11. DETAIL DESIGN
MODEL GUIDELINES & RATES FOR CATS & DOGS
Area Temperature Temperature Set Ventilation Rate Air Change/Hr
Normal oC Back oC
Normal Boost
Sleeps Dog & Cat 18 15 6 8
Tray Wash/Food Prep 18 F 4 6
Laundry 18 F 4 10
Lobbies 18 F Natural -
Animal Corridors As adjacent animal area vent based on animal requirements above.
Staff Room 21 F 4 6
Shower Room 21 F As building regs 15 l/s with 20min over
run
Food Store 18 F 2 3-4
Wash & Groom 21 F 4 8
Office 21 F 4 -
Reception 21 F 6 60 l/s
50. If You Build It, They Will Come
• Choosing a Site
What to look for
What to avoid
• Layout Advice
51. Choosing a Site or Land
• Access
Visitors, workers,
deliveries
52. Choosing a Site or Land
• Access
Visitors, workers,
deliveries
• Access all year
53. Choosing a Site or Land
• Access
Visitors, workers,
deliveries
• Access all year
• Ground levels
54. Choosing a Site or Land
• Access
Visitors, workers,
deliveries
• Access all year
• Ground levels
• Services
55. CHOOSING A SITE OR LAND
NEIGHBOURS
THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR, PYLONS, TELEPHONE POLES, ETC
THIS MAY BE A LEGAL ISSUE & EVEN IF NOT A LEGAL ONE IT NEEDS TO BE THOUGHT OF
INTERMS OF GOOD WORKING RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR NEAREST NEIGHBOURS
56. CHOOSING A SITE OR LAND
FUTURE EXPANSION SPACE
THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR, PYLONS, TELEPHONE POLES, ETC
57. Choosing a Site or Land
• Neighbours
• Expand in future
• Be seen
58. Mistakes we have made:
• Shelter too far for visitors to travel
• Site too small
• Land poorly drained
63. PLANNING & DESIGN OF BUILDINGS
Store
Reception
Kitchen
Laundry Sluice
Kennels
Training
Exercise
64. Mistakes we have made:
• Too many pens in one building
• Not enough parking space
• Not enough storage space
• Not enough waiting space
• Public/private areas too close together
65. MISTAKES WE HAVE MADE
BUILDINGS WITH TOO MANY KENNELS
THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR, PYLONS, TELEPHONE POLES, ETC
70. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Plan ahead
• Put your non-animal
buildings next to
neighbours
71. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Plan ahead
• Put your non-animal
buildings next to
neighbours
• Do a land survey –
yourself or with a
professional
72. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Plan ahead
• Put your non-animal
buildings next to
neighbours
• Do a land survey –
yourself or with a
professional
• Limit size of animal
buildings
73. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Plan ahead • Design to avoid
• Put your non-animal unnecessary
buildings next to movement
neighbours
• Do a land survey –
yourself or with a
professional
• Limit size of animal
buildings
74. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Plan ahead • Design to avoid
• Put your non-animal unnecessary
buildings next to movement
neighbours • Build to highest
• Do a land survey – standards you can
yourself or with a afford
professional
• Limit size of animal
buildings
75. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Plan ahead • Design to avoid
• Put your non-animal unnecessary
buildings next to movement
neighbours • Build to highest
• Do a land survey – standards you can
yourself or with a afford
professional • Separate public from
• Limit size of animal private areas
buildings
76. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Use light coloured
floor wall
materials/finishes
77. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Use light coloured
floor wall
materials/finishes
• Use noise insulation if
possible
78. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Use light coloured
floor wall
materials/finishes
• Use noise insulation if
possible
• Always include
drainage
79. Summary for a Modern Shelter
• Use light coloured • Use solid partitions &
floor wall doors where possible
materials/finishes
• Use noise insulation if
possible
• Always include
drainage
80. Remember!
• You are the experts!
• Use your own knowledge to improve the
environment for your animals
Editor's Notes
Dear Delegate My name is Paul and I am the Project Surveyor for Dogs Trust I have worked for the trust for 10 years and I am responsible for the building projects that we carry out. My aim on this presentation is to help you to be able to understand some of the basic processes that you should think about when either building a new shelter or when you are doing up an existing shelter and as importantly to avoid some of the mistakes it is easy to make, ones which we ourselves have made in recent years. Through these subjects, my main focus will be on dogs and dog shelters; this is after all my area of understanding and experience. Most of what I will be talking about in layout and design is relevant for shelters dealing with any animals but when I turn to detail designs I am referring to dogs.
