Characteristics and behavior of the breed
The enclosure should be comfortable for the animal, practical and reliable.
Huskies are good-natured, loyal dogs. The Husky breed was bred as a sled breed, so movement and physical activity are very important for its representatives. From a very young age until old age, they remain lively and curious. Just like malamutes of similar character, huskies must expend a huge amount of energy. They need long walks and a spacious habitat. In a suburban area, the ideal solution for huskies and huskies is an aviary.
A fenced area with a booth is a safety measure for the animal itself. Huskies, who lead a not very active lifestyle in the apartment, begin to replace movement with exploring the surrounding space: they taste pieces of furniture, shoes and other things. As a result, they may get injured or receive an electric shock.
Living in an ordinary kennel threatens representatives of sled dog breeds with the possibility that they may choke themselves with a chain.
Important! An enclosure for a husky should include not only a canopy, but also a separate place for eating and a play area.
You can build an enclosure for your husky yourself
Materials for construction
For construction, it is best to use proven materials. So, almost all structures for this purpose are built from wood and metal. However, the latter should be used less. There is no need to turn the enclosure into a work of art with forging on the lattice. The sharp edges of the metal can damage your dog's paws if he decides to lean on the bars. In no case should you use chain link, as it will quickly stretch and may break off at the joints, forming sharp edges that can easily scratch the husky.
It is also worth paying attention to the boards for the structure. It is best to use tongue and groove boards. They are well processed and have grooves, thanks to which you can reduce the number of fasteners.
As for the fasteners themselves, you shouldn’t get carried away with them. It's best to avoid nails entirely, as they can become loose over time. It is better to use screws whose dimensions should not exceed the width of the board. Sharp tips sticking out can also harm your dog.
For the foundation, as in the construction of ordinary houses, you need to use concrete.
Pros and cons of an enclosure and kennel for a husky
This organization of living space for representatives of the breed has a large number of advantages and several nuances in use:
Advantages of enclosures and booths | Possible disadvantages |
A large dog has its own territory | The need to adapt the animal to enclosure keeping |
Safety for strangers entering from the street | Possibility of breakdowns and damage to the building due to the great physical strength of the husky |
No unpleasant odor in the house | The need for regular cleaning |
Safety of the owners' furniture | |
Presence of their own nest in female huskies feeding their offspring | |
No need to walk for the animal to defecate | |
No problems with a large amount of fur in an apartment or house during the molting period |
What should a husky enclosure look like?
A walking area and a kennel for a husky are usually located near the door of the house. This is a practical solution for owners and comfort for the dog. The udka must be insulated and have a canopy for protection from bad weather.
Note! It is recommended to keep the breed in closed enclosures. They should be constructed in such a way that at least two walls are blank and the rest are barred.
It is recommended to place the site and booth on the site taking into account the cardinal directions. It is desirable that the buildings be protected as much as possible from winds and precipitation, and that the sun's rays penetrate them: they help destroy bacteria. In order for a dog’s home to meet these requirements, it must be oriented to the south, southwest or southeast.
Before building an enclosure for a husky with your own hands, it is advisable to consider the possibility of connecting communications: water supply, electricity for lighting. This helps keep the premises clean, which is important for maintaining the health of the pet.
The enclosure should be quiet so that the dog feels calm
Booths
The choice of booth should be approached with all responsibility. It is very important that the animal is not only comfortable in its house, but also safe. Immediately pay attention to the material from which the home is made. Wood is always preferable. The impregnation must not contain toxic substances. Special requirements for the smoothness of indoor walls.
It is better to make the roof level. Dogs often like to climb onto their own house and curl up on the roof to relax. Or watch from the top what is happening on the territory. You can make a window in the wall. This will allow for better ventilation while the dog is walking around the yard and will add viewing area. But be sure to check that the window does not create a draft.
Pay attention to the size of the holes in the booth. If there is a window, then it is only permissible to look out or stick your muzzle out, but it is not unacceptable to stick your head out.
Don't create a situation where your dog could get stuck and get hurt. The front door should be made taking into account small changes in the dimensions of the pet, which cannot be excluded. Especially if you decide to give your pet his own home while he is still a teenager.
If you want to decorate the booth in different colors, this is only possible from the outside. You can't paint inside! No chemicals are allowed in interior decoration.
How to build: step by step instructions
Before you build a home for your pet, you need to determine the dimensions of the enclosure and calculate how much materials will be needed.
