT be stacked on top of each other to increase the height with the included connectors.) I am using them to create an exercise area for my 2 rabbits. The rabbits are both full grown, and each weighs right at 4 lbs. Each playpen came with 12 panels, 24 connectors, and a small wooden mallet. All arrived in great condition, and nothing was damaged on arrival. The panels themselves have a frame of "wire", with plastic wrapped around the frame to make the panel. I say "wire" because it does not seem to be metal, but rather a heavier plastic, and this plastic does bend when pressure is applied. I do not doubt that if a good deal of pressure was applied, the frame would snap. The plastic that makes the panel itself is very flexible, and clear-to-slightly translucent. It reminds me very much of heavyweight page protectors you can buy in office supply stores. It absolutely DOES bend if you apply ANY pressure to it, and I would imagine that with enough pressure (or claws), it may permanently bend, crack, or tear. Fortunately, my rabbits do not typically lean against surfaces, so none of these issues is a problem for me. The panels themselves are very thin, easily less than 1/4" wide. In reading the description and other reviews, I had difficulty figuring out what size each panel is, which is extremely important to me, as I am working with a very limited, odd-shaped area. Measuring along the edges where the frame is strongest, each panel I received measures 19 7/8" x 27 3/4". However, as the frame seems to be plastic, it dips slightly in the middle of each side, so the middle dimensions are closer to 19 1/2" x 27 1/2". This is not a huge difference, and may not matter to you. What is more concerning and might make a difference though, is that the connectors add 3/8" gap between 2 panels at the top and bottom, but since the frame dips in the middle, this gap is closer to 5/8" in the middle. This could be very important to anyone using this with small animals who could escape through such a gap or chew on the gap. This may also be of concern if you have other pets outside the pen who may try to stick their paws, tongues, etc. through the gap. Just something to think about. Once the pen is assembled in a sturdy configuration (e.g. a closed square, etc.), it is pretty sturdy and fairly difficult to knock over, however it does slide around on hard floors. The pen assembles very easily, with the panels simply slipping into the connectors. DO NOT push hard on the connectors when assembling, or I'm sure the panel frame will break. I assume this is why the mallet is included--in case you need to gently tap the connectors a few time to get them seated properly. I, however, have not had to do that. Everything for me has slipped on easily and stayed securely. And it is nice, because the connectors slip off just as easily to disconnect the panels. This is perfect for disassembling the pen for cleaning, travel, or reconfiguration. The pen itself is light, with each panel only weighing 12 1/2 oz. (Thus, the entire pen of 12 panels, 24 connectors, and the mallet weighs just under 10 lbs.) Addressing some of the other questions I have seen, there is no floor and no top cover for this playpen. Also, it can be made into any shape, as long as the shape uses 90 degree (right) angles. So no circles or diagonal lines. This would probably contain a puppy, very small dog, or kitten. I believe it would be contingent on the strength and activity of your pet. If you have a small older dog who is good with boundaries, or a litter of very young kittens or puppies, this would be fine. If you have a 4 month old lab puppy who is decently strong and always jumping on things and trying to escape, this WILL NOT work. And if you're using it with larger small pets (rabbits, chinchillas, guinea pigs, possibly rats or ferrets), I would definitely use it with close supervision until you know how your pet is going to act in here, and whether or not it will chew or try to escape. I would NOT recommend this for very small pets (mice, hamsters, gerbils, etc.) as I don't believe this would contain a pet that size. The only 2 concerns I have about this playpen and my own personal use of it is that first, I'm using it to contain two rabbits, one of which is a big chewer. This hasn't been a problem so far since I have put many chew toys in with him, and he seems to prefer these to anything else. However, if he does turn his chewing to the pen, I very much doubt it will last long. Second, though I am using it to contain rabbits, I also have two adult male cats who weigh between 10 and 15 lbs. each. They have been with these rabbits for years, and they all get along very well, but the cats like watching the rabbits while they're out. So far, the cats have been content to watch through the clear panels. My concern is if either one of them decides to stand on his hind legs and lean on the pen, the frame of the panel may snap. If I have issues with either of these things, I will update my review. I hope this review is helpful. I have also included some pictures to show the construction of the pen/panels.