Could someone please discribe a suitable outdoor kennelling facility for a yorkie.  dont mind installing radiators if ness. thankyou.

I don't think Yorkies are a breed which should be kennelled outside at all. The whole point about toy dogs is that they're bred to be companions. Unless you live in the kennel too, then there's no point in having one.

Agree 100% with JG. Yorkies are definately not outside dogs,as has already been mentioned,nowadays they are bred solely to be a companion dog,they are also sensitive to the heat and cold! It would not be fair to put one of these tiny dogs outside,kennel or not!

Have you already got a yorkie,why on earth do you want to put it outside? An outside yorkie is an unhappy yorkie,they need to be by their owners side always because they are companion dogs.

Please,can you write back and explain a little more :)

yes i have two yorkies... at present they spend all of their time in the house. however they are not ALWAYS by my side. I sometimes have to leave the house and leave them in it. However i wish to construct an exterior kennel for them to sleep in at night.. morning the kitchen door will be opened for them to come inside and play to their hearts content.

Also i would envisage them staying in their kennel when i have to leave them.
I am not talking a wooden box.. what i am proposing is a block built house heated and insulated.  I was merely asking for some advice....not a lecture on yorkies being compaion dogs.. i know that is what they are... so if anyone has any positive suggestions on the construction i would be glad to hear them.  alternatively any negitive experiences of doing this would also be welcomed.

Since they are such small dogs wouldn't it be better for them and cheaper for you to just crate them at night time and when you leave the house?
As people have said, these toy breeds do not adapt well to outdoor living and were never designed as such. I believe your dogs would suffer physically, mentally and emotionally if you were to make them sleep outside.

Have a think about crating, crates are very cheap from ebay, two of them would cost you no more than £50 including delivery and your dogs would be safe and warm in their home.

I DO NOT WANT TO LOCK MY DOGS UP IN A CRATE. I wish to construct a dewlling detacted from the house. HEATED....INSULATED......PLASTERED.....PAINTED..... PART CARPETED..... SOFA......ELECTRICITY....ect...ect.
So is this really keeping them outside? is it not better than caging them....  Ill even put a television in it if i feel thats what they want... As for the expense....I can afford it... I allready have 90% of the materials needed left over from an extension i recently put on the house... and I can do all the labour myself.  So is this not like the dogs being in the house over night with the only difference being that they will have a 10sec walk into my main living quarters in the morns and the same at night......once again any suggestions or experieces of doing this v welcome......eg... Yes john I done something simlar and had a small litter area outside of the kennell.... my heating bill went up so much that I took them back into the house at night..... they were unhappy with the arrangement and it didnt work etc etc...

Well if you are going to take that tone you will not get much help here!

I personally cannot see much difference between your house and the building you plan to construct, so whats the point? Dont you have a dining room they could stay in?

I cannot understand why you would want the dogs away from you, why you do not want them to live as a part of your family.

I "cage" my dogs and they are more then happy with the arrangement, each to their own i suppose.

Good luck with your venture, I hope your dogs do not miss you too much when you send them away to their own little building.

the dogs are on there own every nite as no one lets sleep with them in our house. what i described is their bed.so i am not sending my dogs away i am melely putting them to bed.

Look, your dogs, your method, your problem. Good luck.

johnst, people can only go on what you say, in your first post you said 'outdoor kenneling'. By your third post the outdoor kennel had turned into a detached residence in the garden. Give us a break, we have no crystal ball, so you need to explain yourself as fully as possible to get the most appropriate input.

What you eventually described sounds wonderful, can't think of another thing you could add, except maybe en-suite.

Dawn R.

John,

Sounds great what you are going to build for your dogs can i come and live with you lol !! have you done a search on the web for designs?

Problems with kennelling Yorkshire Terriers will be barking whilst you are not there if they hear a noise or another dog barking which could lead to complaints or someone finding out you have them & stealing them & they will be very easy to steal from an outdoor kennel. It's not just showdogs that get stolen any dog can be stolen & the smaller the dog the more likely they are to be stolen.

A friend of mine rescued a Yorkshire Terrier from a kennels & she would bark all the time when she was left alone & took ages to get her right

Yorkshire Terriers are to be very honest not kennel dogs & even if you build them the state of the Art kennels you may find that their temperament & characters change, I have certainly noticed that Cavaliers that are kennelled do not have the same temperament as those that live full time indoors

Dog crates are not cruel Two of my four cavaliers choose to sleep in theirs with the doors open during the day & night & if I do have to go out & cannot take them with me I know they are safe in their crates

Many people on here think cages are cruel & if not used correctly yes they are but used as a training aid they are not. My first cavalier used to open the door to his & close it after him when he wanted to sleep as he knew the bigger dogs would not disturb him. I had a BC who who get into my Cavaliers cage off his wnr bat at shows & I mean a single cavalier sized cage & he managed to turn round in it too & he would stay in it with the door open

Is there any underlying reason that you want them to sleep outside or is it just your choice ? It will not alter their coats as they will not grow more coat if put in kennels & it could make them very stressed out as some dogs just cannot adjust to kennels

i have had yorkies for 11 yrs and would never consider kennel them outside my house  in any way ,although i do have a crufts freedom play pen for the new  puppy  if i go out i leave 3 in the sitting room.1yorkie boy  in the hallway with the telly on ,my yokies like to be with me all the time .

