Dog Houses

If you want your dogs to spend some quality time in the great backyard, they could use houses to protect themselves from the weather. They'll have somewhere to keep warm, keep cool, and/or keep dry. It's also nice for them to have places to call home outside of your living room. You know, let them ruff it.

You could spend $50  - $200  on a house or try to save money building one yourself. Read the external links to learn more about your own construction projects.

Shape

A-Frame  Let your dog be just like Snoopy with this traditional shape. Lets snow, rain, and frogs wash onto the ground.	Flat Roof  A wonderful perch for dogs who like to climb. Will also let any other animal perch as well.	Duplex  Perfect for two dogs who like to have their own space and some to share. This might be easier than two dog houses, if they get along.	With Porch  For those dogs who love to lounge around in the shade, without missing their view of the action.	With Door  Do your dogs need more privacy sometimes? Let them choose whom to let in, and whom to keep out. Make sure the door's easy enough to operate.

Material

Wood  Build it yourself, get a kit,  or buy one fully-built. You can decorate it, paint  it, or leave it rugged. Use Pressure treated timber  on the bottom because it's resistent to rot and infestation, but don't use it anywhere the dogs may chew; the chemicals could be hazardous.	Plastic  Plastic is the same year after year: devoid of splinters, durable, simple, light, easy to clean, and beige. If you get insulated plastic,  your dog will be much warmer than in wood.

Other Housing Options

Cave  For dogs who really love to snuggle with themselves. Cloth pillows are bad for inclement weather.	Tent  For a true pup tent, these dogs like camping. If you're not sure that the dogs will take to a house, try this first.	Portable  For dogs who travel a lot, these can sit on the patio at the resort or in the rest stop near the highway.	Cot  Dogs who love to lounge next to their owners get to recline in the backyard. These don't provide as much shade as they do style.	Crate  Often for indoors and housebreaking, crates can be a home outdoors as well. Metal crates  won't give your dogs any shade, on account of the wire caging.

On Design

• A hinged or removable roof will make cleaning inside the house much easier but also susceptible to high winds.
• Depending on the size of your houses (and yourself) it might just be easier to crawl through the front door than to reach over the top.
• Doors on the side of a long wall are most practical for protection from cold and winds.
• A partial wall inside the house near the door closes off most of the house from the elements while still making it easy to enter and exit.

Houses Should Be

• Big enough to stand up, stretch, lie down, and turn around in, but not so big that it feels cavernous or gets cold in the winter.
• Ventilated in the top and sides.
• Warm enough for the climate. Live up north? A plastic house will keep heat in better. So will a door.
• Big enough for a bed inside.

Make Houses Livable

• With water and food.
• Entice them in with treats and toys.
• Make sure they're not sitting at the bottom of a rainwater-collecting hill, near a stream, or in a flood zone.
• Are the dogs going to climb to the tops of the roofs and jump off, over a fence, into a ditch, or towards another hazard? Avoid that.
• Is the view attractive to them?
• Guard dogs will need to have a clear view of whatever they're guarding.
• Are they getting hit in the eyes by bright sunshine at hours when they wish they were sleeping? Are even the shady spots too hot? Remember how easily dogs overheat.

Do Not

• Leave your dogs outside unsupervised unless they can fight off all animals in the neighborhood. Bears, hawks, and other animals may come after your dogs if they have the chance.

External Links

• Build Eazy -- Exactly how to build your own dog house.
• eHow -- How to buy a dog house.
• I Love India -- Quick house ideas.
• Mike Strong -- One man's guide to building a dog house. Great FAQs too.