Best flooring for an outdoor kennel

[Big Dave2]

What substance makes the best floor in an outdoor kennel? Is cement the best? It just seems so unnatural. A dirt floor would probably be a pain to keep clean and free of weeds. How about mulch or straw? Any other sugestions?

[OUTDOORNUT]

I think concrete is ok, but I'd also think about providing a platform for you dog to lay on. (composite decking, etc.)There is toxins in concrete that can be absorbed though the dogs skin. Concrete is hard on their joints and you see a lot of dogs with scars around their joints from laying on the concrete. Concrete will also absorb any liquids (rain, pee, etc.)it takes years for it to cure, so you may notice if someone doesn't clean there kennels often the smell of urine is really hard to get rid of.

If you can find someone tearing down a concrete silo, you can piece those together with a sand cushion underneath, that seemed to work good when I had a kennel at my other house.

One of my buddies uses ballast rock, but also provides a platform, he believes the pee filters through the rocks and into the ground. I'm not sold on that big of rock, but I'll give him one thing, his kennel doesn't smell.

This question has been the topic of many conversations among my friends, we all seem to be trying something different now, mini science experiments if you will.

[marine_man]

I've got 16 x 16" paver blocks put together to make my kennel... clean up is a breeze... be sure to seal them once they're installed.. that will help with keeping the smell down...

marine_man

[Gissert]

I built this three years ago for my dog. Simple 2 x 6 construction (not treated wood), and it has held up excellent. Nice air circulation in the summer so she stays cool. If she gets cold, the dog house is well insulated.

She rarely [PoorWordUsage]s or piddles in the kennel. I have since fabricated some rafters, and covered those with heavy vinyl material - the same stuff boat lift covers are made from. Plenty of shade, and keeps the rain and snow out for the most part.

[Johnny_Namakan]

I too, had this dilema about a month ago. I saw Cabela's had a composite material that came in 2' x 2' segments that you can snap together and build whatever size floor you want. It looked like Trex decking in the picture, but when i got it, it was more of just a sturdy plastic with channels built in to filter away any waste. I bought the 4 pack (16 SQFT) for $45. It works, the dog lays on it sometimes, other times just lays on the gravel. All in all it works great, but in retrospect, for $45 I would have gone with another choice. Just seemed like a lot of money for what I got.