"Above Ground" Kennels

Pleasant Ridge · Post by **Pleasant Ridge** » Mon Mar 03, 2008 7:16 pm

The previous post on Kennel flooring had me thinking about an "above ground' kennel system such as a Scotts type kennel. Who uses them and what are the pros and cons of them?

highcotton · Post by **highcotton** » Mon Mar 03, 2008 8:37 pm

I use them for bitches in season and whelping.

Something about being up off the ground seems to better control the bitches scent if you have close neighbors with male dogs. Also the elevated whelping pen is better suited for me as a cripple old man.

I can do whelping and puppy chores without having to bend or squat.

I still prefer concrete runs for everything else.

Post by **Kiki's Mom** » Mon Mar 03, 2008 8:51 pm

We just put in an above ground kennel system and we really like it. The dogs stay drier and cleaner over all. With the winter being so wet and cold around here ( alternating between warm southern rains and frigid northern ice and snows), the kennel decks dry faster when the rain stops and melt faster when the snow stops. Concrete runs radiate the cold and hold moisture for much longer. We attached and insulated the dog boxes with a door system for easier cleaning of the hay we use to bed them with. The dogs are all comfy and cozy in the bad weather and happy to sun themselves when the sun decides to shine.

We have plans for a second kennel deck now and a gabled metal roof over them both so we, the caretakers can stay dry when we are doing chores and the dogs will have shade in the summer time. Our kennel runs are 5 1/2ft tall x 4 ft wide x 10 feet long and the dog boxes are attached to the back of that. Plenty of room.

We scrape under the deck and use the lyme to keep things fresh.

We house a total of 20 dogs and the whole kennel system will have cost about 3K to build when we are all done. The original plans for a kennel building on a concrete pad was in the neighborhood of 12-15K start to finish.

midwestfisherman · Post by **midwestfisherman** » Mon Mar 03, 2008 9:24 pm

Kiki's Mom, do you have any pictures of your kennels that you can post?

3 Joes · Post by **3 Joes** » Mon Mar 03, 2008 10:33 pm

We just got done with our new above ground kennels and i think the total bill was around $500 and a couple of weekends worth of work. I agree with everyone else the dogs stay cleaner drier and seem alot happier.

markj · Post by **markj** » Tue Mar 04, 2008 11:09 am

Kiki's Mom, do you have any pictures of your kennels that you can post?

Ditto that, I have a gret idea like that for a kennel.

ACooper · Post by **ACooper** » Tue Mar 04, 2008 12:30 pm

here is a link to some info on elevated kennels

http://www.gundogforum.com/forum/viewto ... ht=kennels

Post by **Kiki's Mom** » Tue Mar 04, 2008 5:51 pm

I'll take some when the weather clears up and post them.

BigBoyTank · Post by **BigBoyTank** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 7:31 am

how do i post a drawing i made showing my kennel?

ohiohuntinweim · Post by **ohiohuntinweim** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 2:43 pm

How do their feet do? I am assuming they only get torn up to bad if they are on galvanized wire?

3 Joes · Post by **3 Joes** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 3:07 pm

I have seen no feet problems at all. The good thing is their feet acually stay cleaner and dryier.

Post by **Kiki's Mom** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 6:25 pm

Our decks are wood, spaced a 1" apart No feet probmles at all....

OhioOnPoint · Post by **OhioOnPoint** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 9:04 am

I have 3 above ground kennels, and I think they are great. As far as feet issues, I haven't noticed any --

In Fact -- I was watching my dogs the other day walk in a circle inside the kennel, and each and every step was taken on the floor joist (2x4) instead of just the wire. I think they must learn to walk on the wooden joists.

Sure is nice for the Shizzle and Drizzle to fall thru the cracks.

I also use the dog house with self closing louvered door. Keeps the dogs warm in almost all weather, and still vents so you don't get musty odors (as long as your dog is half way clean in the kennel).