How Long Is Your Dog Left Alone For?

[tinker*]

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Just wondering, :- "

Im getting a new puppy (GSD)

What are your work/other comitments and how long do you leave your dogs "home alone" for?

 

Are they in the house, kenneled, etc etc?

Im moving to my new house on friday (fingers crossed) and we have a med sized secure garden, with kennel and run.

Mon - fri

Currently Amber comes to the farm for 1 hour on a morning (6.30- 7.30) and the same on a evening (5-6pm sometimes longer)

I go to work at 8.30am and return at 4.30pm . The majority of the time i go home for dinner also. And my OH returns at 2.30pm (most days)

Amber has the run of the house at the moment (unless she is at my dads house then she stays in the garden) but once we move i recon she will stay in the garden and have the kennel to go in and out as she pleases..... along with new pup

obviously they have loads of chews, toys etc.

SO ALL DAY SHE IS LEFT 4HRS B4 DINNER AND 2 HRS AFTER DINNER.

weekend

nearly every weekend they are either pottering at the stables with me, or at a horse/dog/country show

Some one at work just commented on the fact they want a dog but thinks its unfair as they work.

Personally i think that is quite a nice life for a dog??? :unsure: ?

 

[nicky12]

its a fact that most of us have to work weather it be part or full time and i think its fine as long as you have a plan off attack if your working 9till 5 just get somone in to let them out halfway through the day also get up early nice hour walk ,and then lots of love and cuddle and another walk once ya get home from work and then cwtches for the rest of the night sorted ,maybe bit harder with a pup having to get people in couple times a day to let them out and stuff ,but its very doable isnt it :huggles:

 

[Rae]

I'm very lucky that I work from home - but before we moved here we both worked full time (OH on shifts) our dogs were walked before we went to work at lunch time and after work - however depending on OH shift pattern they could have been left for 6 hours (broken after 4 hours by a walk)

They had each other for company, got plenty of exercise, a good diet, stable home etc and a very good life IMO.

I'm sure Amber would appreciate a friend and you could manage it all perfectly well. :luck:

I'd not leave any of mine out in a kennel/run as I'd be so worried about them being stolen - I wont even leave a window open when we go out! I'd be much happier leaving them in the house.

 

[doggy182]

Oh, I'm glad I read this, been worried bout leaving dog on its own when me and OH are at work. Think it will be a max of four hours that it will be left, with walkies before and after. My mums whippet sleeps all day when she is out and sometimes is too lazy for a walk at lunch!! She is getting on a bit though.

I'm trying to do everything right as it will be my first dog that is mine and not whole families!

So thanks for good advice )

 

[Rosie]

I work part time and my whippie is left for 4 hours from 9am to 1pm. She has a wee at about 7am, breakfast and then out again before i go to work but only usually has a no. 2 :b and then she sleeps until I get home. If I'm lucky when i get home from work she will come and greet me, more often than not she doesn't get out of bed (w00t) . She is then walked and goes back to bed again until the kids come home when she is up and about spending time with us until bedtime ) .

In my opinion if they have a regular routine they adapt their sleeping patterns to fit in with us :thumbsup: . If i have to work longer hours for any reason then i just up the walk/play time and make sure she has extra attention in the evening to make up for it. I agree with nicky12 that working is possible if you put in the extra effort

 

[FeeFee]

We're lucky because we both work partly from home so or dogs aren't left for more than 3-4 hours 3 days a week.

I generally wouldn't leave an adult dog for more than four hours without a bit of company and a loo break, so if I was out all day I'd want to either get back at lunchtime or have a dogwalker come in.

Personally I wouldn't want to leave a young puppy alone for more than the odd hour or two, which is part of the reason I wouldn't get a puppy in our current circumstances. I'm probably over-anxious, though, I guess a lot of people have puppies and work longish hours.

One thing I do hate is the thought of a puppy (or older dog for that matter) left in a crate for a full 8-9 hour working day, which seems quite common in America.

 

[stormydog]

When i travel to england on the ferry mine are alone in the back of the car for atleast 9 hours. never one mistake too !

 

[Rosie]

When i travel to england on the ferry mine are alone in the back of the car for atleast 9 hours.  never one mistake too !

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It always amazes me how long they can go without needing the loo but that takes the prize (w00t) .

Phoebe will go 8 hours especially when it's raining outside :lol: (I don't mean she is left alone for this long, it's when we're home at the weekend or whatever)

 

[stormydog]

When i travel to england on the ferry mine are alone in the back of the car for atleast 9 hours.  never one mistake too !

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

​

It always amazes me how long they can go without needing the loo but that takes the prize (w00t) .

Phoebe will go 8 hours especially when it's raining outside :lol: (I don't mean she is left alone for this long, it's when we're home at the weekend or whatever)

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

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I can remember last year us setting off for the ferry at 845pm with the ferry leaving at 2230pm....due to arrive at 630am birkenhead, the weather was atrocious so the ferry couldnt dock till almost 8am. ian and i couldnt get a spot to let the dogs out till 815am. nothing chewed..no wee-wee at all. so whats that nearly 12hrs ? to follow that we drove like lunatics to barnsley in howling wind and snow for 3 hrs !! to finish with Colt won the racing and also Supreme show champion ! so next time anyone spins you a yarn about .."oooh my dog has been in a car for a solid hour" quote that one !

 

[hely]

im lucky that both my husband and i are at home all day.........i am starting work for the RSPCA soon, so will be out doing homechecks and stuff but o/h is here :thumbsup:

 

[Foxglove]

I've been worrying about having a dog whilst also working fulltime but the way my and my husband's shifts work out, a dog would only be on it's own for a maximum of two hours on four days a week ( one or both of us is off the other three days!).

I work in a newsagents so am up at 4.30am to start work at 5.30am so I thought I'd either take dog to work with me and have him/her on a doggy bed behind my till until hubby finishes his nightshift at 7am then doggie can go home to bed with him. I then finish work at 1pm and can then take dog out for at least a couple of hours to the nearby beaches/cliffs/valleys etc before going back home to cook tea. Hubby goes back off to work at 6.30pm at which I would take my dog out for another hour before going to bed by 8.30pm.

Or if worst comes to worst I'd have to leave dog (asleep on our bed most likely :lol: ) on his/her own from 5.25am until hubby gets home at 7.05am.

I've finally convinced hubby that I NEED a dog in my life (or a divorce!!! (w00t) ) so we are hoping to get a Whippet bitch very soon. We are after an adult as housetraining a puppy could be tricky in this flat but an older rescue dog should be fine We are on holiday in three weeks' time at our friend's house in the Lake District so we may have to wait until after this before starting to look for our dog.....torture!!! I want my dog NOW!!!!! I've waited ten years to have a dog in my life once more so a few more weeks won't hurt me I guess :b