Design Expectations When we are first setting out to design a shelter we must remember the basics design expectations that we need to provide for the animals – whatever your individual circumstances are with regards to type of animal, location, environment, or finances the basics are the same and they are: Warmth, comfort and security Companionship, stimulation & opportunity to express normal behaviour Protection from disease, injury and distress Access to appropriate exercise Provision for appropriate feeding You all of course know these basics but it is best to keep reminding ourselves of them as we develop the design.
We can breakdown the overall design into various categories all of which will have a relationship with each other and with our original design expectations
Do you know how big your food store room should ideally be for example? – how many square meters? If you cannot answer a question like this, do some research and measure and record it. And so it is important to start making a list right from the start of all of these rooms that you think you will need and the sizes of them. Think about the furniture you will choose to have in each area and the floor space that it will take up.
Pen Sizes The size and layout of your pens will vary from shelter to shelter according to what you have built previously and what your funds will allow you to build. There is no right or wrong These are standards which have been accepted as being appropriate in the UK for licensed boarding kennels and those which Dogs Trust use as their minimum requirement
Sizes: Kennels must have a minimum height of 1.8m so that the animal carers can get in without having to bend over. Kennels for single dogs should have a sleeping area of at least 2.0sq.m. Depends of course on how many dogs you intend to house in each pen. We now adopt a minimum sleep area per kennel of 3.5 sq m to ensure that we can always house at least two dogs together. Space permitting, good idea to have at least one oversized pen to cater for giant breeds or groups of dogs coming in together should you wish to house them together initially at least. It is sensible not to make your pens too big as you will spend too much time keeping them clean and of course the larger they are the more they cost to build
Temperature Control We need to ensure that there is adequate temperature control within not only the pens but the other buildings as well The pens need to provide a level of comfort that will be suitable to your environment. In cold countries heating will obviously be more important than the hot countries where trying to keep the animals cool will be more of a priority
In the UK the min and max temperatures that we design to are Min 7C Max 26c Average of 18-21C The chart shows temperature guidelines for boarding kennels from different countries
There are many options available when it comes to the type of heating that you use, from a simple infra red heat lamp to radiators to underfloor heating Insulating sleeping areas will help to keep the animals warm and prevent extremes of temperature and heat loss.
Ventilation is as important as heating It helps with: disease control protects against smell accumulation prevents excessive humidity of the atmosphere
Ventilation is measure in litres / second of air that comes into the room or by the number of air changes per hour within t he room This chart shows what the guidelines are for the amount of air changes that specific areas will need.
Ventilation can be achieved by electric fans and vents but wherever possible try to achieve what you need by using natural ventilation
Wherever possible try to achieve your ventilation needs through a passive system.
Lighting Animals require mental stimulation and therefore the use of sight plays its part in stimulation. I have seen many pens for dogs with no natural light and therefore the dogs are in darkness during much of the day. Ideally of course we should all avoid this situation.
Get as much natural light into the animal housing and staff areas as possible. Artificial light is also important of course to make all parts of the shelter sufficiently visible. You will be working with and moving animals around before and after dark so design your lighting carefully. BUT make sure you where you can that you control the lights and not the staff as they will always leave lights on when not needed Power generally – provide enough power supplies/sockets to all areas (careful in wet areas, make sure the sockets are appropriate for wet areas.
One of the biggest problems that all shelters have is with drainage of rainwater Unless you live in a very dry country you can guarantee that images like this are common and all of our centres at times suffer from the same problem I realise that your situation may require your money to be concentrated on what you provide above ground at your shelter. Please do be aware that the welfare and health of your animals can be greatly affected by a lack of thought on how you will deal with and get rid of waste water. Even if you have no option but to discharge your wash down water straight into the ground, you can make the working environment better by understanding the various ways of disposing of waste.
