Kennel & run

[Cookie69]

Hi guys

I want to kennel my dog, cocker spaniel .

Any one able to give advice on a suitable size of kennel and run please?

Cheers

Paul

[markm]

Hi. I just had this built for my cocker. I got a picture from a well known online wood product supplier and approached the local saw mill. The kennel is 1m x 1m and the run 1.5m.

 

[gazbev]

I was told a minimum for a spaniel run was 6 x 4, I bought a mitton hall kennel they are well made and maintenance free,not cheap I was lucky because it was second hand

[FoxyChris]

The Police ones tend to be 10 foot by 5 foot but it really depends how long you intend to keep the dog in there for. If it's just over night whilst they sleep it doesn't need to be very big but if you intend to keep them in all day then they need quite a large area where they can properly run to burn energy off.

[Proudly]

Build them as big as you have space for, if you ever have to leave the dogs for longer than usual its better to know they're not stuck in a small kennel

[Cookie69]

Thanks guys

Because my garden shed has just about had it , I have decided to go for an 8x6 garden shed.

I'm going to partition off a section and build a run on the end, I will insulate and tongue and grove his sleeping compartment

[Proudly]

Think about your drainage first then the rest.....

[Cookie69]

Think about your drainage first then the rest.....

I'm clearing the old sheds away and putting down a concrete hard standing.

I was going to dig a drain away at the end of the run for when I need to wash down the floor.

Is that what you mean by drainage?

Sorry for my ignorance ?

 

Paul

[strangford wildfowler]

If theres a man hole cover build over the top of it and if there is any mess or just when giving it a general hose down lift up the manhole and wash everything down it, when we had are dog run it was something like 20ft long and 10ft wide and that wa for a labrador with just a standard kennel with normal fencing 4ft high he couldnt get over it done him great until we weren't using it anymore more

[Big Mat]

When i built my kennels i made the run 8 foot by 6 foot, simply because that was the size the panels came in.

[Cookie69]

Thanks for the tips

When completed I'll take a picture this young man will love it I'm sure

Edited August 16, 2014 by Cookie69

[WGD]

I hope he isn't a chewer or your shed won't last long. For a single dog a small insulated box is better as their body heat heats the box up, the run needn't be more than 6 x 4 assuming he's out a couple of times a day. Dogs don't exercise themselves, he'll either be sleeping, doing the toilet or sitting at the gate waiting for you.

[Konnie]

had one built by a local shed builder on a 10x10 foot print, shed 10x6 run 10x4 under the same apex roof it looks good. I built the kennel inside at the far end giving the dogs sleeping area of 32"x68". and me a work bench it has a door into shed so I

can clean it, and a Perspex panel so they can see me. it is double lined for warmth in winter and is cool in summer.this area slept 3 Labradors, as long as they are exercised they sleep 90% of the day,when I'm working the wife does not even see them. Assaid opening is clad with 2x2 right angle galvenised tin. Hope this gives you some ideas.

[Cookie69]

I hope he isn't a chewer or your shed won't last long. For a single dog a small insulated box is better as their body heat heats the box up, the run needn't be more than 6 x 4 assuming he's out a couple of times a day. Dogs don't exercise themselves, he'll either be sleeping, doing the toilet or sitting at the gate waiting for you.

 

no not a chewer

im looking at having his run about 8 x 6

had one built by a local shed builder on a 10x10 foot print, shed 10x6 run 10x4 under the same apex roof it looks good. I built the kennel inside at the far end giving the dogs sleeping area of 32"x68". and me a work bench it has a door into shed so I

can clean it, and a Perspex panel so they can see me. it is double lined for warmth in winter and is cool in summer.this area slept 3 Labradors, as long as they are exercised they sleep 90% of the day,when I'm working the wife does not even see them. Assaid opening is clad with 2x2 right angle galvenised tin. Hope this gives you some ideas.

 

thanks

im doing the hard standing next week but you have all given me something to think about

cheers

Paul

[Bazooka]

Hi. I just had this built for my cocker. I got a picture from a well known online wood product supplier and approached the local saw mill. The kennel is 1m x 1m and the run 1.5m.

 

The loose cables on the wall will likely be the top of the chewing list.

[Proudly]

I'm clearing the old sheds away and putting down a concrete hard standing.

I was going to dig a drain away at the end of the run for when I need to wash down the floor.

Is that what you mean by drainage?