Required tools and materials
Before starting construction, you need to prepare:
- electric jigsaw or grinder;
- chisel;
- hammer;
- screwdriver;
- frames and pipes for construction;
- metal grate;
- boards, bars;
- cement mixture;
- slate, corrugated sheeting or roofing felt for roofing;
- insulation – felt, polystyrene foam or glass wool;
- self-tapping screws
Basic rules for building an aviary
Structurally, the enclosure can be:
- open - with bars instead of walls and without a roof;
- semi-open - with two bars and two walls made of dense materials, a roof;
- closed - entirely made of dense materials (usually used as temporary housing).
Important! The choice of the right type should be based on the climate and the length of stay of the animal.
When there is a large amount of precipitation, it is better to build a semi-open enclosure; in arid climates, it is better to build an open one, made from natural materials.
Features of the structure of walls, floor and roof in a dog enclosure
The depth of the foundation should be 1 m or more, and the area should be at least 8 square meters. m for one animal. It is made from cement mortar, as well as roofing felt and boards. To prevent the husky from undermining, it is not recommended to leave the floor earthen. Actions are performed in the following sequence:
- A rectangular base is made from 4 channels.
- Boards treated with an antiseptic compound are placed on it.
- Cover with roofing felt for waterproofing.
- Cover with gravel.
- Filled with cement.
- Wooden beams are laid in the transverse direction at intervals of 0.5 m.
- Antiseptic-treated boards are placed on top.
Important! The tree should be free of knots and splinters, as well as rotten areas.
Various materials are suitable for walls: wood, brick, corrugated board, slate. The optimal design is a metal frame covered with wood.
A roof or canopy allows you to keep a dog in an enclosure in all weather conditions, and therefore is a mandatory part of the structure. Sometimes they cover only part of the enclosure so that the animal in the open space can bask in the sun, while in the closed space it can take shelter from the rain, rest, or hide in a booth. The material for the roof can be any at the discretion of the owner.
Important! The door should be made to open inward, and it is better to place the shutters both on the outside and on the inside.
How to calculate the size of the enclosure
The total area of the home for one animal must be at least 8 square meters. m. It is better if it is from 10 to 15 sq. m. m. To calculate the area for several huskies in one enclosure, you need to multiply the above standards by 1.5.
Note! It is desirable that the enclosure has the shape of a rectangle and its aspect ratio is 2:3.
Drawings for building a dog enclosure with your own hands
The enclosure should be designed in such a way that it accommodates both a booth and a walking area. You can take the following diagram as a basis and take into account the nuances, focusing on the needs of your own dog.
For female huskies, the room is usually made more spacious than for males.
What material is best to make it from?
You can make an aviary with your own hands from wood, or cook it from metal. In the first case, the result is an aesthetic and inexpensive building. Its only drawback is its fragility. It is better to make the supporting structure metal; it lasts a long time. In this case, the walls and floor must be made of wood.
Feeder in the enclosure
The project must include an area for eating. It is important to wash and change water and food bowls every day to prevent illness.
Attention! Husky feeders are mounted at a height of 20 cm. This prevents dogs from turning them over.
Separate housing
Many pet lovers do not see anything wrong with living in the same room with their pet and this is their right. But if you ask the pet himself about where he would be more comfortable, then perhaps his opinion would differ from the owner’s.
Huskies are naturally endowed with a thick and warm undercoat , which retains the dog’s body heat even in sub-zero temperatures.
He does not need a warm wardrobe and does not need to be in a heated room in winter. Believe me, even in a cold, snowstorm with freezing rain, your pet will not freeze. It was created this way, and this is how it survived for many centuries in the taiga.
It is imperative to create a cozy place to relax and sleep. Your friend will feel at home, understand that this is his place and here he can live. In order to do everything correctly, it is important to take into account the character traits of your pet, as well as the general characteristics of the breed, and then we can draw the following conclusions:
- The room should not be hot. This means that it should be built in a shady place.
- Huskies curl up into a ball to sleep. Taking this into account, the width and height of the room should allow him to do this, but it is not necessary to allocate too much space for the bedroom.
- They are very attached to their owner and constantly need closeness to him, which means that the future house should be placed close to the owner’s house.
- Despite the fact that huskies are not watchdogs, they need to monitor the territory. Therefore, it is important that your pet can see the entire yard from the kennel and that the sun does not shine in his eyes.
- It is advisable that in front of the booth there is a small wooden terrace with a canopy. The canopy will provide additional shade, and the tree will not heat up to such an extent that the dog could burn its paws. In addition, they tend to dig a tunnel if they experience discomfort, including from the heat. But a wooden floor will not allow them to do this.
- A house for a family pet should be built on a small hill or artificially raised above ground level by literally five centimeters. This is necessary to prevent it from flooding inside when it rains.
