putting him outside

[tonyf125]

I just got a 7 week old chocolate lab puppy. Right now we have him in a smaller kennel in the house, but that is not what I want in the long-run. I would like to put him in a kennel in the garage (un-heated). Since it is going to get nothing but colder, I was wondering when would be a good age to start keeping him out in the kennel in the garage?

[plannerman]

Personally I'd wait until Spring. Way too cold for such a small pup, even when its 3-4 month old IMO.

[2springers]

Why cant the dog stay inside?

[Tom7227]

If you build a decent shelter inside the garage the dog should be OK. I suggest that you try and make it as small as possible and insulate the thing all the way around with some 1 1/2 inch foam. I've always kept my dogs outside in a kennel and have a 2 room dog house that works great. It has a flat roof that's 4 x 4 and on a slight angle to ward off the water. The oustide door is on the short end of the one room and the inside door is on the back end of the wall that seperates the two rooms. I put straw and some cedar chips in it. The back room is insulated all the way around. I put in some 2 x 2 to hold a piece of plywood and then lay a piece of foam on top of that. Many times the dog won't even go into the back room because they get too warm. Holler if you want plans.