1. Make non-scents. Clean doesn’t smell like an ocean breeze, an English garden, a pine forest or a bouquet of roses. Clean doesn’t smell – period. If your kennel area and dogs are kept clean, you’ll have no need for cover-up fragrances or odor neutralizers to mask smells. Of course there will be times when cleanliness is not only next to godliness but next to impossible – such as a solid week of rain and the resultant mud. Smile and do the best you can. The sun will shine again.
2. Security, please. Even the best-planned kennel doesn’t guarantee safety for your dogs. A terrified dog, perhaps frightened by fireworks, can scale a fence you believed too high for her to go over. A smart dog can figure out how to open gate latches. A determined dog may chew through chain link, ruining both fence and teeth in the process. A male dog can do amazing things to get to a female in season. A Saint Bernard, confined to the basement while a female in season was in an outside run, climbed up on a washtub and broke through the basement window to get to her, turning on the water in the tub and flooding the basement in the process. Know your dogs, their capabilities and plan accordingly. And don’t forget to keep smoke alarms operational.
3. The few, the proud. Having a kennel doesn’t mean you can keep a multitude of dogs. Keep only as many dogs as you can care for properly and provide quality time with each one. Even the most luxurious kennel surroundings won’t impress your dogs as much as being able to walk through the park with you or just curl up at your feet.
4. Bargain buys. You don’t have to spend a fortune on kenneling but it pays to buy the best quality you can afford. Cheap materials rarely last very long and have to be replaced more often. You can often save money by buying secondhand, top-grade runs or materials.
5. TLC. A kennel isn’t meant to keep your dogs out of your hair. It’s meant to keep them safe and comfortable when you can’t be with them. Always leave time for love and attention.
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