We try to solve these problems using simple solutions Increase the path areas Use different surfaces and materials Introduce simple French drains
There are a number of different solutions for your internal drainage Open drains cast in concrete are one of the more simple solutions - Be careful though where these are used – think about the contact between the waste and animals and humans Closed drains with removable grids are a good solution will costs more may need more time for cleaning
Sewage disposal - This is split between the solid faeces and the urine No one yet has found a way to compost dog pooh so in the UK it has to be treated with all the human waste in the main sewage treatment plant How do you get rid of your sewage? Do you have a system that separates the solid from the liquid or do you do this
You may have legal requirements for the discharge of sewage or not. But we all have a moral requirement. Any poorly constructed system will not only affect your site but could have far reaching consequences with pollution to water supplies/courses and contamination to neighbouring land.
There are a number of options Sewers, Cesspool, Septic Tanks and Sewage Treatment Plants Sewers – if you can connect into a public sewer and you are legally allowed to then this is the best option Speak to local authority, is a public sewer within reachable distance. Can you economically and legally attach to it. What permissions need to be sought. Pumped sewage system Ideally all drainage systems should work by gravity with the effluent running into the sewer. If a public sewer is available, it may be that it is at a distance away or at a level in relation to your shelter necessitating the need to pump the effluent under pressure, uphill through small bore pipes. Pumps are generally submersible, electrically operated and require relatively little maintenance. Installation cost can vary tremendously. Make sure the supplier understand what the pumps will have to cope with – the amount and type of solid material. Install hair traps or filters to prevent dog hairs from entering/blocking the pumps. Site the pumps system close to an access point as it will need to be cleaned out periodically Cesspool A cesspool is an underground watertight storage reservoir which is normally used for domestic purposes but properly sized can be used for shelter operations. They hold between 18,000 to 45,000 litres. Before installing you must carefully establish the volume of liquids entering it and the costs of pumping it out. This sealed system tends to be adopted where the ground conditions do not allow the use of septic tanks which discharge treated water into the ground. Cesspools will need to be emptied usually every 4 to 6 weeks which can be expensive to dispose of. Ensure you have good access for the tanker and also make sure that no rainwater enters the tank
Septic or settlement tank Differ from cesspools in having an outlet allowing the effluent to soak away naturally using drainage pipes or directly into a stream or river. Preferred method is to lay a series of underground pipes from the outlet of the septic tank which are either open jointed , porous or perforated. Must check if the use of such a system requires a licence. The ground into which the liquid is ultimately discharged requires a porous subsoil. You will need to carry out a porosity test to establish if ground will support this system – use a local engineer or builder who knows the local ground conditions. Septic tank should be airtight, as the treatment is carried out by breaking down the solids by means of anaerobic bacteria and decomposes the organic matter into methane and carbon dioxide. The heavy sludge falls to the bottom of the tank and will periodically need to be sucked out (every 3 to 9 months depending on quantity of input and size of primary tank). Tanks can be constructed from brick or concrete but can be bought as pre-formed units made from glass reinforced plastic.
Treatment plant Various mechanical systems which tend to be used where there is a strict control locally on the quality of any sewage water which can be discharged back into the ground or into a water course. There are a range of systems available but all work in the same way. In simplistic terms sewage water is passed over a biological growth which oxidises and treats the sewage. These systems need constant power and regular checking and maintenance to make sure all the moving parts are functioning correctly. They still require emptying of settled sludge or solids as with septic tanks. Most plants will have a reduction in efficiency during winter or in any temperatures below 10C – the metabolism of the bacteria decreases rapidly.
Reed Beds These are becoming increasingly popular, and we now use them at a number of centres, as a method of providing secondary treatment after the effluent has initially been deposited into a septic or settlement tank. It has the benefits of low maintenance, economic to construct and provides high levels of purification. Act largely by filtration though grades of gravel media with the assistance of the micro organisms living in the root structure of the reeds planted within the gravel or sand surface. Helpful hints: Its important to have the design of the reed beds carried out by someone with a good knowledge of how they work. They are a ‘living’ organic machine and as such need to be looked after as you would any garden. If not maintained properly they will fail and die. Disinfectants can dramatically compromise effectiveness of some treatment plants and reed beds– can destroy micro organisms
Faeces Disposal Disposal of animal faeces might seem a simple problem to overcome, but from experience it can be logistically difficult, expensive and time consuming. Options are: Main sewer – as with sewage water Biological treatment plant/septic tank – as with sewage water. Can the plant handle the quantity and type of organic load Landfill – you need to check the regulations and restrictions on clinical waste going to landfill Incineration – outlawed in UK unless using a registered and licensed incineration plant. We used to be able to incinerate soiled bedding at our centres but can no longer do so. Composting – all animal waste will decompose naturally but the process is slow. Decomposition of animal waste requires it to be mixed with some form of carbonaceous material such as straw, chipbark or newspaper. Optimum temperature for composting to take place is around 55C for decomposition and the control of pathogenic bacteria.
