Most dogs live inside as pets. Some dogs live outside and don’t want to go inside like Guardian breeds kept for livestock protection or dogs with heavy coats like Huskies who get too warm inside. And some dogs live inside part time and outside part time.
There are many reasons to keep a dog outside part time. Maybe the owners work and they believe the dog would prefer to be outside during the day rather than stuck inside? Maybe you have 2 dogs who have to be separated at times to prevent unwanted pregnancy? Maybe you let your dog outside but they don’t want to come back in? Maybe you keep multiple breeds or multiple sexes of dogs who don’t get along? Maybe you run an animal shelter or rescue?
So what is the most humane way to keep a dog safe and properly contained when they are outside unsupervised? Is it with a fence around the property? Is it with a chain link kennel system? Or is it by using a chain?
If you are fortunate enough to only have 1 dog or you can trust your dog not to chew through or jump over the fence than having a dog loose in a secure fenced yard is great. But what if your dog is an escape artist or your kids can’t be trusted to keep the gate shut properly? Should you use a chain link kennel or put your dog on a chain?
I’d argue that keeping your dog tethered on a chain is far superior to a chain link kennel in every way and I will tell you why.
First, let’s talk about how much living space your dog has in a chain link kennel. Say you buy a standard dog kennel from your local hardware store and it’s 10’ long by 10’ wide.
If X = 10 feet and Y = 10 feet than your dog has, 10 x 10 = 100sq. Ft. to run and play.
But what about a 10’ chain? What if you buy a 10’ chain and keep the dog tethered, how much room would they have?
Area of a circle can be found by using the equation above. So, 3.14 x (10×10) = 314 sq. Ft.
A dog on a 10’ chain would have more than 3X more room to run and play than a dog kept in an average sized dog kennel.
But what if you had room for a 15’ chain or a 20’ chain?
3.14 x (15×15) = 706sq. Ft.
3.14 x (20×20) = 1256sq. Ft.
Wouldn’t you rather your dog have 1200+ square feet to run and play rather than only 100sq. Ft in a kennel? Chains give dogs much much more space than a kennel.
But what about how your dog sees you and views the world around them? Does that matter?
Would you rather keep your dog behind a fence that they have to peer through to see you coming. Or would you rather have them on a chain that you can walk right up to and pet them without having to go through a gate or barrier to see them? What do you think your dog would prefer? Do you imagine they would prefer to be kept on hard concrete separated from you and the world around them by a cold steel fence, or kept on cool soft dirt/grass with a wide open world all around them as they are safely and securely kept contained when you can’t be around.
If you were a dog what would you prefer, a kennel or a chain?
Firestone Staffords 