I believe that it was my blog that you read that mentioned using a crib or playpen for a dog post-surgery for IVDD.
http://tinkerbeagle.blogspot.com/
When our dog suffered a ruptured disk and then had surgery, we happened to have an old porta-crib on hand, and it worked like a charm for the first phase of his recovery. I'm always delighted to read that someone has been helped by Tinker's blog... When we were going through his surgery and recovery, there were so many good people who helped us, especially on this board.
By the way, his injury was 5 years ago, and Tinker continues to do really well. He walks with a funny little gait, and we still need to express his bladder, but he is one happy little dude.
~Tinker's Mom