Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/08/10/dogeden-partially-buried-dogh.html
…
2 Likes
In our climate, it would have standing water in the bottom, which would be sub-optimal. But for people living in arid areas and using water-sprinklers to pretend that they live in a temperate region (Southern Ca, Las Vegas, etc.) this might be just the thing.
Also: I think it need a way to take off the top so that you can clean the inside more easily. Because after those wood chips have rotted for a while in that ■■■■■ environment, your dog is going to be pretty fragrant after a night in here. (He won’t mind but, but you might)
17 Likes
It is ‘DogeDen’ in the video, and the logo seems to be styled to be read as ‘dog-e-den’ (i.e. ‘doggy-den’, to labour the point).
1 Like
Here, too. I also wonder about the den being borrowed by local wildlife.
8 Likes
Shai-Hulud
7 Likes
Put some C rations in there and doggie is civil defense ready
7 Likes
That occurred to me, but I’m guessing that it will smell enough like dog that most mammals will keep out.
Indeed Anderson shelters from WWII had real problems with water.
This isn’t going to help doggo out much if the average frost depth exceeds, say, an inch or two. We don’t get arctic cold here, but the average frost depth is 48".
5 Likes
All links in the post go to Amazon. Here is the company’s official product page.
Note that dogeden.com is a pet walking/grooming business in Markham, Ontario.
Of interest to those with big dogs: right now what they are selling works for dogs up to 60 pounds. A large size version of the doghouse for dogs 70-150 pounds will become available “in the fall of 2018”.
I agree with other posters that this will not work well if you live on a floodplain or anywhere where the water table is high enough that the hole you have to dig will get standing water in it. OTOH, anywhere where a rabbit/groundhog/fox can buld a comfy burrow, this will work too.
He’s a retriever- loves the water
The toe pads over the e in their logo are reminiscent of a diaresis. As in Noël, Zoë, or even the Brontë sisters where it indicates that the e is pronounced separately. So it should probably be written Dogëden.
2 Likes
The website shows these things with the top removed but it looks like that isn’t actually a feature of the product.
Even if the ground is freezing cold, it’s still a much better insulator than air pockets. The company website says that in winter the dog’s body heat will raise the temperature inside the burrow to a comfortable level. But they don’t provide any measurements or experimental data to support this claim. And I doubt they have tested this in the Yukon or Alaska.
ETA - fix an error pointed out by @simonize. Air is a great insulator except when it’s free to move around and convect, then it becomes a really very crappy insulator.
3 Likes
If the plastic container is sealed on the bottom, there shouldn’t be too much problem with standing water, would there? Condensation? I mean, maybe if rain blew in.
1 Like
I don’t think the worry is the water table so much as water coming in the entry. The thing is molded plastic, water is not going to to seep in. But once in it has no place to go.
3 Likes
My experience dealing with deck storage containers tells me that it will not stay watertight for long. Especially with frost heave in the ground pushing at the sides in winter.
The company website claims it’s small enough and the opening is wide enough that you can reach in with a wisk broom and dust pan to sweep up any dirt that gets in there. Or use a shop vac.
Reverend Mother Mohiam: Do you know of the Water of Life? The bile from the DogeDens of Arrakis? We Bene Gesserit use it to see a place - terrifying to us. Legend tells of men who drank too.
Paul: They tried and failed?
Mohiam: They tried and died.
8 Likes
Dog owner here.
Sooo, you buy this for 170$, and you dig out about 120 pounds of dirt. Put the den in, and scatter wood shavings on the bottom (who on Earth uses wood shavings for dogs?). The den does not have a removable top for cleaning.
What happens next: the den will settle in the ground and sink. Dog hides her favorite bone in the den. Rodents find the shelter and the bone at night. Fleas come as well. Water gets in from runoff or sprinklers or driving rain. Wood shavings get wet and rot along with the rodent droppings.
Result: your dog will be happy to den there, but she will stink to high heaven and brings the fleas to you.
No thanks.
5 Likes
It would be rain for us. The wind would blow it in, and it would take forever to evaporate.
And until it did, it would be a MosquitoDen.
5 Likes
In the summer, in humid areas, you might have condensation as the humid air hits the cooler underground walls. In any kind of cold winter, you WILL have condensation when the moisture from the dogs breath condenses on the cold above-ground walls. In either case the relative humidity is likely to be high enough for mold and mildew. Certainly a driving rain from the right direction will lead to water on the inside. The difference between this and a natural burrow is that if it is above the water table, water will drain from a natural burrow but it won’t drain from this. Of course if this is below the water table, it won’t seep in, either.
2 Likes