The problem is John, that your dogs will not feel like that about it - they perceive you as part of their 'pack' which should always sleep under the same roof.  I don't understand why you are so anti crates, perhaps you could explain? And what is the difference you see between a crate in the house and a kennel outside?  As others have said, Yorkies are very much companion dogs, and may be prone to voicing their objections vocally.

Am I missing something here? Why on earth would you want to construct this "kennel" when it is obviously a replica of your house? Is there a particular resaon you cant leave them in the house when you go to bed or go out? I would imagine the edifice you describe will need planning permission. 

I'm guessing your house is all those things - heated, insulated, plastered, painted, electricity laid on, part carpeted, with a sofa etc. Just like you want their 'kennel' to be like. Why go to all the expense of building a replica of what they're in now?

Edit: Ooh snap, Fillis! We were posting at the same time!

Planning permission?

To be hones J it would be far less expensice an more practical with their di9minutive size to crate them indoors, even in a larger than needed crate.

These tiny dogs do find it difficult to keep warm/cold compared to larger anines.  It is one reason why toy dog woners often don't home pups until around 3 months of age as hypgyceamia (sp) is not uncommon.  My own dogs sleep outsdie at night so I am not against kennels, but not for a toy breed.

I'm not trying to be nasty and i definately dont want to scare you off John,honest. I guess the replies youv'e got are not the ones you wanted to hear.I've never heard of yorkies being kept in kennels,i mean i'm against putting any dog outside in a kennel,lettalone a wee sensitive soul such as the yorkshire.

In your first post you DID say you wanted to put him in an outside kennel and then you went onto building a house on your house for the dog,which is a little extreme to me,geez you could fit a yorkie in your bedside drawer,you dont need a fully contained flat ;)

I guess the bottom line is,no-one understands why you want to do this as you havnt explained,we have only heard half the story. Is the dog peeing inside while you are sleeping or when you go out,is he damaging your house in anyway? Explaining WHY you want to do this will go a long way in helping your cause :)

Please come back and let us know the full story,i for one would appreciate it :)

Oh i cant imagine a little yorkie being kept outside, its not like they take up a lot of room, why dont use use a crate if your worried about chewing /getting into trouble etc.

bigdogs understanderble but a yorkie why would you want to put a yorkie in a kennel there small enough to be kept in your house!

If you read the post again he has already tried to have them in the house and they didn't like it, all dogs are different and his obviously prefer to be out.

I cant see the part that says the dogs didnt like being inside, i doubt thats true anyway.
I dont usually post on these threads because everyone does different things with their dogs, but this one baffles me, i dont understand the reason for keeping them outside, what advantage would there be ??
I think the point of them being noisy at night is a good one, yorkies are yappers arent they ?
I am sure you would make the outdoor housing comfy, secure and warm, but why would you need to with such a small dog ?

What are they doing in the house that you dont like, im not being rude atall just wondering ?

I have a feeling that John will go his own way on this one. If he has made up his mind to do something, then no matter what anybody elses opinion is, he will still go ahead and do it, whether we believe he is right or wrong was not the question, he didn't ask for opinions :)

I will refrain from giving my opinion on this subject :P and run like h**l for cover :D

He has yet to explain WHY he wants to do this,and why does no-one want the little tykes inside. I didnt read where it said the dogs didnt like it inside either

Its the third post that john left, "MY heating bill went up so much that i bought them into the house and they were unhappy with arrangement".

Think you missed the bit before that <Yes john I done something simlar and had a small litter area outside of the kennell.... my heating bill went up so much that I took them back into the house at night..... they were unhappy with the arrangement and it didnt work etc etc...

I did ask him about why he wanted them outside but sadly he did not see fit to reply & probably never will

>.once again any suggestions or experieces of doing this v welcome......eg... Yes john I done something simlar and had a small litter area outside of the kennell.... my heating bill went up so much that I took them back into the house at night..... they were unhappy with the arrangement and it didnt work etc etc...<

Whispers mum,i think the comment your referring to was an example of the reply john was looking for,i dont think he was actually talking about HIS dogs :)

Folks,
I have just read ur replies....Monday morn...and now have to go to work... Theres clearly a lot to talk about. I will get back to you all later on today.
Thankyou.

Well done John, hopefully this has been some help and you can work out a way of doing whats best for you AND your dog/s