Noise & Stress Reduction If there is one thing that raises more complaints than any other then it is dogs constantly barking! We have to design our shelters to reduce this to the best of our ability The positive effects of this are beneficial to the dogs just as much as they are to the humans
There are a a number of methods that can be used to help reduce noise and stress: Design of the shelter layout The design of the pens Materials used in the pens Screening of exercise areas Landscaping In this slide it shows how at our Leeds centre we have seperated the viewing kennels from the holding kennels and tried to have as much distance as possible between the kennels areas. Try to have the pen runs not overlooking each other and where they do have them screened off.
The top photos show a shelter that has no screening between the pen runs The dogs have no privacy and so can spend all day ‘shouting’ at their neighbours and across the site In the bottom picture the side fencing is filled in so the dogs don’t fence run and have the ability to hid away a bit This will lead to less noise and less stressed dogs which in turn will be easier to rehome.
Kennel or animal housing buildings by their very nature have poor acoustic properties –hard smooth surfaces needed to keep hygienic do not absorb noise and so any noise generated tend to reverberate around the inside of the building. Practical methods to reduce noise levels: Install acoustic ceiling and wall baffles
Install separation doors to reduce disturbance to other areas Try to construct partitions between buildings out of solid concrete block to reduce transmission of noise between sections/buildings Avoid long straight corridors. Linear kennels tend to increase amount of excitability of dogs within the building by being aware of staff/visitors but not able to see them. Metal pen divisors/partitions can generate excessive reverberation times. Consider other solid materials.
Site kennels as far away from neighbours as possible Look at earth bunds or mounds around buildings (can come from site excavations). Needs to be 2.5m high with planting over it. Consider surrounding geography – are you in a valley with prevailing wind taking noise to a sensitive neighbour. Put non-kennelling building closest to neighbour.
Minimise amount of disturbance to animals from non-shelter staff. Look at planting trees and bushes around site. Not a great noise barrier but can act as visual barriers to prevent animals from seeing each other
Having units of 10 or less dogs helps reduce noise and also means dogs get to know who is sharing the block with them.
Stress Reduction Measures Stress is caused by physical or mental situations over which the dog has no control. Whilst many more dogs may enjoy being able to see each other, some will need the extra privacy and protection of their space that is provided by having a partial wall or solid panel area to the front of the kennel rather than totally open mesh or bar. Without doubt the best stress reduction method we have installed is fully glazed front screen. This is where the public can see the dog from but because of the glass screen the dogs fell safe and unthreatened You can achieve the same effect but using cheaper framing materials
Materials The first general comment to make on materials is that, given the choice, you should use materials of reasonable cost but which are able to withstand constant use. Avoid using wood on surface of structures of kennel interiors due to possibility of damage to it caused by scratching by animals. Worn and splintered material is difficult to clean, harbours bacteria, viruses etc and allows splinters to penetrate the animals skin. Easy to clean surfaces are an important factor in hygiene and safe practice management. If you need to use wooden buildings for animal housing, do whatever you can to line the inside of the pens with smooth and impervious materials.
