and have no one around to take care of your dog during the day, what do you do?
We are going to get a puppy and we both work. I will be with it for a couple of months over the summer, but then FH and I will both be working.
No one will be around to feed and let the dog out, so what should I do from 7 am to 2:30 pm?
MrsTC
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Re: Those of you that work all day
Well, what kind of puppy are you going to get? If it is a small dog, you can train it to go on wee wee pads. But not with a large breed dog. Tiny puppies have to be walked at least every 4 hours until they are old enough. Casey is almost 8 months and she can go about 8 or 9 (eek) hours without peeing. My DH used to come home and walk her at lunch bc he works nearby - any chance you guys could do that? Or is there someone you know that could?
cocoa
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Re: Those of you that work all day
believe me...they'll be fine. i suggest crate training b/c puppies like to chew and you don't want him or her to chew electric cords. also, some dogs are great leapers or escape artists and can find ways out. but he or she will be fine don't worry.
BriBri529
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Re: Those of you that work all day
Posted by cocoa
believe me...they'll be fine. i suggest crate training b/c puppies like to chew and you don't want him or her to chew electric cords. also, some dogs are great leapers or escape artists and can find ways out. but he or she will be fine don't worry.
we were going to do the crate training bit, but aren't you also supposed to primarily train the dog to go outside? Doesn't that get confusing for the dog?
We are going to get a yorkie and the idiot's guide says not to train the dog to go to the bathroom in their crate, just outdoors.
How did you go about crate training your dog and was it confusing to the dog to be trained to do both?
reg426
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Re: Those of you that work all day
bri crate training is all about training the dog to go outside and NOT in the crate -the theory being that the dog will not want to pee/poop where it sleeps. it supposedly works very well with the crate eventually becoming the place that the dog considers its own space - like your bedroom when you were a kid.
we got a dog from the aspca and we went through a lot with crate training our dog. unfortunately, we had to return the dog for other reasons- nobody to walk her. :o( we planned on hiring a dog walker but that was going to cost $25 a day. if you live in the city and are thinking about that or doggie day care as an option, keep in mind that they are both very expensive. we loved this dog we adopted, but it just wasn't fair to her to be home alone all day.
in any event - crate training supposedly works very well with most dogs.
good luck!
nyk825
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Re: Those of you that work all day
we work and leave the dog alone for more like 10-11 hours. I felt terrible and was about to return the dog when the vet reassured me that it was ok and that dogs only sleep. We are crate training. She is not even four months and she doesn't go to the bathroom in the house at all. she goes to the back door. however, when she is in the crate for that long she obviously goes to the bathroom in it. The vet said that when she got older and could hold it that she would eventually stop going to the bathroom in the crate. right now she is just too young.
lesleyw
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Re: Those of you that work all day
When we got our pup he was 8 weeks old. We set-up an ex-pen around his crate and put papers down in it since we knew we would have to be away for 4 hours at a time and he wouldn't be able to hold it until we came home for lunch. When he got a little older, we took the papers away and crated him in the morning, came home at lunch to walk him, then crated him again until the evening. He never messed his crate. Now that we know he can hold it all day, we leave him in his crate with his ex-pen around it to give him a little more room during the day and he holds it all day.
Kelly9904
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Re: Those of you that work all day
We got our puppy at 12 weeks old. I have never crated my other dogs so I didnt really want to start. So we used baby gates to block her in the kitchen, that worked for about 1 week! We have a JRT mix and she is crazy about being confined so no matter what we did, she would be over that gate w/o a problem! To the point that she would actually just go back and forth to get her toys or go get water etc. So we then started using the baby gate to block her out of the den (this apparently doesnt bother her) and we close all the bedroom doors! This gave her access to the living room, dining room and kitchen. (where we have tile or wood floors)
As far as her house training, for the first 2 weeks we would come home to accidents. Never anything too bad usually just pee. Every time we reprimanded her and put her out right away (mind you we never caught her in the act) after about 2 weeks the regular accidents stopped. She is now 7+ months old and has only about about 3 or 4 accidents in the house since then. We didnt use papers or pads (honestly I just had no idea how to go about training with any of that) We were lucky because yelling at her and hitting her on her butt seemed to work quickly! I work too far from home to come home at lunch and DH did it at first but he gets too busy at times to leave. So now she is home about 11 hours each day without us and I never worry about an accident! On Friday our puppy was home alone from 730 am until 915 pm and she had no problems.
Also try to get into a routine with the dog. For instance we feed her once our alarm goes off at 630 am. This gives her an hour to get it all through her system so she doesnt have to hold it all day, we also feed her less in the Am than we do at night. After we feed her she usually either plays with her toys or goes back to bed. Then at 7 she goes outside, we let her in and will actually let her out again just before we are ready to leave.
