Dog house.?

[Ghosted3]

What kind of dog house do you use or prefer? I have always been a fan of the igloo style ones, how about you guys and gals?

Corry

[prharding]

My dad always made doghouses that were way overbuilt.

I've found that my shorthair and I both really like the k9 Kondo.

http://www.k-9kondo.com/products/K-9-Kondo.html

Paul

[bumper52]

the dog den by K-9 Kondo...hands down!!! Best on the market....indestructible! Only problem I've ever had is replacing door bushings for like $3!

[Ghosted3]

I really like the Kondo, but they no longer ship the barrels so that kinda sucks. Will have to spend some more time checking into that Dog Den. Bumper, did you get the one with the heater or without? Thanks again for the info.

Corry

[PntrRookie]

...did you get the one with the heater or without?

Corry, if you are that far south "Hillsboro, Illinois" I do not think you need the heater. You can always add it later. I LOVE the dog den. I am in in SE WI and have a couple with the old "ceramic bulb" heaters. I did use it a few times this past winter and it worked great. Although where you are at, I doubt you would need it much. They are SO insulated and with the heat the dog gives off, and some nice dry bedding...you should be good to go.

[Nick Miles]

I find that the best ones are old wine barrels. They are extremely cozy and warm as well as comfortable. They also look great near the house.

[Ghosted3]

...did you get the one with the heater or without?

Corry, if you are that far south "Hillsboro, Illinois" I do not think you need the heater. You can always add it later. I LOVE the dog den. I am in in SE WI and have a couple with the old "ceramic bulb" heaters. I did use it a few times this past winter and it worked great. Although where you are at, I doubt you would need it much. They are SO insulated and with the heat the dog gives off, and some nice dry bedding...you should be good to go.

Thanks for the info I will give the Den another look.

Corry

[Kmack]

These are about $10.00 to build and dog seem to like them.

[RSA]

I find that the best ones are old wine barrels. They are extremely cozy and warm as well as comfortable. They also look great near the house.

Very nice Nick.

[rinker]

I have always used plastic drums as dog houses. I am a little skeptical that the PVC frame will hold up, but I might try it any way. How did you fasten the barrel to the frame?

[AZ Brittany Guy]

I have always used plastic drums as dog houses. I am a little skeptical that the PVC frame will hold up, but I might try it any way. How did you fasten the barrel to the frame?

I have used the PVC frame for about 5 years with no problems. They are light, eazy to clean and never had a dog try to chew them. My set up is the same as above but my legs are 18" off the ground and I have heat lamps hanging 3 feet above the barrels. They are on timers that I turn on when temps go below freezing. I will set them to come on around 2AM and go off around 8AM depending on how cold it gets.

[Christopher]

Since I saw Kmack's barrels, I purchased two. They are relatively inexpensive and very durable and waterproof.

[Kmack]

I have always used plastic drums as dog houses. I am a little skeptical that the PVC frame will hold up, but I might try it any way. How did you fasten the barrel to the frame?

I use (4) pop rivets (one per side at the tangent points and one in each horizontal at the center of the barrel).

Here are some pic's of the PVC and the materials - I use Schedule 40 (the thick walled) pipe and don't worry about how long it lasts. They are cheap and easy to replace.

These photos are from a thread I did on another forum showing how I make them. It is a subscriber only message board so I can't link you there.

Material


Side - The 8 1/8" lengths used here.


Leg - The 6" lengths used here


Assembled

[Jakeismydog2]

The wine barrel idea is a great one. Those look super sharp. Probably look nicer than most of our houses