# Kennel/Run - Mat/Bed



## Gary Garner (Jun 30, 2007)

I need any ideas on kennel/run matting - bedding...

My dog will rip apart any bedding that I put down...

Apart from the fact it's winter, she's also keen on sleeping on the paved floor of the run, as opposed to the nice kennel interior. She'll stay on the concrete floor until late in the evening before retiring to the kennel.

So... I need ideas/suggestions as to a bed/platform for the concrete area.. as I'm concerned about her..

Someone suggested horse rubber matting... really thick stuff that she 'supposedly' wont be able to chew through... I'm not sure :-/

I've seen something before, like a hard plastic slab, like a pallet...

any other ideas or internet links?

many thanks

Gary


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Yes, thick stall matting.

And you are smart to be thinking about it, because of the several elbow and joint conditions that are triggered by a lot of time on concrete.

Can you maybe work it so you have a pallet (wood is so much better than concrete, and raising off the ground gives you that air "padding" between her and the earth) with the matting on that?


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## Gary Garner (Jun 30, 2007)

Connie Sutherland said:


> Can you maybe work it so you have a pallet (wood is so much better than concrete, and raising off the ground gives you that air "padding" between her and the earth) with the matting on that?


She will chew wood all day..so that is out...

Her kennel has metal strips all over..it's like something the bloody A-Team would have made...

So the bed has to be plastic or rubber, and very very tough...unchewable.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Gary Garner said:


> She will chew wood all day..so that is out...
> 
> Her kennel has metal strips all over..it's like something the bloody A-Team would have made...
> 
> So the bed has to be plastic or rubber, and very very tough...unchewable.


Those cattle mats are un-chewable, I believe.


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## Selena van Leeuwen (Mar 29, 2006)

I wouldn't worry, she chooses herself to lay on the concrete. When she's cold she retires in her kennel, you say.

If you still want something on the concrete, what about straw? she could make up her own bed, play around with it and eat it without getting sick of it.


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## Sharon Adams (Nov 6, 2007)

I second the suggestion of using thick rubber horse stall mats..
I have horses and have used the extra thick stall mats for years to keep many an animal off the cold ground, cement floors.


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## David Berraco (Dec 19, 2007)

There are hard plastic pallets/skids. I have one, unlike the one in the pic it doesn't have holes in the top surface. The dog ignores it though and prefers the earth. I've also used 1/2 rubber mats. I got them from a rubber place that made conveyor belts so it was cheap. I used this to line the bed of a van. Very good material for traction for the dog when the vehicle is moving and is damn tough to chew.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

David Berraco said:


> There are hard plastic pallets/skids. I have one, unlike the one in the pic it doesn't have holes in the top surface. The dog ignores it though and prefers the earth. I've also used 1/2 rubber mats. I got them from a rubber place that made conveyor belts so it was cheap. I used this to line the bed of a van. Very good material for traction for the dog when the vehicle is moving and is damn tough to chew.


This pallet (especially with the stall mat) should be wonderful..... not just against concrete-chill, but also calluses and hygromas.

I had never seen these.


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## David Berraco (Dec 19, 2007)

Well, I live right beside a publix...


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## melissa mims (Jul 12, 2006)

I made a kennel pad of my own; I priced out some of the indestructible kennel pads, and it was out of my range. 2x4's, a plywood shelf, and groved 2x4's (salvaged from my son's old bed), and a cow mat from Farm and Fleet cut to size by a utility knife. Those pads are pretty tough, plus they are HEAVY.

BUT, just in case, I trained her not to chew up her pad, because she was a chewer, and was really stupid about getting loaded on stuff in her kennel. 

I don't know if the pads are indestructible if they are cut. It does take a good 15 passes with a utility knife to cut through, though. You may want to do a test run....


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## Sam Trinh (Jul 31, 2006)

Connie Sutherland said:


> Those cattle mats are un-chewable, I believe.


I thought so too until my dog proved me wrong. However, it still lasts a long time (9 months). And now that he is older he doesn't seemed to have chewed it in awhile.


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## Ren Sauder (Apr 5, 2007)

I too use rubber stall mats (horse mats) in my kennel during the winter. We take it out during the summer because being black it gets too hot when the sun beams on it, plus the boys prefer to lay on the cold shady concrete to cool off anyways.

As for bedding in their dog house, I put down a layer of cedar shavings (make sure its animal-safe, not the stuff with sawdust in it!) with a layer os straw on top. NOTHING insulates a doghouse better than straw. When blankets/pillows get wet they hold the moisture, and freeze, get moldy, or rot. If my guys go into their houses wet, the shavings soak up all the moisture and dry out quickly afterwards. The straw the dogs can move around and tunnel into as they wish. In the winter I put a very thick layer of straw down, enough for nesting abilities. During summer, I only put enough to offer some comfort. Also as mentionned before, if the dogs consume the straw or shavings it passes easily.


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## ann schnerre (Aug 24, 2006)

go with the cow/horse matts gary--they're easy on the elbows, my dogs won't chew them up (as someone else said--it takes a good 5-6 passes w/utility knife to cut them), gets them off cold concrete in the winter. then bed with straw/sawdust inside. i personally would prefer straw; easier to clean up. but my dogs are *inside* dogs, so the last is FWIW.


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## Ian Forbes (Oct 13, 2006)

Gary,

I would recommend the heavy rubber matting from these guys:

http://www.horsemat.co.uk/?gclid=CIDOn_DCnokCFRgtEAodPl76NQ


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## Gary Garner (Jun 30, 2007)

Ian Forbes said:


> Gary,
> 
> I would recommend the heavy rubber matting from these guys:
> 
> http://www.horsemat.co.uk/?gclid=CIDOn_DCnokCFRgtEAodPl76NQ


Thanks Ian..i've emailed them.

Have you previous experience of that company / their products... or was it just an internet search?

Thanks
Gary


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## Ian Forbes (Oct 13, 2006)

Gary,

I don't use horsematting, but a friend has it in his dogs kennel (I bookmarked that site then, in case I had a need for it in future). It is unbelieveably heavy stuff, which seems to deter most dogs from trying to pull it up and tear it - I'm quite sure your bitch can have a good go at destroying it though......


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## Gary Garner (Jun 30, 2007)

Ian Forbes said:


> Gary,
> 
> I don't use horsematting, but a friend has it in his dogs kennel (I bookmarked that site then, in case I had a need for it in future). It is unbelieveably heavy stuff, which seems to deter most dogs from trying to pull it up and tear it - I'm quite sure your bitch can have a good go at destroying it though......


yeah...you've seen her drive capabilities haven't you  ](*,) #-o


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## Pauline Michels (Sep 1, 2006)

If you have any horse/livestock trailer dealers nearby you may be able to get the mats for your kennels from them. That's what we did. They are extremely heavy, are very thick and can stand up to a chewy dog. 

We did have a female Dobe who would try to drag the outdoor mat into the inside kennel though. She'd move it around a very little bit and then give up. She probably spent her energy yanking on it and didn't get into the "just chewing" mode. So you do have to watch them just to be on the safe side.


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