Learning to Live With Pets

Wooden Pet Pen Keeps Dogs Safe Outdoors

Dogs love the wind in their faces. They love running loose and tearing around and barking with abandon. Unfortunately, without adequate training, dogs will also run into busy streets and chase the neighbors which can cause a lot of problems or potential heartache if the dogs get hit by cars. Some people build pens outside that will allow their pooches fresh air and a chance move about outside, but restrain them with chain link fences. That could work, but only for so long. Once Fido gets bored he usually figures out a way to squeeze under the chain link fence. Again, he might get trapped and even fatally wounded by the ends of the metal fence. The owner's attempt to keep their pet safe but let them have outside time during the day is sadly thwarted. Small to medium sized dogs have it the easiest. There are any number of ways of keeping them penned up, but only one way to keep them penned up safely, both for their own good and for the good of the neighbors. A wooden pet pen is all natural; even if Fido were to try and dig under the fence, nothing more than a few splinters here and there could hurt him. Small dogs especially are not that efficient in digging, and most owners could spot it once they arrive at home in the evening. The areas around the fence are quickly and easily repaired, with no loss or harm to anyone. The walls of a wooden pet pen can be built high enough to prevent a dog from getting out, but also from letting other dogs get in. This last part may be especially important if an owner has a female dog in heat and still wants to let her be outside unattended. Plans and kits for a wooden pet pen are easy to find and easy to afford. Most wooden pet pens can be built in a Saturday or less, depending on the style and how large it needs to be for the dog in question. A dog owner who wishes to make the pen quite secure may even opt to put down a slab of cement and secure the wooden posts in the wet cement before continuing with the rest of the pen's construction. Other wooden pet pens are smaller and meant for indoor use. Generally these are for confining a dog when company is expected and the company is either allergic to dogs or just doesn't respond to them well. The pens have adequate room for the small and medium dogs to turn around in, but are not meant for longer stays of more than a couple of hours. They are tight enclosures and can create anxiety in any pet if the pet is left in them for more than four to six hours at a time. These pens may be used for transport to an animal clinic or hospital as well. Only the frames are wooden; the rest of these pens tends to be some type of medium gage wire to allow the dog to breathe. Some wooden dog pens come with castors and a floor board while others are stationary but have no roof. If the dog can be trusted not to leap out of the pen, then a roofless pen is okay. A springer spaniel is probably not the type of dog to put in a roofless pen, as are other dogs that are well-known for their jumping skills. (Pugs are a good example of a dog to put in a roofless pen.) Dog owners who have mutts and aren't quite sure what size to classify their dogs as can measure their dogs and buy pens that are at least a foot higher and two feet longer than the dogs they own. For more on wooden pet pens, visit http://www.pupperton.com/

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