Why the sticker price is the last thing to compare?
A boarding facility, clinic or shelter buys kennels once and then lives with them for a decade or more. Two quotes can look identical on a spec sheet and still be different products. The difference shows up in year three, when a latch bends or a panel starts to hold odor.
These are the four questions that separate one system from another. Ask them in writing, and ask every supplier to answer on paper.
At a glance:
1. What grade is the steel?
2.How thick are the sheets, and is the glass the same?
3.What are the doors and panels made of?
4.How does it arrive, and who builds it?
What grade is the steel, 304 or 201?
"Stainless steel" is not a specification. Two suppliers can both say it and ship different metals.
201 stainless carries less nickel and more manganese than 304. It costs less and it does resist rust — but in a high-chloride environment, such as urine and salt-based cleaners, it can still pit over time.
304 stainless carries chromium and nickel through the full thickness of the metal. Scratch it, weld it, cut it, and the corrosion resistance is still there. It is the food-grade standard for surfaces that get hosed and disinfected every day.
Ask for the grade in writing on the quotation. A supplier who answers "stainless" without a number has not yet given you a comparable quote.
How thick are the sheets, and is the glass the same thickness?
Thickness is the easiest specification to fudge, and the one buyers ask about least. A thin sheet flexes under a dog's weight and drums when it is knocked. A thin glass panel is the first thing to give way.
There is a second question most buyers never think to ask: is the glass the same thickness as the panels, or did the supplier save money there?
In every model, the HDPE sheet and the tempered glass are the same thickness: 6 mm, or 1/4 inch. There is no thin spot in the wall. Ask for both numbers separately before you compare quotes — sheet thickness, and glass thickness.
What are the doors and panels made of?
Doors — tempered glass. Full visibility for monitoring without opening the run. Roughly four to five times stronger than ordinary glass, and when it does break it breaks into blunt fragments rather than shards.
Dividers — HDPE sheet with a glass upper panel, or HDPE sheet with a stainless wire mesh upper panel. The lower HDPE section takes the urine, the chewing and the daily hosing. The upper section is where you choose between glass and mesh: the glass build keeps runs visually separate and quiet, while the mesh moves more air.
HDPE Back panels — HDPE sheet. Non-toxic, chew resistant, and it does not absorb odor or moisture the way coated metal or wood does.
How does it arrive, and who builds it?
Flat-packed, panelized kennels ship in far less volume than fully assembled boxes, which decides your freight bill before anything else does. Ask for the packing method and the loading quantity per container for your size at the quote stage, not after.
Then ask how long assembly takes per unit. Our panelized models use a modular bolt-and-nut design: two people with basic tools finish a unit in about 15 to 20 minutes. Multiply that by your unit count and you have your install plan.
Common questions
Is 304 stainless overkill for an indoor facility?
Indoor means more humidity and more disinfectant, not less. The surfaces that get hosed daily are exactly the ones that benefit most.
Can I order different sizes in one shipment?
Yes. Multiple standard sizes cover small breeds through large, and mixed configurations ship together. OEM and ODM are available for size, panel color, logo and carton.
Send us your layout Send us your floor plan, how many runs you need, the largest breed you will house, and how you clean. We will come back with a recommended configuration, the loading plan and a per-unit price.
Request a kennel specification sheet and price list
See the stainless steel kennel with tempered glass doors and HDPE panels
All product images are actual photos of Famebest stainless steel kennels and enclosures.
