The proper housing of a dog is one of the important, if not the most
important questions in dog keeping. We are assuming that the budding
dog fancier has decided upon what breed he wants to own and has found
an individual to his liking. Perhaps the purchase has been made and
he has brought his canine acquisition home to find that he has never
given the question of housing him any thought. Under such circumstances
he is in a dilemma. His new charge is like a white elephant on his
hands. Naturally, if the dog is still a young puppy some make-shift
arrangement may be made, perhaps in some odd corner of the house, but
it must be remembered that all puppies, aside from the fact that they
are not house-broken are also a nuisance in many other ways, for they
have a special predilection for the master’s slippers or some article
of wearing apparel belonging to the mistress of the house, and they
take special delight in tearing such things to pieces for the mere
amusement of the thing and because they must have an outlet for their
excess of energy. Another chapter will be devoted to the early training
lessons, so let us, therefore, in this chapter, take up the question of
sleeping quarters and a playground for the youngster.
Where the dog is a medium-sized one, or a toy, perhaps, it will not
be necessary to provide out-door quarters except for exercising, and
therefore, an arrangement may be made for the new dog to occupy a place
in the kitchen or basement, but it must be a place where he will learn
to go either for the night or during the day time when he wishes a
quiet nap all to himself. Personally, I am no advocate for keeping a
dog in the house night and day. It is true, many dog lovers do this and
when the breed is no larger than say, a fox terrier or even a chow,
the arrangement may be satisfactory enough, but never, under any
circumstance, allow a dog to have the run of the house at all hours
of the day or night. If you have decided to allow him to sleep in the
house, provide a box or basket large enough for the purpose. Put this
in some corner in the kitchen or even in the basement, though unless
this latter place is absolutely dry and subject to ventilation, it is
not a desirable place for sleeping quarters. In providing a sleeping
place, whether it be basket, box or bench, it should be raised several
inches above the floor. This is to obviate draughts which are sure to
prevail in cold weather, for no matter how tight a door may fit there
is always a certain amount of cold air blowing in through the crevice
at the bottom, and incidentally, this is one of the most frequent
causes for colds, catarrh or even pneumonia. If you have your doubts
about it, try sleeping upon the floor on a cold night yourself. If the
dog be a toy breed, a shallow basket provided with a pillow filled with
pine of cedar shavings, or pine needles is a most suitable bed. The
pillow should be covered with some coarse, heavy material that will not
tear easily and should be a covering that goes over the pillow proper;
the material inside whether shavings or pine needles should be encased
in another cover. The idea being that the outer covering can be removed
and washed frequently, for no matter how clean a dog may be, the canine
smell will in time permeate the cover and it must be changed and washed
at least once every two weeks if absolute cleanliness is desired. For
most of the larger breeds, a carpet or rug will be sufficient bedding.
Loose bedding, such as shavings or straw is not to be thought of in the
house.
The box or basket provided for the bed should be large enough to
permit the dog to lie at his ease. If a box is used, the better plan
is to remove one side with the exception of a small strip at the
bottom to hold the bedding in and of course, the top should also be
removed. These sleeping boxes or baskets should be put out in the sun
and air every week or so and when necessity demands, they should be
scrubbed with warm soap water, to which a few drops of Creolin-Pierson
may be added. This will keep the sleeping box clean and obviate any
possibility of vermin, for once fleas infest a place where a dog
frequents, then all thought of housing indoors must be abandoned.
Far the better plan, however, is to provide sleeping quarters in the
garage or stable, especially for the larger breeds; in fact, all
breeds except toys. In cold weather these boxes may be closed on top
and on all sides, leaving only a small opening for entrance or exit.
The advantage of this being that such boxes can be filled with good,
clean straw in cold weather and there are very few dogs who cannot
sleep comfortably and warmly in such a bed, even when the mercury is
down close to the zero mark. Terriers, as a matter of fact, are very
hardy and will really do better in an out-building of this kind than
in the house or basement. Naturally, one must be governed according
to circumstances and if the owner of a dog has no building on the
premises, part of which may be used for his pet’s quarters he can build
a small house out of doors and provide a runway in connection. Nearly
all of the wire, or long-haired breeds will do well in these out-door
kennels the year round, provided the bedding is warm, the box free from
draughts, and a piece of carpet or burlap is tacked over the opening in
the coldest of weather. This should be arranged in such a way that it
is loose on the sides and bottom, so as to permit of easy entrance and
exit.
In building an out-door house for the dog it is well to adopt more
modern plans than the old-time “dog house” closed on top and all sides
with the exception of the door in front. This style has been in vogue
and has answered the purpose for many a high-bred dog, but if the owner
wishes to have something more elaborate he might build a small house
having a hallway or vestibule before reaching the sleeping quarters
proper. Such a house must be built double the size of the ordinary
one to allow for the extra “room.” It should also be so constructed
that it may be opened from the top, either by supplying hinges to the
roof which make it possible to raise either side, or the roof may be so
constructed that the entire top of the house can be lifted off. This
will permit of easy cleaning of the interior. It is well to keep the
interior whitewashed. A coating of this every few months will aid very
materially in keeping the place free from vermin.
When it is possible to provide a runway or small enclosure where the
dog may exercise in at any time he desires, it is far better than to
chain him. These runways can be constructed cheaply, of heavy mesh
wire. In constructing this it must be with a view of making them high
enough to prevent the dog from leaping or climbing over. A good plan
to adopt is to build the fence and then put another strip of wire
mesh a foot or eighteen inches wide horizontally from the top of the
posts, allowing this to go on the inside, thus even though the dog
is inclined to jump or climb, when he reaches the top of the fence,
this extra width of wire will prevent him from going over. Another
precaution must be taken against burrowing out. This is easily done by
digging a trench and allowing the wire to go into the ground a foot or
more, then filling this trench up with stones or brick and covering
with earth. No dog will be able to dig under such a fence.
If a dog must be chained to his kennel, as sometimes is the case, he
should be given at least two hours of freedom every day. Far the better
way is to extend a wire close to the ground, from the kennel to a post
thirty or forty feet (more if possible) from this. The post at the far
end should be driven or planted in the ground, allowing only enough
above the surface to attach the wire to, for dogs have a faculty of
getting their chains twisted about a post that might be dangerous or
even fatal to them. A ring should be put on this wire to which the
swivel of the chain may be attached. This gives the animal a certain
amount of freedom and exercise, and it will soon become noticeable
how he takes advantage of it. It is needless to say that all kennels
out of doors should be built of matched boards dove-tailed together
so as to admit no draughts, furthermore, the kennel should be placed
on a foundation or on piles several inches from the ground. For more
elaborate plans of kennels when more dogs are kept, the reader is
referred to an earlier work of mine entitled “Practical Dog Keeping for
the Amateur.”