Dog kennels

Anyone running one of the premium dog kennels? Ie gunner, Dakota 283, lucky, or ruffland? I’m in the market for a kennel upgrade and am kicking the tires on these 4 brands.

If anyone has personal experience with any of these kennels, I’m curious to hear how you like them? What breed/size is your dog and what size kennel are you running? What do you like/dislike about the kennel you’re running? On a similar note, if anyone is looking to get rid of a large, let me know.

Thank you in advance.

I have 2 Ruffland Intermediate size kennels
60 and 70 pounds Labs.
Both Rufflands fit in the back seat of a Ford 150 Crew Cab
Both fit in the back hatch area of a GMC Terrain
Can run both dogs in 1 kennel if we are hunting closer to home.
The new handles on the Rufflands are a lot nicer then the old style kennels.

Ducky

I have a Ruffland Kennel for my Golden and I love how durable it is and also how light weight it is. I flip up the seats in my F150 and have it back there almost all the time. Great kennel to keep all her hair in and if she gets muddy its easy to clean.

John Christesnen wrote:

I have 2 Ruffland Intermediate size kennels
60 and 70 pounds Labs.
Both Rufflands fit in the back seat of a Ford 150 Crew Cab
Both fit in the back hatch area of a GMC Terrain
Can run both dogs in 1 kennel if we are hunting closer to home.
The new handles on the Rufflands are a lot nicer then the old style kennels.

Ducky

I like my Rufflands, have 2 intermediates and 1 backseat rider. 2 65lbs Pudelpointers.

Ducky, what year ford do you have? I cant figure out how to get both of my intermediates in the back seat of my 2019 f150.

Both fit great in my 2005 Silverado extended cab.

KP wrote:

I have a Ruffland Kennel for my Golden and I love how durable it is and also how light weight it is. I flip up the seats in my F150 and have it back there almost all the time. Great kennel to keep all her hair in and if she gets muddy its easy to clean.

What size ruffland are you running and how big is your golden?

I understand why you guys want good kennels and if I was in the market I would look at the exact same brands. However my cheapos just keep going and going. I have no doubt they will fail at some point but man I have had them a long time. And they are lite.

suzuki wrote:

I understand why you guys want good kennels and if I was in the market I would look at the exact same brands. However my cheapos just keep going and going. I have no doubt they will fail at some point but man I have had them a long time. And they are lite.

my cheap kennel finally cracked last year. I got 10 years out of it and it was a good run. The safety aspect these premium kennels offer compared to the cheap plastic ones is enough to make me not even think twice about the price tag. Also, this summer I’m running hunt tests with my new pup (and hopefully will move onto senior hunt tests next year) so need something that will hold up to more use and abuse better. Plus I strap the kennel into the back of my SxS when I am going into the woods to grouse hunt, and the side door option on the rufflands is a huge selling point for me because of the size of the bed box in my SxS and the way a kennel fits in there

I believe I have the intermediate size Gitchi but I’d have to double check. My dog is 55 pounds and she easily gets in and out of it.

KP wrote:

I believe I have the intermediate size Gitchi but I’d have to double check. My dog is 55 pounds and she easily gets in and out of it.

if you wouldn’t mind double checking, that’d be great. I keep going back and forth between an intermediate and a large. I’ve got a 1 year golden that is currently 45 lbs but is still growing.

It is the intermediate and my Golden can jump in and out easily from my F150. Mine is an older molder but looks like the sizes are the same.

Thanks KP. Much appreciated.

I use 2 XL Ruffland kennels in the box of my 2021 Ford Ranger. I have 2 Labs. also have 2 Large Ruffland kennels that the dogs use in the house. I leave the doors off the ones in the house so they can go in and out of them when they want. will put the one door back on for the pup during the night thou since he is only 10 weeks old . one thing I did with the XL kennels was that I ordered two extra doors and the fans for them. run the fans during the summer then switch to the doors without the fans in the fall and winter. also picked up two of the mud river insulated covers for the XL kennels. overall, I have been really impressed with them and would recommend them to someone looking for a good well-built kennel. might be pricy but to me it is worth it for the dog’s safety.

Only negative I have toward’s the ruffland’s is that the company discontinued the white color.

monticatgeek wrote:

I use 2 XL Ruffland kennels in the box of my 2021 Ford Ranger. I have 2 Labs. also have 2 Large Ruffland kennels that the dogs use in the house. I leave the doors off the ones in the house so they can go in and out of them when they want. will put the one door back on for the pup during the night thou since he is only 10 weeks old . one thing I did with the XL kennels was that I ordered two extra doors and the fans for them. run the fans during the summer then switch to the doors without the fans in the fall and winter. also picked up two of the mud river insulated covers for the XL kennels. overall, I have been really impressed with them and would recommend them to someone looking for a good well-built kennel. might be pricy but to me it is worth it for the dog’s safety.

Only negative I have toward’s the ruffland’s is that the company discontinued the white color.

did you buy the ruffland fan or what fan are you using? that is my next purchase after getting a kennel.

I’ve also got an older Ruffland. Very pleased with it! Like previously mentioned, fits in my truck and the dog loves it!

Yes I bought two of the fans right from the ruffland website.

suzuki wrote:

I understand why you guys want good kennels and if I was in the market I would look at the exact same brands. However my cheapos just keep going and going. I have no doubt they will fail at some point but man I have had them a long time. And they are lite.

My Pet Porter is 20 years old and keeps going. The thing about these kennels are that you can find them used for really cheap prices on Facebook marketplace. I do get the appeal of a premium crate but I’m not sure about the prices- holy crap!!!

The cheaper plastic kennels are extremely brittle in the cold. Doesn’t bode well for hunting roosters in December… you look at them the wrong way and they crack.

when it comes to cheap verses the high-end kennels you need to look at it like this. A $400 to $450 Ruffland kennel over the course of the dog’s life is minimal (most dogs will live at least 12 years if in good health). Example: $450 (XL Ruffland)/ 12 years = $37.50 per year if you were to break it down over the course of the dog’s life. even if you step up to the Gunner kennel (twice the Ruffland price) you are still only looking at $75.00 per year which is really not that much per year considering a good hunting dog will be $1500 to $3000 depending on the pedigree and breed. even the price of the dog itself is cheap if you break it down over the dog’s lifetime.

I have three Ruffland ones and they are indestructible, not sure what you could possible get from the even more expensive ones. Mine are size medium but they are too big and I should have stuck with intermediate which is fine for ~65lb pudelpointers and a lab. Three mediums will still fit in a RAM 1500 6’4″ bed though if you put them sideways along one side. An intermediate will fit behind the passenger seat 2013 quad cab but it’s tight.

Related to this I have Primo Pads in all of mine: https://primopads.com/

Ruffland at least are a weird size that not much will fit perfectly. These pads are also pretty indestructible, waterproof, and made to fit. They can also custom make any dimensions you want. I use these as the base layer and then put something a little more comfy on top as long as the dogs aren’t wet.

It’s been a lot of years since I ordered but if you do more than 1 at a time email them for cheaper shipping, their website used just multiply the base shipping x pads but it’s cheaper to ship them together. Not sure if that’s the case anymore or not.