How to build a Garage Dog Condo | DIY Garage Dog Condo

DIY Garage Dog Condo

*Disclaimer – I started the post a few years ago but near got around to finishing it…until now!

After losing our sweet 4 pound Yorkie Ruby Sue this summer we knew that we would always want another dog for our family.  After much consideration we ultimately decided on another yorkie boy.

Our previous Yorkie used to stay in her crate in our master bedroom when we were gone from the house and we always had a lot of guilt about the times  that we were gone for a large amount of time.  We knew that we didn’t want to crate our new dog when we were not home, so we started to research what else we could do for our new puppy when we were not home.  Now, a note, our new yorkie still sleeps in her crate in our master bedroom at night…this was only for the times in which we were gone from the house working or running errands.

So we couldn’t find exactly what we wanted so we decided to build a Garage Dog Condo.   Fortunately we have a larger three car garage with not a lot of stuff in it.  Usually we can park one car and our small boat in there, so we knew we wanted to keep the space for those two things.

Picking an area for the condo

We decided to make our condo in the middle of the garage in a 5ft x 5ft area.  That way we would still have room for storage, one car and our boat.  We also knew we wanted a window in it to house a mini window unit air conditioner.  It gets so hot here in Houston!

We used 2×4 boards from Lowe’s for all the framing, making sure to leave a 36in. opening for the door.  We also purchased a  24in. window from Lowe’s.  Then we started the framing…and by we I mean my husband. He is good at woodworking and things like this.

Starting the Build

We got the door for a local resale shop for fairly cheap.  We figured it didn’t need to be super nice since it would be in the garage.  We liked how this door included the glass windows.

After the door and window was installed we wrapped the whole room with outdoor wooden plywood siding.  It was easy to piece together and didn’t require any paint to look nice and professional.

Next we framed the window from the outside and will paint it the same color as the siding on the garage.

Since we were installing an air-conditioner we insulated the little room to keep the cool air in.

After that we installed a peel and stick vinyl floor from Lowe’s that can be easily wiped down and cleaned….you know in case of little accidents.

And voila….the completed Garage Doggy Condo!  Our dog loves it and so do we.  Sometimes puppies need a break from all the excitement and need a place to calm lay down and rest.

Edit:  Since we made this condo we got another furry family member, Wagner.  Well he is a bit smaller than the golden doodle and had a problem seeing out the window in the condo.  So we built stairs.  And put some yorkie photos up for decor.  Is there no end to our ridiculousness…I guess not.  But this was a fun project regardless.

DIY Garage Dog Condo

photography: Emily Crump Photography