It's getting to be about that time again. What do you use? i've always gone with Walmart $3 pillows till I got my new pointer pup two years ago. Here's what she thinks of that.



I went back to cedar chips, but they make a mess.

I ordered a compressed bale of cedar shavings from Lion Country Supply. Pricey, but it doesn't look like it will get moldy like hay, and not as messy as chips.

Costal bermuda

Mine prefer King size pillow top or the couch...but they normally all pile on top of each other in the dog house. The one that stays in the house, sleeps on a blanket on the floor.

COTTONSEED OR LEAVES

I would highly recommend not using cottonseed unless you know for sure it was not treated with certain chemicals. I used cottonseed one time and one of my setters consumed some. He died shortly after. I have been told that a bale of straw works really well because of it's structure. It can hold and transfer heat from the dog's normal body temp. Just a thought.
Hay is way to messy and when wet will have a tendency to mold. My pointer pups tear every pillow and blanket up as soon as they can get to it.

Straw, in the dog houses & trailer.

Straw, with a little bit of cedar shavings mixed in. As far as molding, if you check it every once in while and change it, it wont get moldy. A square bale is like $8.

+1 on the coastal. You can buy square bales for $5. It's insulating, cheap and it lasts fairly well.

I used bedding that had cedar shavings once. One of my setters hair fell out on the side she layed on. Looked like she had mange. Removed the cedar bedding her hair came back.

Some dogs are allergic to cedar but so far the cedar shavings from Lion Country have worked well with my setters.

At home I have a couple of old blankets/quilts covered with the cedar shavings in the houses on the back porch. On the road I have a piece of the flexguard wash rack mat covered with a couple of inexpensive fleece blankets and then a layer of the cedar ribbons. The holes in the mat allow liquid to drain to the bottom of the box which when hunting in snow or wet conditions helps keep the bedding a little drier. The polar fleece retains some insulation ability even when damp/wet and the cedar ribbons give them something to nest in. I am always trying to find practical ways to make my dogs more comfortable on hunting trips.

If you don't have a dog house already. Get a 55 gallon drum (you can find them for free all the time on Craigslist.com) and cut half of the top off. Build a stand so that it doesn't sit on the ground and put hay in it. The most expensive part of it should be the hay.

If you already have a dog house, just use some hay. It really does a good job of insulating the dog.

Hay and or cedar chips

If you dont have a dog house, I'll build ya one!
http://www.texashuntingforum.com/forum/u...use#Post1027947

Is there anything wrong with pine shavings?

JKK

Yes, pine weavels. Small almost microscopic parasite. Enter through the urinary tract and cause wild inflamation of the testicals. Migrate to the cerebral cortex where they play havoc with both inbred and learned behavior. Within days the animal will be listening to show tunes and watching Bette Midler movies. No known cure, but there has been some success by forcing the animal to watch the movie "Bruno" over and over again.







I need some rest and another cold one.........

That cedar dog roost is good lookin' My dogs ate one just like it.

ya my dog is startin to eat it