Dog Kennel Guide

When you first start to think about buying equipment for the time when your puppy is ready to come home you should seriously consider a dog pen.  Dog pens are versatile and extremely useful for a variety of reasons and you will still find use for it once your dog is fully grown.

When your puppy is young you will use it mainly as a dog play pen.  A place where your puppy can run, play and be part of the family.  You can move it to whichever room the family is in so that the puppy feels like he’s joining in while not actually having access to things which he could damage, such as wires.  The pens are made of very lightweight metal so that they are easy to move around without risking hurting your back.

Another use is for house training your puppy.  If you place a small dog kennel within the dog pen then your puppy will consider all this area to be his ‘patch’.  He will, therefore, do his best not to do his business in the pen or kennel.  You will need to take him outside very regularly and give him lots of praise whenever he goes to the toilet in an appropriate place.  Always make sure that he is taken out of his pen about half an hour after a meal or else you’re just asking for trouble!

Dog play pens can also be used in slightly different ways.  Some people use them as a gateway across a door opening so that the dog is kept within a certain room but has free access to the room itself.  Once your dog gets bigger the pens can double up as outdoor dog exercise pens.  This will allow your pet to enjoy the sounds and sights of the outdoors without risk of escaping or digging up the garden.  Of course, unless it is a galvanised dog run it will need bringing indoors during bad weather or overnight as otherwise it could rust.  The galvanising process helps to protect metal from corrosion and so if the metal has been treated then the pen is safe to leave outside in all weathers.

If your dog is to spend any length of time in his pen then it is best to keep a dog kennel in it.  This way he can escape bad weather and also has somewhere to go when he just wants to lie down and relax.

Buying a new puppy is an exciting time for a family.  They are cute, cuddly and lots of fun.  However, as part of all the fun and games you need to make sure that you start to train your puppy from the moment you bring him home.  Jumping up, getting under your feet and chewing your slippers may seem sweet when he’s tiny.  It’ll be less amusing once visitors are being knocked down by a full grown dog and all your soft furnishings are in tatters.  Start as you mean to go on as it’s much harder to break bad habits once your dog has got set in his ways.

First ensure that you have all the equipment needed to train your dog.  A dog kennel, collar and lead, lots of toys and a dog play pen.

A kennel will become his own little dog house where he will feel relaxed and happy.  Kennel training starts by putting a comfortable bed and some nice toys inside and encouraging him to go in for gradually longer periods.  Once he is happy in there then you can use his outdoor dog kennel as a place to put him when you have visitors nervous of dogs or you want some space to get jobs done.

A dog play pen can be used in the early days to allow a puppy to be in the same room as the family without being able to get into mischief.  He will be able to run around and play and have a good look at what is going on without being able to destroy anything.

Another useful feature is that by putting their dog kennel inside it you will also be helping to house train them.  This is because dogs don’t like to soil an area that they consider to be their den and so they will hold on until you take them outside to do their business.   Just make sure that you take them outside regularly or otherwise you are setting yourself up for little accidents.

A final use of a dog play pen is to take it out into the garden so that it acts like a dog run.  The pens are usually lightweight and easy to fold up, making moving it from place to place an easy job.  Your puppy will be able to experience the outdoors, before he’s even had his jabs, without risk of escaping the garden.  He will love all the new smells and sounds and everything won’t seem so strange when you take him on his first walk.