Dog Shelf versus internal cabinets

[PubUltraStar]

I'm toying with the idea of having a shelf where my dogs can sleep, instead of having internal cabinets. I think that having a place where the dogs can be off the main mattress will create a better sleeping arrangement for my wife and I. I think I've seen this sort of bed of kids in some teardrops, but wanted to at least point my idea for people to comment. I suppose that the lack of storage, or place to mount electronics is the downside. Here are my derpy dogs, so you understand their size and what I'm dealing with.

[mezmo]

Nice lookin' dogs, but do you really want them to be jumping down
on top of you ? They might inadvertantly land in/on sensitive places
of you and yours. Besides, the dog-butt-in-your-face probability
would also be very high. Of course, it all depends on the dogs -
if they would even get into the bunk area or not ? Maybe a little
longer body to allow a 'dog area' at the head or foot of the people
mattress area would be a better approach. The front curved side-
to-side vertically could be a design approach for that.

[PubUltraStar]

Didn't think of the jumping down, but they are very well trained. Personally, with the limited amount of space on the main mattress, I would think that I'd get doggie-ass-in-the-face more so if I didn't have a dedicated place for them to rest. I suppose with only one dog, the area at the foot of the bed might be sufficient, but not with 2 larger dogs. Weimaraners are loyal, but needy dogs, who love to cuddle as much as possible. I'd hate to build my tear with a dog bed, waste the space, and not use it.

[IndyCubby]

First of all....those are two beautiful Weims! I have one myself and I'm absolutely head over heels in love with her. She's a bit of a "special needs" kind of girl as she is blind due to juvenile cataracts....been blind since about 3 yrs old....she's 9 now. Most people don't even know it, though, because she has adapted so well.

Anyway, I can't image tring to get her to sleep on a shelf in the camper as she insists on sleeping between us....all the time. Also, not sure how wide your camper is, but With the way she sprawls out when sleeping, I can't image 4 ft being enough length to be comfortable.....maybe 5 ft, but are you planning to have both dogs on one shelf? I've seen others do this shelf arrangement before, but it involved smaller dogs. Maybe it could work out for you if yours are trained well as you stated.

Please share details if you end up doing this. I'd be interested in seeing how it works out.

Btw, here's a pic of my girl Riley...


And another from Christmas....carrying around her elf.

[droid_ca]

what about a slide out use some heavy duty drawer slides and in a pinch when you don't have the dogs you could use it as a storage area
Gorgeous Dogs by the way love the silver ghosts

[absolutsnwbrdr]

You're on to something! My beagle isn't quite as big, but thats where hes "supposed" to sleep.



Works well for small children too!

[PubUltraStar]

I love weims, and she probably doesn't miss a beat even without sight!

Yup, this is what I was hoping to see. My dogs are a bit bigger, so I envision this in my head being a few inches bigger in depth. But, it's nice to see an example.

[mallymal]

Much as you might love your dogs, wouldn't being cooped up in such a small area be a bit 'dog breathy'??? I'd give em a stern talking to, tell em they're guard dogs now and make em sleep outside.

[S. Heisley]

Much as you might love your dogs, wouldn't being cooped up in such a small area be a bit 'dog breathy'??? I'd give em a stern talking to, tell em they're guard dogs now and make em sleep outside.

On occasion, I have come upon campgrounds that don't allow dogs to sleep outside unattended (no person within sight).

Just a thought: What about a slide-out section at the door? In other words, if you have two doors on your teardrop, use one to create a slide out, enclosed on three sides and the top, the width of the door entrance and just slightly shorter than the width and height of the trailer's interior so that you can pull it out and attach it to the floor on one end and put leg supports on the other end. This would also allow you to put a net-like gate across the inside so the dogs couldn't sneak onto your bed in the middle of the night; but, they'd still be safe, inside with you. The section could even have vents or small windows in it. Of course, you might want to make your doors a bit wider to accomplish this....It might work.... If it did work, you'd still be able to have shelf space for your clothes, etc.

[PubUltraStar]

Call me crazy, but I don't mind a little dog breath, as I love my little buddies. Great idea on the slide out. I'm thinking that this might work better for smaller dogs, as I'm not sure mine would want to try and squeeze into a cubby. Once I get that far on the build, I'll have to look at the space and make some decisions, but I think I'm going to go for the shelf. Not sure how often I'll be teardropping with my dogs, but this will make it easier to take them with. Thanks for the input.

[S. Heisley]

Call me crazy, but I don't mind a little dog breath, as I love my little buddies. Great idea on the slide out. I'm thinking that this might work better for smaller dogs, as I'm not sure mine would want to try and squeeze into a cubby. Once I get that far on the build, I'll have to look at the space and make some decisions, but I think I'm going to go for the shelf. Not sure how often I'll be teardropping with my dogs, but this will make it easier to take them with. Thanks for the input.

I think I'd start with the shelf, too; but, I'd put it at my feet and not at my head. Dog breath aside, I'm not fond of getting my head or even my hair stepped on in the wee hours of the morning by a big dog.

[DMcCam]

Hey Mike,

If memory serves, a few members have used some or all of the lower cabinet space in galley for the pups (no bulkhead from the upper cabinets to the deck). That way they can sleep at the foot of the bed and you still have the upper storage. There were a few others that made a tilt-out area or slide-outs for the four legged family members. Just more stuff to put in the idea bag.

All the Best,

Dave

[Junkboy999]

PubUltraStar


Sorry, I’ve been meaning to post this for a while but I lost the link. Took me another hour searching tonight
for it again now that I’m adopting a little puppy next week just before the Dam Gathering of the Tears.


This might not work for Two big dogs but One dog will work out fine. Look way down at the bottom on this Blog
for the small add on dog sleeping area, The Pet Pod. No reason you can’t make a larger slide out one just for the dogs.

Just an idea.

Edit. If you're still reading this I also made a small Pet Pod that fits in my Teardrop driver side Door. Is is not as nice as the pet pod in the link above buy worked for the 22 day trip I took to the Grand Canyon , CA to see friends, the 20th Dam gathering in CA, Washington to see friends, and back to kansas. It is a little bit of a pain to get out of the TD and place back in but it installed in the door easily enough. Here is the Link to my pet pod or dog bunk.