Dogs are really fine beign home alone for extended periods of time! Especially once they get into their routine! They will get into trouble though if they have the opportunity! Whoever mentioned the electrical cords has a GREAT point though. Our dog has now chewed through 3! luckily she got htem out of the wall before going through the cord! Thats why she is not allowed in the Den without supervision! I dont knwo if she would still do it but I dont want to take the chance right now!
lesleyw
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Re: Those of you that work all day
I just want to add that if you crate train your dog correctly the benefits go beyond just house training. Because our dog is crate trained we were able to take him on an over-night trip to NJ when he was 5 months old. We went out to dinner and visited family and he was fine because he was safe and comfortable in his crate. We're also able to take him into NYC to visit DH's sister. We take him out and play with him in the dog parks. Then we take him back to the apartment (which is small and not puppy-proofed) and he takes a nap in his crate while we go out to dinner. So if you want to be able to take your dog places crate training is a really good idea.
woozshle
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Re: Those of you that work all day
When I worked we trained our Yorkie to use the wee wee pads. Bruno did start to use them, but then I noticed that when I came home nothing was on the pads. I was gone from 8:45 to 5:15. He waited for me to take him out. If it snowed bigger than him, I didn't take him out & he'd go on the pad. He'll be 4 the end of this month and I don't have to work anymore but we still keep pads out so we don't feel like we're torturing him if we go out all day and night.
Kelly9904
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Re: Those of you that work all day
Posted by lesleyw
I just want to add that if you crate train your dog correctly the benefits go beyond just house training. Because our dog is crate trained we were able to take him on an over-night trip to NJ when he was 5 months old. We went out to dinner and visited family and he was fine because he was safe and comfortable in his crate. We're also able to take him into NYC to visit DH's sister. We take him out and play with him in the dog parks. Then we take him back to the apartment (which is small and not puppy-proofed) and he takes a nap in his crate while we go out to dinner. So if you want to be able to take your dog places crate training is a really good idea.
If you train your dog correctly, you can get these benefits with or without the crate. You dont need to crate train to be able to take your dog places. Our pup has stayed overnight without us at my ILs with no problems (which included them going out for hours and leaving her alone) and she has spent expended periods of time at 2 other homes (none of which would I call puppy proof).
I do agree that crate training can be benificial if that is what you choose to do. But it is not the only option.
lesleyw
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Re: Those of you that work all day
Posted by Kelly9904
If you train your dog correctly, you can get these benefits with or without the crate. You dont need to crate train to be able to take your dog places. Our pup has stayed overnight without us at my ILs with no problems (which included them going out for hours and leaving her alone) and she has spent expended periods of time at 2 other homes (none of which would I call puppy proof).
I do agree that crate training can be benificial if that is what you choose to do. But it is not the only option.
I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving my pup in an unpuppy-proofed, unfamiliar room alone no matter how well trained he is. It's just too dangerous, who knows what he could get into, why take the risk? Maybe when he is a little older it would be fine, but at the places I have taken him, there's just way too much he could get into that could really hurt him. For instance, my SIL has a studio apartment, so there would be no way to isolate an area and leave him there safely. It sounds like you don't have those problems and that's great. I just wanted to share the added benefit of crate training is that it makes your puppy really mobile. I have had a really positive experience with crate training. My pup took to it really well and when he gets tired he climbs right in his crate. He really does think of it as his home, so it makes it really easy for us to travel with him.
bluegrl24ny
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Re: Those of you that work all day
we brought Golem home when he was almost 8 weeks old and he stays in his crate from the time DH leaves for work (2:30) until I get home at 7:00. Crate training is the best thing you can do for your dog, honestly!
Your pup should be fine for the times you mentioned though - they will normally sleep all day anyway, so don't feel bad! When I come home from work now I have to praticaly drag Golem out of the crate bc he loves sleeping in there all day! Also remember that dogs really don't have a concept of time like we do. I used to feel bad that Goelm was alone for those hours during the day, but he doesn't know what time it is and has no idea how long he's alone - so that helped me a lot at first!! I did come home to accidents in the crate for a while, but that was becasue he was still a baby and hadn't learned to control his bladder for that long yet. Now he is 6 mos old and has not had an accident in the house since November!
Kelly9904
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Re: Those of you that work all day
I can totally understand your points. I responded simply because I felt you were saying that 'its the best and only way to train your dog to get these benefits' and with that I don't agree. I was trying to point out that I have many of the benefits you have without the crate. Not that my way or your way is the best, they are simply our ways. I can say that at times, when she was teething, it wouldn't have been a bad thing for us to consider but honestly by that time it was too late, I don't think we could have put her in a crate after 2 months of not having one. But I think the biggest variable in either of our training methods is the personality of the dog. That can make all the difference. For instance, I know a lot of people use the can of coins to help in correcting their dog's behavior. I tried this in at one point, and she could care less, it stopped her behavior for all of 3 seconds and then she either went back to what she was doing or she went to try to find the noise that got her attention. What works for some obviously doesn't work for others. I don't think either of us can really say what is the best way to train a dog because neither of us seem to have experience with the other's methods. We simply know what has worked best for us.
We are very lucky with our dog, she is really well behaved, learns fast and I really don't have to worry about her. She has limited run of the house all day (no bedrooms or den) and I am confident that the worst I will come home to is the welcome rugs from the front and back door will be in the living room, and she might have been on the couch during the day!
By the way I used to have a pointer, they are AMAZING dogs!
lesleyw
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Re: Those of you that work all day
kelly -- sorry you misunderstood. I was just trying to share some of the added benefits I have found with crate training. This is the first dog I have ever crate trained and I have found it to be super beneficial in so many ways. I don't think I could ever go back, but I am lucky -- my pup loves his crate. I have heard this is not always the case, some pups fight it.
