Dog Kennel-Worth It?

[Dos Perros]

Dude if you can't afford a dog kennel you definitely can't afford a dog. What are you going to do the first time he points a covey from the other side of a barbed wire fence and rips his chest open charging through on the flush? That's a $300 vet bill. And you're going to have something like that at some interval for the duration of the dog's life.

Buy a cheap plastic one on Facebook if you must, but you need one. Maybe reconsider the dog altogether. They are not cheap.

 

[Stalker69]

I am going to go against every body here but any ways. I have never put my dogs in a kennel of any kind. They are a part of our family and are treated as such. Never had an issue with house braking them, friends coming over, sleeping or any thing. In fact they have all slept in our bed. I work in lot of people’s houses and I can’t stand seeing there dogs locked in a kennel for 8 hours ( many times much longer then that) every day. Then they get home let them out, dog goes pee and wants to run , play ,dogs rambunctious and they get thrown right back in the kennel to calm down. Some people really shouldn’t own dogs, if you don’t have the time to spend with them, and don’t treat them as a “ tool”, and this i see all the time to. ( dogs only mission is hunt or protect, if not doing that, they are in a kennel) they really are a part of your family and should be involved in what’s going on, if not please don’t get one.

 

[Dos Perros]

@Stalker69 you bare minimum need a crate for vehicle travel. Not crating them while driving is reckless and irresponsible IMO.

 

[KurtR]

yep have to have a kennel. While traveling you wouldnt just let your kid run around with out a care seat. So a good crash tested kennel is for his safety and gives him his place to relax and quite time

 

[sndmn11]

@Stalker69 you bare minimum need a crate for vehicle travel. Not crating them while driving is reckless and irresponsible IMO.

Absolutely! A flying dog in the vehicle can cause real injury to it or the human occupants on a hard stop or other non-collision event.

@Stalker69 I hear what you are saying, but I think the kennel/crate can easily be used as a positive tool. The two dogs in my adult life have loved their kennels. Neither were locked in it after 4-5 months old (house trained) but they regularly just go in to nap, or relax, or at night. Our dog right now has one in my wife's office, one in our bedroom, and one in the garage that goes in the vehicle. We got in from our jog this morning, she got her fish skin reward and went straight into her kennel in my wife's office and was sawing logs for an hour or two.

 

[Stalker69]

I agree to some extent, I have been on numerous calls where dogs have died in kennels while traveling also. Several calls a year where kennel fly out of the back of the trucks after even minor collisions. Some times they claim they were strapped down and sometimes theres evidence to suggest strap broke ,many times no straps, and dogs don’t make it 100% of the time. Roll overs while dog is in kennel crushed we see several times a year. Numerous asphyxiation from exhaust fumes in open bed or camper shell, and a few in kennel trailers Many from heat stroke and a few from we believe freezing but possibly asphyxiating occurred first. Had one ,dog kennel was still in bed of truck but dog must have got out and jumped out of bed of truck, then hit by several vehicles.

 

[BroodBuster]

Yes kennels are a great training tool but most importantly they are a pups bedroom/car seat/safe space. Within the month of bringing a pup home you’ll be like, “wtf. Where’s my pup at,” just to find him napping in his kennel.

A home kennel can be too big but a travel kennel only needs to be big enough for him to stand and circle around in. Too big and they lose their ability to keep them safe and warm.

I wouldn’t worry about the cost too much. I’ve got one that’s 25 yrs old, on it’s 3rd pup and gets pressure washed once a decade wether it needs it or not.

 

[KChunter71]

I need to get a new one bad

 

[Big Ern]

I’ve been happy with Rough Tough. Good kennel for the money.

 

[WCB]

I would recommend getting one cheap kennel for home and a good heavy duty travel truck kennel at least. We have cheap wire fold up kennels at home and aluminum dog boxes for the truck. We also have some more cheap plastic and wire kennels at our hunting shack out west that every body that hunts out there uses for their dogs. Our dogs will go into any size, shape, type of kennel and feel perfectly safe just like it was theirs.

We have French Britts...and are always in between kennel sizes. We have Large at home and the shack out west. Lots of room to move around when spending long hours while we are at work or at night. When we used to have kennels for the truck we went medium/intermediate. Safer for the dog and didn't take up so much damn room. I could also close my roll up cover with that size.

 

[Mosby]

I agree to some extent, I have been on numerous calls where dogs have died in kennels while traveling also. Several calls a year where kennel fly out of the back of the trucks after even minor collisions. Some times they claim they were strapped down and sometimes theres evidence to suggest strap broke ,many times no straps, and dogs don’t make it 100% of the time. Roll overs while dog is in kennel crushed we see several times a year. Numerous asphyxiation from exhaust fumes in open bed or camper shell, and a few in kennel trailers Many from heat stroke and a few from we believe freezing but possibly asphyxiating occurred first. Had one ,dog kennel was still in bed of truck but dog must have got out and jumped out of bed of truck, then hit by several vehicles.