Sorry for my ignorance ?

 

Paul

Yeah mate thats what I meant

[Bazooka]

If you want the dog to be clean in the kennel give it as much time in the garden as you can at first and for the first few weeks put a couple of old dining chairs (saw the legs off short) or similar in the run. Just to make it a tighter space and awkward for it to do it's business. Cut down it's time in the garden and start letting it out at different times of the day but always just before it's locked up for the night. The chairs will help it relax and settle instead of pacing around anxiously which leads to messing in the kennel. Works for me.

[figgy]

As WGD has said make sure his box is small enough and well insulated enough for his body heat to keep it warm. Build a bed off the floor and with a plank a across the front to stop drafts, I swear by the clear door curtains, the clear rubber flaps on warehouses the fork lifts drive through. Some where online sell them ready made for kennel dog openings around the thirty quid mark.

 

Make the run as long as you can, it don't need to be veryy wide but long is best to let your dog run up and down it.

 

Fella I know has his kennels and runs all joined in a line but separated for sleeping and each have their own run, with mesh between them so they can still see eachother. Each kennel will be around four to five foot wide the run the same but about twenty foot long.the dogs are very happy.

 

Figgy

[kent]

I like the run to be as big as possible (but I never see a dog doing push ups or the like, it just gives options) the sleeping box as small as is practical and insulation does very little if the door / hatch is open (its like having great double glazing and leaving the darn windows open) just keep it draft free by fitting low level "winter boards". Fitting a heat lamp or ceramic heating tube is fair for the worst of the winter especially when the dog has given its all on a long shooting day. I am now building and designing kennels using galvanised steel and high tech plastics as part of my daily trade and have precisely zero interest in doing any in wood (that's how much I think of it for purpose). There are some great developments out there in plastics I have just found one new to the market and clients are actually on the phone to the maker saying "you sent me wood I wanted plastic!" Either build them in brick / block or go to plastics IMO. Rot, shrinkage, upkeep issues and to cap it off it harbours germs, smells and infections, possibly parasites and it aint even cheap enough anymore to warrant its use when you look at cost per year.

I think I shouldn't like to have a kennel myself that I couldn't attack with a hose and some detergents and I sure don't want to be forking out the cash for paints and preservatives each year and time.

[Cookie69]

great stuff, some realy good tips

i was going to invest in one of these, seemed a good idea? leave it up and open during the day and closed at night

 

http://www.ultradogkennels.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=123_125

 

incedently ,, what do you guys use as bedding?

Edited August 16, 2014 by Cookie69

[Proudly]

My actual kennels are made from plastic 45 gallon drums. I read alot of hound men in the states/canada use them in temperatures down to -45 but they bury them in the earth. Been using them a month now & although I intend to make some adjustments they seem ideal. The door flaps are the clear plastic they use on factory doors, raised off the ground on wooden feet with drain holes. Completely draught & waterproof also easy to clean. Filled with straw the dogs seem content.

[victorismyhero]

if you make it from wood.....use western red cedar......... doesnt need preservatives and is insect repellent....

[kent]

if you make it from wood.....use western red cedar......... doesnt need preservatives and is insect repellent....

And needs stainless fixings due to those acids ( normal steel looks like its 50 years old after the first 18mnths), that acid also seems to lead to reaction and infection from the numerous splinters you get from it. Though its very good for facias and gable cladding on houses once you find the right paint

[tharsus]

My actual kennels are made from plastic 45 gallon drums. I read alot of hound men in the states/canada use them in temperatures down to -45 but they bury them in the earth. Been using them a month now & although I intend to make some adjustments they seem ideal. The door flaps are the clear plastic they use on factory doors, raised off the ground on wooden feet with drain holes. Completely draught & waterproof also easy to clean. Filled with straw the dogs seem content.

No condensation in cold weather?

[WGD]

If you want the dog to be clean in the kennel give it as much time in the garden as you can at first and for the first few weeks put a couple of old dining chairs (saw the legs off short) or similar in the run. Just to make it a tighter space and awkward for it to do it's business. Cut down it's time in the garden and start letting it out at different times of the day but always just before it's locked up for the night. The chairs will help it relax and settle instead of pacing around anxiously which leads to messing in the kennel. Works for me.

Every day's a school day, hadn't heard the tip about the chairs. Will give that a try with the next one. Completely agree about giving the dog ample opportunity to toilet outside the kennel.