- Clear the area next to the booth from thorny plants or things that can harm the health of the animal.
The most important rule for a comfortable stay for your pet is cleanliness, dryness and access to fresh air inside the home. Pay attention to the fact that fresh air must get inside, but the presence of drafts is excluded.
Husky kennel, dimensions and design
When creating a booth, it is necessary to take into account the characteristics of the representatives of the breed. They sleep curled up in a ball, endure harsh climates, do not have a guard instinct, and need the presence of their owner.
What should a kennel for a husky look like?
Housing must meet the following requirements:
- stand in a shaded area;
- be equipped with a canopy and threshold;
- have a child if a bitch with puppies lives inside;
- be dry and clean, ventilated;
- have waterproofing and insulation.
When making a drawing and determining the size of a husky booth, take into account the length of the dog’s body, as well as the height at the withers and to the top of the head, the width of the chest and sacrum. The drawing is built according to the following principles:
- booth depth – body length plus 5 cm;
- height – the height of the dog to the top of the head;
- the width of the building is 3 times the width of the chest.
The hole size is calculated as follows:
- chest width with 5 cm added;
- height – the height of the husky at the withers.
The roof should be 25 cm larger than the size of the husky kennel.
Step-by-step manufacturing instructions
After making the sketch, construction work begins. The most durable materials are usually used for dog houses. The floors are made of wood so that dogs do not freeze in the cold season and do not catch a cold. Concrete floors do not retain heat, so this material is not used.
Note! A wooden booth is considered the warmest.
Construction work takes place in several stages:
- They start from the floor. Several bars are installed as a base. The space between them is insulated. Then they are covered with boards.
- Four beams are mounted for the frame, the top trim is made, not forgetting about the opening for the manhole.
- The frame is sheathed, polystyrene foam is placed inside, and the sheathing is made again.
- A flat or gable roof is erected and covered with roofing felt or any suitable covering.
A wooden booth is the warmest
Dimensions
The following dimensions in centimeters are recommended:
- The height of the booth is from ninety to one hundred and twenty.
- length from one to two meters.
- inlet - from seventy to eighty.
- window - from fifteen to thirty.
- if the booth has a raised area for placing bowls, then make sure that the height does not exceed twenty-five centimeters.
- the place for eating should not take away space from the sleeping area.
- There must be at least four meters of free space inside.
- The size of the roof exceeds the size of the house itself by twenty centimeters.
Be moderate in your desire to create a mansion for your pet. The dog will experience discomfort in a very large room and will not be able to warm it with body heat. It is possible to make two rooms in the home, but make sure that each of them is not more than two square meters.
How to care for an aviary and a booth
The area where the animal is kept requires daily cleaning. It must always contain clean water. Toilet litter should be changed frequently. It is recommended to inspect the appearance of the enclosure weekly for the presence of rot or mold, and also clean all structures. Self-tapping screws screwed into floors and walls also require frequent inspection. If they get loose, the animal may get hurt. In the warm season, it is necessary to treat ticks using special means.
It would be good if there was a box or other container installed on the site designed to store the dog’s accessories and toys.
How to accustom a husky to life in an enclosure
The process of adaptation to a new home should be gradual. The first visit can go like this:
- The owner puts a leash on the dog.
- Gives her the command “place”.
- Takes him to the enclosure.
It is prohibited to force an animal into a kennel or fenced area. It must enter the enclosure on its own. It can be trained by rewarding it with a favorite treat after the pet has crossed the threshold of a new home. These exercises should be performed daily, several times: this is how the husky quickly adapts.
When keeping a dog in an enclosure, it is important to remember that you need to devote a sufficient amount of time to it. The animal should not experience discomfort from lack of communication.
Choosing a safe place
Judging by the experience of husky owners, in a small apartment a young dog at first has to be allocated a separate room for use.
It’s a little easier for residents of private houses: on a personal plot, you can set aside part of the territory for a dog zone.
However, there are some peculiarities here too..
- Firstly, a sled dog cannot be chained: it can easily strangle itself.
- Secondly, you cannot confine the animal to the cramped walls of an ordinary booth.
An aviary is an excellent solution thanks to which you can improve your own life and the life of your pet.
In the spacious fenced space you can organize housing, food, and a play area.
Before construction begins, the owner of a husky must realize one more feature of the breed: a sociable creature that needs human attention cannot be doomed to live alone, even in a spacious enclosure.
The dog needs daily training and communication, which maintains its sense of its own social need.
Thrown into an arbitrary existence without the opportunity to participate in meaningful human activity, a dog can get sick and die.