Earthbag for Dogs
So you've built yourself an indestructible, cute, smurf-like, hobbitesque Aladdin's cave earthbag house. You've grown your own veg and munch them for breakfast, lunch and dinner, you've got solar power, water gushing out of taps, a kitchen, a composting toilet and a zeer fridge. Now what? The beauty of the off-the-grid, independent, low cost lifestyle is after about two years you find you can do pretty much what you like. So why not build your dog an earthbag house too?
Once again, dig a trench for the foundations. You don't want your doggie to get a wet bottom. If you can find a fine-looking digger to take his shirt off as well, so much the better.
Here we go again. Out comes the ingeniously designed bag-holder.
Kieran takes the flying saucer approach to tamping here. We still have no idea how this marble disc began life, but we do know it ended its days as an earthbag tamper.
When you start to get tired, fear not. There's always someone who wants to learn to build earthbag houses, and what better way to learn than via a mini dog version?
Cheers Zeynep and Baran! |
Fill the trench with stones. Your dog will intuitively know this is her home and snuggle in it. The neighbour's dog may take a shine to it, too. 'Apo! Get your own house, you ol' lump.'
This is why you want a bag-holder.
Purple slippers are also a great earthbagging accessories. 
Barbed wire between layers, for extra stability. Now your doggie house is earthquake-proof. (Can't be too careful).
Moving up the layers.
Urgh! |
And that is as far as we've got. Hopefully, next month we'll see it plastered. In the meantime . . .
You'll find everyone is gravitating to your dog's new mudkennel; your neighbours, friends, even you.
And that's just the way it is with earthbag houses.
And that's just the way it is with earthbag houses.
