How cold is too cold in a kennel?

G

gps4

Active member
Traveling with my lab in a kennel crate with Mud River insulated kennel in the bed of a pickup truck. (Strapped down tighter than a lid in a pickle jar)

Side panels are covered and front flap is zipped 2/3 of the way down.

I use an indoor/outdoor thermometer with the “outdoor” sensor inside the kennel and zip tied to the roof to monitor temps inside the kennel.

I will be traveling 16 hours in 10-35 degree weather. I suspect windchill in the back of the truck will make it feel much colder.

How cold is “too cold” inside the kennel for my dog?
 
Got the same set up but with a thick blanket between crate and bed of pickup truck and thick blanket in bottom of crate. I normally stop every 3 hours give or take and let dog out. Idk what temp is too low other than how the dog seems to be fairing. Bring extra blankets I guess and if shivering I wouldn’t hesitate to put in truck. Whole crate if need be. Lab oughta take some serious cold in stride.
 
FWIW, I put a rubber mat for horse trailers in the bed of my truck to protect the truck bed and provide extra insulation under the dog kennel. I got it at the local farm & ranch store. I also keep a temp sensor inside my kennel and inside my truck cab, so I always know the actual temps that my dogs are dealing with. I also have kennel covers on during the winter but I also carry a thick wool blanket that I got at a military store to throw over the kennels in extreme cold. Dogs can normally stay pretty toasty in a kennel.

My dogs are house dogs most of the year.. If it's really cold and I can't keep them comfortable. we go back to the Motel.
 
Goosemaster said:
Never put a dog in a crate or a kennel that's my opinion.
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If you have to leave a dog in the truck when your hunting because they cut a pad or for some other reason, how do you keep them warm if you don't have a kennel to put them in? Easier to heat a kennel with body heat than a large truck cab in freezing temps. At that point, my dogs would rather be warm than loose but my dogs don't mind being in kennels.
 
I’ll tell you what opening day I was driving back from hunting. I had one of my dogs loose in the cab because she had been cut and I didn’t want her messing with the stitches. Being soft I let the other one up there too. About 40 miles from home I started to get sick. I needed to get off the road but all I could think was I don’t want those dogs getting loose on the highway so I tried to push it to the next town. I ended up blacking out and putting it
in the median. Ran through a sign that I didn’t even know I hit until the next day. Thank God though I think that’s what probably woke me back up. Was about to get a lot worse! Trucks been in the shop ever since.
Got it out last week and back out on the road hunting here shortly today . Little bit nervous.
 
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BrownDogsCan2 said:
I’ll tell you what opening day I was driving back from hunting. I had one of my dogs loose in the cab because she had been cut and I didn’t want her messing with the stitches. Being soft I let the other one up there too. About 40 miles from home I started to get sick. I needed to get off the road but all I could think was I don’t want those dogs getting loose on the highway so I tried to push it to the next town. I ended up blacking out and putting it
in the median. Ran through a sign that I didn’t even know I hit until the next day. Thank God though I think that’s what probably woke me back up. Was about to get a lot worse! Trucks been in the shop ever since.
Got it out last week and back out on the road hunting here shortly today . Little bit nervous.
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You're a lucky man. Glad you and the dogs got out of it ok.
 
BrownDogsCan2 said:
I’ll tell you what opening day I was driving back from hunting. I had one of my dogs loose in the cab because she had been cut and I didn’t want her messing with the stitches. Being soft I let the other one up there too. About 40 miles from home I started to get sick. I needed to get off the road but all I could think was I don’t want those dogs getting loose on the highway so I tried to push it to the next town. I ended up blacking out and putting it
in the median. Ran through a sign that I didn’t even know I hit until the next day. Thank God though I think that’s what probably woke me back up. Was about to get a lot worse! Trucks been in the shop ever since.
Got it out last week and back out on the road hunting here shortly today . Little bit nervous.
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Crap man, what was wrong?
 
birddude said:
Crap man, what was wrong?
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Ah man I’m a big wuss. Little while before that my wife called and I was telling her about the cut. I sent her a picture to try to gross her out. Backfired on me started thinking about it and I got all shocky.
Last year when I cut the tip of my finger off was at the er. Got so bad they made me get off the stool sit on the ground and put my head between my knees. Hate that!
 
I have a topper on my truck. So my dogs ride under the topper in the bed with Rough Tuff Kennels and insulated mud river kennel covers. There is no temperature they can't ride back there in as far as cold goes. When it gets warm, I open up both sliding windows and crank up the AC. I would never own dogs or a truck without a topper. As far as not putting them in crates, that is ridiculous. A crate trained dog absolutely loves a crate and it is the safest place for them.
 
westksbowhunter said:
I have a topper on my truck. So my dogs ride under the topper in the bed with Rough Tuff Kennels and insulated mud river kennel covers. There is no temperature they can't ride back there in as far as cold goes. When it gets warm, I open up both sliding windows and crank up the AC. I would never own dogs or a truck without a topper. As far as not putting them in crates, that is ridiculous. A crate trained dog absolutely loves a crate and it is the safest place for them.
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Agree, I’ve got a friend with two dogs that won’t ride in crates and it’s a pain in the ass.. and totally his fault! Means both dogs have to go on every walk, if one is tired his hunt is over, can only take his own truck. Plus if you ever have to rehab an injury or drop off at the vet what’s the first thing that happens, a crate.
 
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