A lot of things can go wrong when traveling but you play the percentages I guess. Not much you can do in a roll over but there are other things you can do to make sure the dog is relatively safe. The dog is always better off in a kennel. Buy the best you can afford. The cap on my truck has window vents on the side that open to provide fresh air into the truck when traveling or sitting. I also have fans that can run in the back of my truck off a 12v or a rechargeable battery depending. Air movement and ventilation is important in hot temps or when driving.

I installed a thermometer in the back of my truck, so I can monitor the temps under the cap. In cold temps, I put insulated covers over my kennels. They are pretty effective. The kennels also sit on a thick, rubber mat for insulation underneath. If I really get concerned about the temps we get a room or go home. Anyone that lets a dog freeze should be shot....literally.

I bought heavy duty, US made 2 inch straps to hold kennels down vs 1 inch. The kennels need to be tied down. Good straps aren't that expensive.

Tests have proven that the door is a weak link on the Ruff Land kennels. I drilled out the recesses where the latches go, to ensure they go all the way into the recesses. Good tires, chains in snow and slowing down help to keep everyone safe too.

 

[mlchase]

Yes to all the above. Kennel is the most important piece in your dog training/living/working equipment if you have a bird dog. You have to travel to the birds (unless they are all out your back door) and it may not always be in your truck. And for the life of the dog, definitely look at the roto-molded ones like rough tuff. Gunners are awesome but pricey. Grab a cover to put over it on the colder days - Mudd River makes ones that last.

 

[Dos Perros]

You get a crate for travel to keep the dog where he is and not distract the driver or distract the passengers who might distract the driver. The crate is preventing an accident, not necessarily mitigating the impact of an accident.

 

[86indy]

Dude if you can't afford a dog kennel you definitely can't afford a dog. What are you going to do the first time he points a covey from the other side of a barbed wire fence and rips his chest open charging through on the flush? That's a $300 vet bill. And you're going to have something like that at some interval for the duration of the dog's life.

Buy a cheap plastic one on Facebook if you must, but you need one. Maybe reconsider the dog altogether. They are not cheap.

Thank you for being concerned about my personal finances! I think you missed my point though, this was more of a feeler to see what kind of investment I should make on a plastic box for my dog. But on a serious note I know dogs are expensive, this pup already has a rainy day fund that was started 8 months ago when the deposit was put down.

Thank you for all the replies, I really appreciate them. It looks like I'll be going with a Ruff Land with a size to be determined. I might just talk to the breeder and about final weight estimates but unsure I want to gamble on the final kennel sizing. I have two cheap wire crates to start and might go from there.
I'll also check out the latch upon arrival, thanks for the heads up.
I loved my Mud river seat organizer so I'll see what they have to offer with my new perspective.

 

[Dos Perros]

Thank you for being concerned about my personal finances! I think you missed my point though, this was more of a feeler to see what kind of investment I should make on a plastic box for my dog. But on a serious note I know dogs are expensive, this pup already has a rainy day fund that was started 8 months ago when the deposit was put down.

Thank you for all the replies, I really appreciate them. It looks like I'll be going with a Ruff Land with a size to be determined.

I was more concerned about the dog than your finances FWIW.

Did you say what kind of vehicle you’re driving and how much time you expect the dog to be traveling and sleeping in the crate? Those would factor into my decisions.

 

[86indy]

I was more concerned about the dog than your finances FWIW.

Did you say what kind of vehicle you’re driving and how much time you expect the dog to be traveling and sleeping in the crate? Those would factor into my decisions.

The dog will get everything it needs, money isnt an issue on that realm of things, I'm just not one to waste it.
I drive a crew cab short bed with a camper shell. Longer travel (4+ hours) will probably happen once a month come hunting season and shorter trips in between. The dog will sleep in a kennel for the first few years, but it'll also be a house dog. But that being said I need this dog to be comfortable sleeping in various places so it'll go through a rotation of sleeping locations in a kennel.

 

[Nickziegler]

I have a ruffland kennel for my GWP. Her riding in it for 3.5 hrs north to the cabin once a week during grouse season is no problem. She is 52 lbs and I believe I have a medium size kennel for her. Fits nicely in the second row of my truck and no more mud and dirt all over the place after hunting. Definantly worth it

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

 

[AndrewMT34]

I started out with a cheap folding wire crate to see what size my Griff was going to need for a Gunner kennel. I've got her in an intermediate and it seems perfect for her. Highly recommend getting your dog a nice kennel.

 

[86indy]

I started out with a cheap folding wire crate to see what size my Griff was going to need for a Gunner kennel. I've got her in an intermediate and it seems perfect for her. Highly recommend getting your dog a nice kennel.

This is my plan just as you did. My pup is in a wire kennel for the time being and when I cant find him he's in his kennel

 

[TSAMP]

This was 54 bucks on amazon. Large generic plastic kennel. If u have a crew cab its just to slick to not do, especially with a pup. If u don't run a topper and the dogs in the bed of the truck id certainly spend top dollar on a nice well made one. Then again you need a Ford with a flat floor and 60/40 rear bench to have it dialed.A 3rd guy can ride in back with kennel in this setup.