All internal surfaces used in construction of walls, floors, partitions, door and door frames must be durable, smooth and impervious. There must be no projections or rough edges liable to cause injury. Where concrete or other blocks or brick are used they can be sealed with a paint finish which will help to prevent the surface being able to harbour bacteria and viruses. Junctions between vertical and horizontal sections should be coved to assist in the daily cleansing and avoid dirt traps where infection may be hard to control otherwise
Floor materials must be smooth and impervious and incorporate a damp proof membrane. Floors must be constructed and maintained in such a condition as to prevent ponding of fluids. Should also be readily cleanable whilst providing sufficient grip for the animal to walk or run without sustaining injury. We now routinely use tiles as we have found that they fulfil all of these design requirements
Floor falls to be laid to a minimum of 1 in 80 (we now adopt at least 1 in 60) and leading to a shallow drainage or effectively covered deep drainage channel. Drainage channels should be provided near to kennel edge so that urine is not allowed to pass over walk areas in corridors.
Pop hatches, if having them be careful of the detailing as dogs may be able to lift the hatches from inside the sleep area. If not snug then the hatches may provide too much opportunity for heat escape when shut. Make them tall enough for large breeds – 600mm high. We have made this mistake before.
Fencing material for exercise areas for dogs must be escape proof and safe. Galvanised welded mesh is recommended with wire diameter not less than 2.0mm and mesh size must not exceed 5.0cm.
For pen fronts if using bars or mesh, again set your standard for bar spacing and bar size e.g. 8mm bar diameter at 50mm centres for adult dogs. Gaps no narrower than 35mm for puppies.
Glass fronted kennels – they have proven to be one of the best design choices we have made The dogs are undoubtedly far happier, relaxed and quieter when compared with the kennels that have bars to them.
Exercise runs – we have over the years tried a variety of different surfaces for exercise runs Concrete , grass and recently sand The sand runs with a concrete apron have proved to be a a very useful all year round addition as they are free draining and as importantly are loved by most of the dogs that have used them.
Path widths – if you choosing to lay hard paths to get around the shelter, think about how wide they need to be to allow people to pass one another with animals. 1.5m wide would be a minimum suggestion. Mistakes we have learnt from: Chain link fencing in small exercise pens Falls too shallow Fencing height to exercise areas (unattended) Pens too small for comfortable multi-occupancy Pop hatches too low Paths too narrow
Its not all about building from expensive materials with state of the art design Some of our dogs have had bad experiences associated with humans & prefer not to live with people. These now live in our sanctuary. This large secure field with a communal shelter allows up to 20 dogs to roam and form a natural hierarchy. They are tended by a small group of experienced staff who look after their feeding, health & wellbeing. Here they can avoid any contact with stangers.
Choosing a Site or Land When starting a shelter from nothing, choosing the correct site for your requirements is always both the most important and at the same time the most difficult decision to be made. If you are in a position where you have some choice where you put your shelter, there are so many considerations to put together to make sure that the decision is right and is being made for the right reasons. I suggest you begin by asking yourself several questions which may not immediately come to mind: What is the main purpose that the centre will perform? Long term care of animals, short term, rehoming Where do you see yourself in 10 years time, not just say two years down the line. Is there room for expansion. How important to your success is ease and speed of accessibility - for visitors, staff and deliveries. Must you have living accommodation at the shelter. Do you want it, need it, have to have it to comply with a shelter licence if you need one. Your situation may lead you to look at land which is bare and has no buildings on it at present or land which does have some structures and services already attached to it
Purchase of site with existing buildings. For us, this may be an existing animal housing facility – kennels, farm etc –recently for us it has been small farms. Making use of existing buildings can of course reduce initial costs of building but our experience is that this will involve compromise on how you want your shelter to be laid out and compromise on the housing for the animals. We have purchased or acquired existing kennels before or sites with existing buildings but will not compromise on kennelling. So we now decide that for us, existing buildings are very useful but will only choose to use them for people housing, or non-animal housing uses e.g. storage garaging etc. and therefore invest most of our available funds in purpose designed and built pens for the animals in our care. If a piece of land you are looking at has existing buildings of whatever type or form of construction e.g. garages/wooden sheds – and you need to use them. Think about the overall layout of your shelter you want to end up with before deciding how you will use those existing buildings. This may help you decide whether they would be best used as animal housing or for some other use.
Whether you are looking at bare land or built land, the site choice considerations in both cases are the same.
Access and space/turning/parking for vehicles (visitors, staff, deliveries)
Year round accessibility – both getting to site and on site e.g. does land in question suffer from flooding or heavy snow fall so is unusable for certain parts of year.
Topography. For example excessively sloping land can give you serious construction problems and may prove to be expensive to solve.
