Published: March 10, 2009 11:52 pm      

Give a dog a home: Ferndale students construct doggie domiciles

Students at Ferndale Area High School are constructing doghouses for Habitat for Hounds, an animal-welfare organization in Johnstown.

Technology education teacher Brandon Manack said 22 of his students were putting roofs on the houses Tuesday.

The students – mostly ninth-graders and several 10th-graders – began building the pet shelters three weeks ago and are in the final stages of construction. Twelve doghouses, about 2 feet wide and 4 feet long, are being built.

The canine dwellings are made from treated lumber and are shingled.

Valerie Kasper, a reading teacher at Ferndale’s junior high school and a Habitat for Hounds member, said the organization raised about $600 to purchase materials needed to build the doghouses.

They will be given to people who can’t afford a doghouse, she said.

Those who want to be considered for one of the houses should call Habitat for Hounds at 266-7384.

One of the organization’s main objectives is to make sure all outside dogs have proper shelter, Kasper said.

Manack said his students are learning valuable lessons from the work.

“They are experiencing how a real-life project goes from start to finish,” he said.

The students designed the doghouses and are completing their construction.

“They are eager to do the work, and they are enjoying it,” Manack said.

The students work together and each has had a role in constructing each of the houses, Manack said.

This is the second year his students have built doghouses for Habitat for Hounds.

The project began after Kasper moved back to the area after 20 years elsewhere. She began teaching at Ferndale Area and became a Habitat for Hounds volunteer.

Kasper also spearheaded the fundraising for the doghouses built last school year for Habitat.