Advice on heating a dog house?

Question

We are putingt a dog door going into our unheated, uninsulated garage+ building walls and a ceiling, big enough to turn around in and tall enough for her to walk. We plan on putting a board on top of the cement so the dog is not exposed to the cold surface, and we will line it w/ straw. We were trying to figure out how to heat it. I looked into various heating elements for dog houses, light bulbs, heated pads and the like. She is still a puppy and is a chewer so I would not trust her w/ anything she could chew. My thought was this... leaving a door made of some sort of fencing/wire that will allow us to clean the house and to easily put her in. Then using one of our space heaters placing it near the door blowing in at her. She is mostly an inside dog but we can not trust her in the house yet alone while we are at work. I only work part time opposite shifts from my husband, she will only need to be in there a few hrs. Winter is coming though and I worry she will be cold. Ideas? is this

safe for her?

She is a lab, and we live in Iowa. Brr COLD winters! LOL She is potty trained but her bladder is not developed enough to go very long in the house. We tried kenneling but she ends up having accidents as there is a three to four hr time period till my husband gets home. We can not trust her longer than an hour yet on her own in the home. She becomes distructive because I think she is scared to be away from us. I set up our recorder to see what she does when I leave her alone. She chewed on no nos and harrased our older dog. She is just not mature enough yet. We are hoping this will be the only winter we will have to worry bout her, she will be matured next winter.....hopefully! LOL
She has jaws os steel and the only toys that seem to last are the KONGS. We get her bones from the butcher that are usually gone in a day. She is a chewer. Thank everyone for their insight. I could not choose the best answer so I am putting it to vote. Thanks, Lisa

Answer 1

I would stay far away from the space heater idea. They are just very dangerous in unattended situations. You could extend one of your central heating ducts into the dog house. I've seen heat rocks made for large reptiles that you plug in. Something like that might work if you could find a way to install it and protect the wires.

Answer 2

Why not let her sleep in the house? You would be surprised how you can train a dog. When I was a kid we had a dog when my brother, two sisters and I were to young to take of it so my dad got rid of her. When we got older we wanted a dog and my dad said no. One year we had a neighbor that had a little black and white pup he had to get rid of because the mother would not nurse him any more, he grew teeth, he was only 5 weeks old. We caught our dad at a weak moment, he was in the hospital recovering from surgery and was a bit drugged up and he let us get the puppy. His stand was we had to take care of it and it had to sleep in the garage. We got a big cardboard box and some old blankets and made a place for the puppy. This was the way it went for a month or so. Then came winter, we lived in the San Francisco bay area where it almost never gets to freezing. Guess what? My dad said it is too cold for the puppy in the garage so he can stay in the house during the winter. He slept in my dads chair in the living room. Another guess what! That dog never spent another night outside. When it was bed time he would drop his ears and tail and jump in my dads chair.
The four dogs I have now are more spoiled then he the was. They all sleep on my king sized bed. They are my babies. I have a dog door in the back door so they have full run of the house. They have been trained and know what to do. I have a new puppy that is still learning and it gets better every day.
Train your dog to be an inside dog, she will be happier and so will you.

Answer 3

You don't say what breed, what state and what fur-coat type? I agree with space heaters being dangerous. I think the reptile heat rock idea with the wire left out or the professional dog house heater.

You never want to blow steady heat anything at a caged dog that can not get away from the heat source. If the space heater ran for long periods of time because it is actually trying to heat the entire garage as well, she can easily become over-heated, dehydrated and even death could occur and it would be a horrible way to go at that. Many dogs have died in cages at grooming facilities that hide their kennels in back rooms such as the way Petcos and petsmarts are set up. And those dogs may only be left alone for as little as an hour or so, not all day long.

Please choose carefully! If you do use clean straw and lots of it, she could burrow under and retain her body heat that way. There is supposed to be evidence against using wood shavings as well so who knows but at least the straw won't kill her.

EDIT: NEVER leave a dog alone with rawhide! Many dogs have choked and died in this way! Same with blankets that can be chewed and strung out.

Answer 4

Hi, I understand that you are looking for some advice or resources to help fully train your dog or fix behavior problems. If a professional dog trainer is not an option at this time, or if you want to trt training your dog on your own (a great way to bond), I'd suggest you https://biturl.im/aU8cl

A friend recommened it to me a few years ago, and I was amazed how quickly it worked, which is why I recommend it to others. The dog training academy also has as an excellent home training course.

Answer 5

advice heating dog house

Answer 6

Since you are talking about leaving her alone for awhile, I would be really concerned about flammable straw being near a space heater.

Why not get a dog heater and then you can be less concerned about a potential accident? She may also get really dry with hot air blowing at her for hours so you may want to consider products made for pets.

http://www.gundogsupply.com/houndheateri.html

Here is an unplugged option, a pad that you heat in the microwave. It depends just how hard your pup would bite something that is warm.

http://www.amazon.com/Snuggle-Safe-SnuggleSafe-Microwave-Heat/dp/B000RIAJCO

Answer 7

if she is inside of a garage and has a doghouse,a regular dog bed with a fake fleece covering will keep her plenty warm without using any type of heater,which could be very dangerous.Dogs have good,thick coats,and as long as she's dry and out of the wind,she should be fine for a few hours.I wouldn't worry about a heater.You might be better off buying a small ( 8x10 ft) kennel and putting it in the garage,if there's room,with the doghouse inside of it.Then you won't have to worry about her getting out or into anything.

Edit:Oh,and straw is fine,as long as it is clean.I had dogs outside for 30 years and always used straw.My dogs were always warm,and never got any respiratory or skin problems from it,and my vet says it is the best insulation for a dog.

Edit: You know,the best thing for you to do ,since you're only going to be leaving her for a few hours,is to get her a crate and leave her in it,in the house.She would be fine,and it would help in housebreaking her.I don't know why I didn't think of it before,it's how I've housetrained my last four dogs and it works like a charm.The dog would be warm and safe,and you wouldn't have to worry!

Answer 8

I would advise against straw. It can hold bacteria that can cause respiratory infections. Use some sort of shavings, but don't cover the whole floor with it, she might not like it, and want to lay in a place without it.

Space heaters can be very dangerous. If you go this route, get one that automatically shuts off when tipped over, and have some sort of backup plan. Make sure she also doesn't get too hot, and it doesn't heat up the fencing, you don't want her burning herself.

And remember ventilation, just in case.

Answer 9

Gee, don't use a heater, you'll stifle her. If you use a pure woollen blanket under her you'll find she'll be warm as toast for the short time you won't be there. Make sure it's an old one and don't scold her if she chews it, give her a rawhide or toys to chew and she will leave other stuff alone.

Answer 10

They sell large flat plastic pads specifically for heating dog houses. Check out any of the large pet shops in your area.