Custom Dog Kennel

I had a great idea for a Memorial Day weekend project, but it took 6 days, not 3.  Back in November, we added another puppy to our family.  He’s been staying in my late Mastiff’s kennel which is 15 years old and not exactly visually appealing in the living room.

I decided it was time for an upgrade.  If I made something nice, we could put it in our bedroom where there was more room and it would look less out of place.  My design inspiration came from HERE.

I decided to make mine out of poplar (which I have a large supply of in the garage) instead of pine (which is too soft and scratches and dents too easily).  Poplar also added to the weight, but this thing was going to be heavy no matter what.  Cutting and ripping the boards took me a short morning.  I drilled pocket holes to assemble everything together.  The back and top panels are poplar boards screwed and glued together.

I had wanted to use steel rods instead of rebar, but the rebar was a decent amount cheaper.  I should have went with the steel rods.  Rebar is very inconsistently sized, not always straight and is various shapes of “round”.  I wasted a bunch of time before finally buying the drill press I’ve needed for a while.  Once I got the drill press setup, things went somewhat smoother.  I eventually got one of the side panels completely assembled.  Then the second side, then the front.

Because of the size and weight, I decided it would be best to do the final assembly and finishing on the back porch so it could easily be carried in through the bedroom door.  I assembled the sides and front using glue and pocket screws.

I attached the plywood floor with pocket screws and attached 3 boards to the bottom for it to sit on and for extra support.  The Puppy like it!  (He is a Berger Picard.)

I decided to use multiple finishes and started by applying Minwax Classic Gray.

Once the gray was dry, I applied Minwax Dark Walnut.

Then I applied a discontinued Metallic Black Coffee glaze which I had previous used on the Powder Room vanity.  I tried to apply and remove it randomly to allow the gray and walnut stains to show through.  The board on the bottom in the picture below has the glaze, the top board does not.

The glaze has metallic flakes in it which makes it sparkle in the light.

Once that was dry, I applied 2 coats of poly to protect it.  We carried it into the bedroom and attached the back panel with pocket screws.  I used gate hardware for the door.

Before putting the top on, I installed peel and stick vinyl to the floor.  This is the same vinyl I used on the Home Theater Platform.  It looks like wood, but should hold up to claws and messes.  I am going to caulk around the edges to prevent any messes seeping down between the real wood boards.

Once the top was added, it was finished.

Now for my disclaimer – The kennel ended up 6″ taller than I wanted.  I transferred my numbers incorrectly at the beginning.  Whoops.  Overall, it’s approximately 52″ wide by 32″ deep by 42″ tall.  The puppy has a long body so I wanted him to have room to stretch out and maybe be able to share it with his “Mini Me” someday.

Now, we have more room in the living room and it looks less cluttered.  Our bedroom only has the bed and 2 nightstands, so we had room for this kennel in there and it doesn’t stick out like the old wire crate would have.  I’m really happy with how it turned out.