The Dog Enclosure

Raining Cats & Dogs!

It's not always easy here at the ranch and our current challenge is keeping the dogs and the cats separate until we can find the time to integrate them.

The dogs live in the front and the cats live in the back, each with plenty of space, but occasionally one of the cats takes their chances and uses the front as a thoroughfare or comes to say hello.

During the day, 99% of the time there isn't a problem, and by way of a miracle, we are able to catch the 1%, stopping the dogs in their tracks and ensuring the daring cat gets to safety.

The biggest danger time is at night and the early hours of the morning before the day begins, which we discovered the hard way with our beautiful Dotty getting hurt.

How The Enclosure Was Born

This followed a long and very expensive recovery period and required us to find a solution to the problem of keeping the cats safe at night, whilst allowing the dogs to go to the toilet when needed.

And this is how the dog enclosure was born!

All of my ideas come to me through divine revelation and the solutions that are delivered never cease to amaze me!

We decided to maximise the space we had, whilst minimising the impact on the house and created a big size of approx. 2m wide x 5m long , with the full ceiling height of the stoop area.

Our first attempt was quick and not so pretty as we needed an immediate solution, and this consisted of our old chain fence wrapped around a basic wood frame using the pillars for support.

Once we had an immediate solution in place, we had time to determine and get the materials for a sexy solution that was more robust.

We improved on the first iteration by creating a solid wooden painted frame with panels and covered the front with aluminium mosquito screen for air and to keep the bugs away.

This had the added and unintended benefit of creating a privacy shield from the outside whilst ensuring good visibility from the inside.

We very quickly discovered that the aluminium mosquito screen was very delicate and wouldn't last 2 minutes with dogs, so we needed to reinforce the inside bottom sections.

To do this, we determined the maximum height the dogs could stand to with their paws and reinforced the bottom section with 250 micron clear plastic for added durability.

Inside there's a couch should any of the dogs want to sleep outside and we open it at day break when full access to the outside is restored and they have full access to the house at all times.

For the avoidance of doubt, the dogs do not live in or spend long periods of time in the enclosure, it  is a safe contained space for at night until we are able to fully integrate the cats and the dogs. 

Between the two materials, we achieved clear visibility, maximum light, a cool bug-free breeze and a good view of the mountain.

This dog enclosure has been a life-saver and enables me to sleep peacefully at night knowing that the cats are safe during vulnerable times and the dogs are protected too.

There is an unintended and unrealised consequence of having to clean it every morning, but this is a small price to pay for the life sustaining benefits it delivers.

On the other hand, it is a very beneficial extra space, and extra outdoor space, where the dogs can be in the event of visitors who aren't comfortable with dogs.

Once we have achieved successful integration of the dogs and the cats and we can all live in harmony together, it will be a lovely mosquito free zone to sleep in during the summer months.

We hope this gives you ideas for the creation of safe and functional spaces for your beloved animals and your own peace of mind and sanity!