Quick outline
- Why I needed one
- What I bought and how it went together
- Cold nights test (with temps)
- Hot days test (yes, it matters)
- What I loved
- What bugged me
- Little fixes that helped
- Who should buy one
- Final take
Why I even bought this thing
I live near St. Paul, Minnesota. Winter bites here. My Lab mix, Maple, loves being outside, but she’s not a husky. She’s 65 pounds, short coat, big heart. I wanted a safe place for her during the day when I’m at work or running kids around. A blanket on the porch didn’t cut it. Snow blew sideways, and I felt guilty. You know that feeling in your gut? That.
I actually kept a day-by-day log of that first deep-freeze season—two winters, one stubborn Lab—which you can peek at right here.
What I picked (and what I also tried)
I settled on the ASL Solutions Dog Palace (the large one). It has foam in the walls and a heavy door. A friend had a Petmate Indigo (the igloo one), so I borrowed it for a week first. Real-world test beats guessing.
I also added a K&H Lectro-Soft Outdoor heated pad (medium). It has a thermostat and a chew-resistant cord. I’m careful with cords and dogs, so I wrapped the cord with a split rubber hose and ran it through the built-in port.
Setup: not hard, but I did grab my drill
The Dog Palace came in a big box. The pieces clicked, but a few pilot holes were shy, so I used my drill. Total time: about 35 minutes with a podcast going. I set it on two concrete pavers to lift it off wet ground and keep the floor dry. I faced the door south, away from the usual northwest wind. Little things matter.
The plastic door flap was loud at first. Maple hated it. She pushed it once and backed off like, “Nope.” I taped it half-open for two days. Treats helped. By day three, she barreled through like a champ.
Cold test: January nights
Real numbers: we had a stretch at -5°F to 10°F, wind chill near -20°F. I put a cheap sensor inside (Govee temp/humidity, the little Bluetooth one). With no heat pad, the house stayed about 10–12°F warmer than outside once Maple was inside. Add the heat pad on low, and it held around 45–50°F inside when it was 5°F outside. Not sauna hot, but safe and steady. Maple curled like a donut and snored. That sound is relief.
I tried straw instead of blankets. Blankets looked cozy but pulled in moisture and got cold. Straw held heat better and stayed dry. I used pine straw and swapped it every few weeks. My garage smelled like a barn in a good way.
If you want more seasonal safety pointers for outdoor pets, the resource library at Pet Care Services is a quick, reliable read.
Hot test: July sun
Weird thing—insulation helps in summer too. But the Dog Palace ran warm in direct sun. I popped the windows open (little side panels), took the door off, and slid the house under a maple tree (the tree, not the dog). I also added a small AC Infinity USB fan at the vent with a battery pack for the worst days. That kept it from turning into a slow cooker. When temps spike further, Maple sometimes opts to crash indoors on her cozy cave-style bed—see how that trial went in this write-up.
The Petmate Indigo did better in wind. Snow whipped around it, and the rounded shape shed it. But it was harder to clean and heavier to drag. The Dog Palace has a raised floor and a big door, so I could sweep it fast. I liked that more.
What I loved
- It actually stays warmer. Numbers don’t lie.
- Easy to clean. Lift door, sweep, done.
- The cord port for the heat pad felt safe and tidy.
- Maple used it on her own after that first week. No more coaxing.
What bugged me
- That flap door was loud and stiff. Tape trick worked, but still.
- A bit of condensation on the ceiling on super cold nights. I cracked a vent, which helped.
- Price. It stung. I had a small “oof” at checkout.
- Size runs large outside, tighter inside. Foam takes space. Measure your dog nose-to-rump and height at shoulders. Trust the tape, not your eyes.
Little fixes that helped
- I ran a thin bead of clear silicone at a couple seams. No drafts since.
- I put rubber stall mat scraps under the house feet to stop tiny rocking and add grip on ice.
- For chew risk, I slid the heat pad cord through PVC conduit to the outlet. Maple never bothered it.
- Straw instead of blankets in winter; bare floor + cot in summer.
Who this is for (and not for)
If your pup prefers roaming between indoors and outdoors on their own schedule, installing a sliding-glass-door pet door made a bigger difference for us than I expected.
- Good for: folks in cold areas, dogs that nap outside part of the day, people who want lower stress on bad weather days.
- Not great for: super-chewers who shred flaps, places with blazing full sun and no shade, or dogs who refuse tight spaces.
A quick word on the igloo one
The Petmate Indigo stayed put in wind and snow slid off like frosting. But cleaning the back was a pain, and the vent cap felt flimsy. My friend’s husky loved it; my Lab preferred the roomier doorway on the Dog Palace. Different dogs, different vibes.
Final take
I’d buy the ASL Solutions Dog Palace again. Not perfect, but solid. It kept Maple safe during two rough winters. On a raw January morning, seeing her nudge that door and settle in—honestly, that sold me more than any spec sheet.
Quick life hack: once Maple was happily dozing in her insulated palace and I found myself with a quiet house, I discovered SPDate as a way to meet new people in my area—it’s free to join and makes connecting with like-minded locals surprisingly easy, whether you’re after casual chats or something a bit more exciting.
Speaking of meeting locals, I recently road-tripped with Maple through New York’s Hudson Valley and learned that even small river towns can have lively, dog-friendly social scenes. If you’re ever around the area and curious about adult-only mixer events where well-behaved pups are welcome on the patio, the community calendar at Newburgh Swingers posts upcoming house parties and relaxed bar gatherings; browsing their listings lets you RSVP in advance, check pet policies, and get a feel for the crowd before you show up.
If you’re stuck between models, here’s my short rule:
- Windy yard and heavy snow? The igloo style works.
- You want easy cleaning, heat pad setup, and a big door? Dog Palace.
One last tip: put it on pavers, face the door away from the wind, and use straw. Small moves, big comfort.