Cites Mrs Normandy Rockwell, ‘Another Ideal Kennel Plan’, Our Dogs 116 (25th Aug. 1939), p. 551.
Description:

'Sir,- In answer to the criticism of "My Ideal Kennel" I should like to argue one or two points. I will not run down the kennels which are preferred to mine, but I still maintain that mine would take some beating for the purpose for which it is intended - i.e., a self-contained kennel for the single-handed kennelmaid, in which all general routine can be got through quickly and thoroughly, leaving time for all the extras which are so desirable and yet sometimes so difficult to fit in.

Firstly, the shape of the kennel. When planning it I had in mind our temperate climate. I should think we are very lucky if we get more than two months really hot weather during the year, so I catered for the remaining ten.

An objection was raised to the kitchen being on the south side, but it is rather more than a kitchen, I think most kennel kitchens are; it is to be used for grooming and bathing, and being at the entrance would be seen by visitors, who simply love to peep into a cheerful clean domain. At one kennel I was in, we painted the interior pale yellow and blue; it was greatly admired.

Then the food question. Unless you live in the depths of the country, meat arrives daily, and if lightly cooked immediately (which takes a very short time) it should not go off even in hot weather.

Now the whelping kennels. I think the people [sic] who need the most sun are puppies in their very early days, when they begin to waddle about, but are too young for an outside run. The older puppies in the east and westerly kennels could be out of doors at mid-day, when the sun is off their windows.

It may be my fault, but in the printed plan some of the little ticks meant to indicate windows have got mislaid. There should be windows all round the inner passage and in all the kennels, letting the morning sun into the westerly kennels, and vice versa, but I should have thought this would have stood to reason.

Then the dogs on the north side. In a square, even if you are on the north, you must face south, so I think I'll leave them where they are too. It seems to me that in a square, with plenty of doors and windows, you have such good opportunities for ventilation in warm weather, and yet things can be made so snug in the cold.

Now blankets. I feel that if the dogs are dried (as suggested) before being kennelled [sic], blankets are no more likely to get damp than woodwork; and if, as I said, they are well aired, and have a disinfectant powder brushed into them, there wouldn't be much chance for "visitors" to make their cosy little shelters. I must say that some of the best-conditioned dogs I have seen always sleep on blankets.

Just one more point. My paddock would have to be a very big one before I encouraged rabbits to live in it. I can't imagine them having much fun with a lot of bouncing dogs at the top of their holes all day. I'm afraid my dogs would have to do their hunting out in the woods and moors, where there is plenty of room.' (600)

 

Relevant passages from article by Rockwell:

'I have read the article by a kennelmaid under the title of "My Ideal Kennel." As I make a hobby of planning houses, kennels and stables, I have read it with some attention, and I am going to be very unkind and say that it is a plan which, as far as I am concerned would be turned down at once.

To begin with, the square layout. Half the dogs would be boiled alive in summer and the other half frozen to death in winter. I can imagine nothing more boring, and nothing more likely to teach a dog to sit and bark aimlessly from that boredom, for it to have nothing but a yard and other kennels to look at. It makes for shyness too. Then all those aimless passages and doors. It seems to me to be designed for the saving ot the kennelmaid's legs. There is also air-stagnation in such an enclosure...

...

My kennels would be of wood. They would be placed side by side in the open, with each its run, and the dividing fences of link wire, so that the dogs could see each other, The kennels would be chosen from the many advertised, but they would be on wheels, so that they could be moved round according to the seasons...

...

[Regarding]... the range with the kitchen and the hospital... I would really spread myself. In my opinion, the kitchen should never be attached to any range of kennels. First, there is the fear of fire; secondly, ifyou must cook the dogs' food, and I do not believe in it except for specialised reasons, the smell of cooking keeps dogs restless, makes them noisy, and in faddy feeders takes the edge off their appetite.

My kitchen would have a hired electric cooker, and kettle, sink with hot and cold water, cupboard, food racks, and such gadgets as anyone can plan for themselves. And not a meat safe with its attraction for flies, but a refrigerator. (One can be got quite reasonably, if you know how!). The floor would be concrete, covered with a heavy linoleum.

...

I am wondering how "Kennelmaid" could have made such a blunder as to have even mentioned blankets. Perish the thought. Think of the look of it, think of hte damp if a dog comes in wet, and think of the cosy little shelters for the flea, the louse, and the little bed-bug. Woodwool and nothing else, and remember that this also makes a very efficient brush for dog's coats.

...

"Kennelmaid" will probably say that this method of distributing kennels in blocks will give her too much running about; but I should imagine that anyone who can build kennels more or less "regardless," could afford a boy to do the cleaning. The feeding-arrangement difficulty can be solved by having a wheeled trolley with enamelled shelves, which can be pushed along easily enough on the gravel paths which should run in front of each range. The whole place should be made dog-proof, and if you can encourage rabbits to live in the rough of the paddock, as I have done, so much the better. It will keep the dogs happy and amused, give them exercise, and cultivate sporting habits.' (551)