Supply of services. Electricity, gas, water, drainage, communications (telephone). If any not currently present, can they be brought in or if cost prohibitive what are available alternatives. May need expert to calculate power requirements fro example.
Neighbours – noise. This may be a legal issue for you and even if not a legal one it needs to be thought of in terms of good working relations with your nearest neighbours.
Future expansion space – make sure you have designed this in from the outset.
Visibility. Is prominence important? Will you be relying on people seeing you as they go about their day to day business.
Purchase of bare site or land which has little or no buildings on it at present. If funds are permitting, this is generally preferable and has long term advantages if building over an extended period. Gives you a blank sheet to design exactly as you want with buildings in the location you want in relation to each other. Mistakes we have made: Site/land too remote for our target audience Land area ultimately too small – not enough free space to create exercise areas. Poor drainage
Layout Considerations So, once the most important decision has been taken location, lets now turn to thinking about the layout of your shelter. Again this will dependant on what you want from your shelter. Carry out full land survey to help in decision making on layout. An accurate map of the land is vitally important to help in setting out your shelter. High areas, low areas, aspect, construction problem are all more likely to be understood and minimised with the benefit of a survey. If you can use a professional surveyor then this is advisable but if you can’t then creating as accurate a plan as you can yourself will still be a useful thing to have to hand when designing your shelter layout.
Begin by listing everything that will take up space, go down to the smallest detail room by room and outside area by outside area.
Always have to compromise – particularly if building on a site where there are existing buildings. The skill is in ending up with the least amount of compromise as possible – very dependant on what you need from your shelter. Efficiency of work – think about this when sketching your ideal layout. For example placing the animal housing as close as you can to service area (food preparation, store rooms etc). Other cross infection considerations for layout, e.g. isolation or hospital pens. Be mindful of the risk of daily activities around your shelter being unnecessarily close to your isolation/hospital pens. Areas to consider for inclusion in your design are: NB Scroll slides Staff living accommodation Offices Parking Access Deliveries Zoning Viewing Admissions Isolation/Hospital Vet examination/treatment room Toilets – visitors and staff Laundry Kitchens (staff and animal) Staff rest room Storage Plant room space Refuse External exercise areas Any other room uses? – bath & grooming, lecture, education, training
If phasing the building of the shelter whether by choice or because of cashflow restrictions, you need to list all of the above in priority. Bearing in mind how they are linked –can’t have one without the other eg plant room space, storage etc. This will help you to plan what you must provide from the outset and what elements of the shelter may be left for a future building project. Can you double up on the use of certain rooms, without compromising daily routines, hygiene and cross infection. E.g. laundry and kitchen in same room, grooming and vet inspection area together – only you can decide knowing the source of your animals.
Think about the relationship between the different areas What needs to be close to each other and what cant be next to each other?
Not enough parking space
Inadequate storage
Inadequate visitor reception space
Lack of acoustic control measures No of kennels per building – if possible keep below around 20 pens or at least have separating door between banks of 20 pens. The more pens in one area, the more potential problems you will experience in welfare, disease control and flexibility of use.
Plan ahead. Purpose designed and constructed facilities are hard to beat Site non-animal buildings next to potential neighbours to act as barriers to help screen and reduce noise levels
Have a professional land survey carried out. This is the only way to plan a large site
Small modular units. Keep the numbers of dogs in any one building to a small number ie maximum of 10-15
Design kennels to reduce the amount of traffic in a building. Avoid long linear buildings which is a recipe for increased noise levels
Build to the highest standard you can afford. Well constructed kennels Are easier to maintain, clean and offer better disease control.
Design to ensure that public does not have total freedom to view all the buildings. Dog need to have an inner sanctum free from disturbance
Install light coloured floor/wall finishes. This removes the prison like appearance
Install good quality acoustic insulation to the ceilings. The results can be remarkable.
Design floors to ensure that they drain adequately so avoiding the problem of standing water. A damp warm environment is a breeding ground for disease
Install solid partitions/doors where possible
You should always be on the lookout for an idea that will improve your shelter and raise your standards. Remember, you know your animals and how to care for them, you are the experts so use your knowledge to improve the environment for your animals and for you as well.
