The “Tree of Life” is what the first residents of the Pacific Northwest called the stately Western Red Cedar. Its legendary durability made cedar nature’s gift for building ocean-going canoes, post-and-beam houses, ceremonial dance masks and ancestral totem poles, many of which have withstood centuries of weathering.

This exceptionally beautiful wood has natural coloring in mellow ambers, reddish cinnamons and rich sienna browns. Its warm coloring is complimented by a uniform, fine-grained texture with a satin luster.

Western Red Cedar grows in the coastal mountains from southern Alaska to northern California. Cedar grows in forests that are mixed with a variety of other tree species like Douglas Fir and Sitka Spruce. Western Red Cedar has one of the longest life spans of any North American softwood making it the ideal choice for outdoor wooden structures like our Western Red Cedar Dog Houses.

Western Red Cedar Durability

Western Red Cedar is classified as a durable wood by building codes across North America allowing it to be used in exterior applications without preservative treatments. In environmental testing by the USDA Forest Products Laboratory and the British Forest Products Research Lab, Western Red Cedar was found to have a "mean" life of 15-25 years after exposure to conditions that promote the growth of various
wood destroying fungi. The decay was measured by the weight loss over time. Weight loss is directly correlated to loss of strength and, therefore, durability. You can be sure that our Western Red Cedar
Dog Houses are built to last.

Western Red Cedar Dimensional Stability

Western Red Cedar has twice the stability of most commonly available softwoods. The even grain and relatively consistent density make it less likely to swell, warp, cup and twist than other soft and hardwoods. As a result, it lies flat, stays straight, and holds fastenings tightly.

Making your Choice

House of Hammocks has been selling these Western Red Cedar Dog Houses ince 1998 and we have never had an unhappy customer. Most orders ship within 48 hours and we promise the house looks better when you receive it than it does in the pictures!!

When it comes to dog houses, you get what you pay for. The weight of the house reflects the amount of wood used in its construction. Our large cedar dog house weighs 106 pounds while a similar design made of Eastern White Cedar only weighs 70 pounds.

Only the highest grade Western Red Cedar and Spruce lumber is used to construct our houses. The cedar does not require painting an it will turn grey with age. If you would prefer to preserve the rich red color, simply spray or paint the exterior with Thompson’s Wood Protector.

The house foundation is constructed with lifetime pressure treated lumber to help prevent rot and bug infestation on the surfaces touching the ground. Make sure that whatever cedar house you buy uses pressure treated lumber for the foundation or else it will likely rot within two years. As an option with our houses, you can purchase a
raised foundation upon which to place your house, thus preventing it from ever touching the ground.

The house framing is built with full-sized dimensional lumber and angle bracing for additional wind stability and multi-dog use. The roof panels are assembled with galvanized, ring shank headed nails so that rain and sun do not "curl" the roof panels upward. The house door is offset instead of centered, which provides a windbreak and a cooler spot out of the sun for your pet. A centered door on the front wall will overexpose your dog to foul weather and direct sunlight.

I hope this information has been helpful in your decision to buy a dog house. If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact us.