Making Your Dog Den Last Forever by Steve Snell.

Making Your Dog Den Last Forever by Steve Snell

The Dog Den dog houses made by K-9 Kondo are the best dog houses I have ever used. I have several houses that are 8 or 9 years old and they are still in pretty good shape. Over the years I have found a few things that you can do to make these houses hold up over time.

All of the K-9 houses and barrel kits are made from galvanized steel. While galvanized steel doesn't normally rust, it will turn a dull color and tends to get a weathered look to it. This isn't a big issue, but some folks might prefer to paint them to keep them looking good.

However, cosmetics aren't the only reason to protect the metal on your dog house -- one thing that can rip the zinc out of galvanized steel is urine, and over time this will cause your dog house to rust.

I have three Dog Dens that are in my back yard for the dogs that stay up at the house. None of these are painted and they still look pretty new. The houses that are in my kennel runs are a different story. These houses get exposed to urine in several ways.

I have a few male dogs that will mark their houses. I have the occasional dog that will urinate inside the house. I also have had times where a dog walks through urine on the kennel floor and then jumps on the roof of the house or walks inside. Sometimes I have sprayed urine on a house as I was washing out the kennel run. No matter how hard you try, a dog house in a kennel run is going to get exposed to urine, and over time that dog house will rust.

To keep the houses in kennel runs from rusting you need to paint all the metal parts. I have used several different kinds of paint and all work well. Any good exterior paint that can be used on metal will do the job. I have had the best success using the same material that is used to protect truck bed liners. You can either purchase the material to do it yourself, or for a fee you can have your local auto place do it for you. Either way you end up with a super tough shell that will protect your house for years.

If you have your house inside the run, you may also want to have the roof done with a non-slick finish. Many of my dogs love to sleep on the top of the house during the warmer months. I like to have a rougher finish on the roof so that they don't slide across it when they jump on it.

Another thing that I do to my houses is add two additional pieces to the wooden frame. The instructions for the Dog Den houses call for a raised base using exterior 2 x 4's, assembled in an "H" pattern. I found that with the "H" design, hair and feces get under the house and it has to be moved to clean underneath it. To solve this problem, I added two extra pieces to close up the top and bottom openings of the "H". Now, nothing gets under the houses when I wash out my runs. Be sure to keep the middle brace because it is important to stabilize the floor. This makes for a cleaner and better smelling dog kennel.

Before you decide which collar to buy, read our Dog Training Collars guide for dog product comparisons, features, reviews, & more information. Trouble with a barking dog? Steve loves his Tri-Tronics no bark collar. Check it out!

Contact Us | 100% Satisfaction Guarantee | About Us | Your Privacy Protected | Free Shipping US48 | Customer Testimonials

GUN DOG SUPPLY - "Serving Hunting & Field Dog Owners Nationally Since 1972."
Call 1-800-624-6378 to order! GDS Warehouse, 400 Industrial Park Road, Suite G, Starkville, Mississippi, 39759 USA.

Order online via Secure Server or call
1-800-624-6378
GUN DOG SUPPLY- "Serving Hunting & Field Dog Owners Nationally Since 1972."

All words & pictures are copyright (c) 1997-2009, Gun Dog Supply or their respective owners. All rights reserved. By Yahoo Store designer. Buy online with confidence when you order discount retriever hunting dog supplies, canine training equipment, k-9 accessories, and training products for your gun dog, bird dog, or working retriever. Your on-line purchase is protected through secure server ordering. Review our 100% satisfaction guarantee. Shop our canine closeout items, best bargains, k9 discount prices, good deals, cheap stuff and other values for sale. Compare our products in reviews, reports, comparisons, reports, and buyers guides. See our Retriever Training dummies.

If this is your first visit to Gun Dog Supply, welcome to our online Yahoo! Store. -- Way back in 1997, we got the idea to sell on the WWW after shopping on eBay and Amazon and buying through other online catalogs. It's so much easier to offer more information and content with an online catalogue, rather than a 72-page mail order brochure. Customers enjoy reading our info and articles where we share our opinions on our top-rated products.

From time to time we feature our top-selling products with promotional pricing or free shipping. Most of the time, most regular products are sold below manufacturers' suggested retail prices (MSRP). We sometimes offer wholesale pricing to qualified dealers on certain items and some offers are consumer only, no-dealer purchasing. Some people are more interested in choosing the cheapest, clearance-priced items such as overstock through an outlet dealer. Make sure your purchases are through an AUTHORIZED Internet dealer, especially for electronic canine products for warranty support issues.

Buyers save when you shop online. Why surf the Web for discount codes, online promo codes, and coupons when you know we have every day low prices? Your satisfaction with your purchases is important to us. We use the Yahoo! Store Rating system and our consumer reports are very good. We offer product recommendations and stand behind our recommended & reviewed products with our 30-Day Money Back Guarantee. Comparing prices is important, but when you find the lowest, discounted item, you may find other things, too. Savings may vary. Discounts and coupon prices subject to change without notice.