What to do with puppy during the day?

1359 Views 15 Replies 12 Participants Last post by NuttinButGoldens, Sep 14, 2009

goutes

Discussion Starter · Sep 14, 2009

Hello, I am new to the forum and have a 13 week old pup that we have had since 8 weeks. We have been working on crate training her and she is coming along well. My problem is that now school is back in session and there is no one home from 8:00-3:00. Last week we were keeping in her kennel during that time, but I wonder if I should keep her in the back yard instead. She doesn't mind her kennel as she will just go in to take naps, or when ever we tell her to get in her house. Also she never soils her kennel even during those 6 straight hours. We have been very good on making sure we play with her and give her a training session every morning so she can get some energy out before she goes in teh kennel. But what do you suggest? Outside or keep her in the kennel until she is fully housebroken?

PS
Our backyard is decent size and always has some shade.

1 - 16 of 16 Posts

Oaklys Dad

· #2 · Sep 14, 2009

There is no doubt in my mind that your pup should be in the crate while you are gone. It is far more safe and she will also feel much more safe while you are gone. A big back yard is way too much for a young pup to guard for that amount of time.

Oh, by the way, welcome to GRF. Be sure to post some pictures of your pup.

TonyRay

· #3 · Sep 14, 2009

Agree 100% on the crate...

we raised 2 Golden girls that way....

we bought the xtra large when the 1st pup came home and put a divider in it to make it smaller so she would not mess in her "home".
as she got bigger we moved the divider to make it bigger..
by the time she was able to be left outside the cage 24/7, the next pup was given the keys to the crate and so on.....

each pup was alone 8-9 hrs with no problems...

btw; we have by far The Biggest yard in the neighborhood, chain link fence all around and all and still will not leave them outside all day for fear of dog napping but that's just us..

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jwemt81

· #4 · Sep 14, 2009

I'll thirdly agree on the crate. The backyard is not nearly as safe as the crate. Is there anyone who came come and take the puppy out during the day while you are gone? Please don't leave her outside all alone. There are way too many risks involved in that. Just make sure the crate is a fun place for her and put a couple of her favorite toys in there.

momtoMax

· #5 · Sep 14, 2009

I gotta say what no one thus has said - I think that is too too long for a 13 week old to be alone for 5 days a week adding onto that no potty break. Max couldn't hold it for that long at that age during the day - not even close.

goutes

Discussion Starter · #6 · Sep 14, 2009

Okay good, I will keep her (actually them,as we also have a 16 week old beagle) in their kennels while we are gone.

Also I did post a few pictures, but I don't know how to include them in a signature line. Any help?

goutes

Discussion Starter · #7 · Sep 14, 2009

I was worried about going that long without a potty break as well, but she has been doing fine for the last 2 weeks,having no accidents. But she has been able to go all night (10-6:30) since about 10 weeks old. Is it the ideal situation? probably not, but unfortunately it is the way it has to be for now.

Oaklys Dad

· #8 · Sep 14, 2009

I just use the "manage attachements" button while I'm making a post. Just browse to the picture you want and hit upload. You may have to resize your pictures to 800 x 640 for it to work. Good luck.

Ljilly28

· #9 · Sep 14, 2009

What a good puppy to go so long with no accidents. . .I agree it's too risky to leave her in the yard. Do you think a nice neighbor might let her out/play with her at noon?

msdogs1976

· #10 · Sep 14, 2009

I used a dog pen for the first few months. I put the pen in my garage and left the windows up and a fan blowing. She was plenty cool. I tried the crate for awhile but she would go potty in it and would get all nasty. I admit I didn't know how to properly train her with the crate and gave up too quick. But the below worked well.

http://www.pets-warehouse.com/Vpasp/shopexd.asp?id=151600

Noey

· #11 · Sep 14, 2009

we had a crate in the kitchen and he only had access to the kitchen. Walker comes twice a day...until he is about 8 months and we go back to once a day for both.

He has total access to his crate and a window and cool kitchen floor. Noah our 15 month can see him and has access to most the house.

Sienna's Mom

· #12 · Sep 14, 2009

I agree with all the above posts. Sienna is 2.5 years and we still don't leave her alone in the yard. I never know what she might get into. When she was a baby, DH and I worked full time. We had her in her crate with an hex pen attached by cable ties. We also had a neighbor or babysitter of my son's come once a day to let her out for a cuddle and pee break. After she outgrew the hex pen we had to downsize her to just the pen (felt bad about that, but she got to big for it to be safe) but still had someone come midday to let her out.

Good luck!! and welcome to the forum- I miss those puppy days!

Rikos Mom

· #13 · Sep 14, 2009

I have to agree with the crate, if you're crate training.

We personally have never crate trained our dogs....luckily with Riko, I work at home, so I'm with him all of the time. Our other 2 we had since pups, both worked FT and we had no problems. They were gated (as we do Riko) so they had two bedrooms and the hallway, but not the "house".

Now, Riko is at the point we leave him in the house when we're gone, but it's never longer than 4-5 hours TOPS, just because that is what he's used to.

Backyard is too much for them as puppies....ours got under the fence

Even now, we don't leave him out.....we have a nice big fenced in part of our property, which is ideal for the dog, I can open the door and he can go in and out as he pleases, but it scares me still....someone may steal him!

FlyingQuizini

· #14 · Sep 14, 2009

I like indoor confinement better than alone in the yard, but that's a long time to consistently ask a pup to hold it at that age. You'll also need to make sure she gets exercise in the morning and that the family is pretty much dedicated to meeting her physical and mental stimulation needs for a few hours in the afternoon/evening. As she gets older, she'll really be raring to go once the family gets home.

Is there someone who can come give her a potty break for the next month or so? Or can you baby gate the laundry room or kitchen and put the crate in there and newspaper at one end? I only suggest paper training when people HAVE to be gone longer than a dog can hold it - and most dogs do start holding it as their bladder control increases --- so long as you're confining them to an area. Dogs who are loose in the house sometimes don't learn to hold it b/c they don't think they have to; they can just pee all over in different areas and then walk away from it!

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goutes

Discussion Starter · #15 · Sep 14, 2009

Thanks you all for your suggestions. I do have a luandry room that I could keep her in, but I am thinking that because she has had no accidents in her kennel since school started a few weeks ago and no nighttime accidents for lmost 4 weeks, that maybe it is not needed. She also really seems to like her crate, anytime she gets tired she willingly will go in and she never fights going in there in the mornings or when we leave.

I think it helps that we are a pretty active family and she gets good interaction and exercise every morning as well as the afternoon and evening. My 11 year old loves the dogs and plays with them for a long time as soon as he gets home. We also do a lot of short walks and training during the evening. When she is ready she will also start doing a lot of hiking and backpacking with me as well. When we got the dogs the whole family made a commitment to include them in our family.

I also am testing my pictures, so hopefully some come through on this post. Teh picture barely resembles her anymore, I can barely remember her being so small.

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2

NuttinButGoldens

· #16 · Sep 14, 2009

A big no to the outside yard if unsupervised.

I consider my back yard fort-knox for dogs. Guess what. Gilmour found a way out of the inner-perimeter kennel in 20 minutes. After that, if I hadn't of caught him doing it, he could have easily crawled under the otherwise secure gate of the outer perimeter fence. The gap is just barely big enough.

It took me a few times to catch how he was doing it.

There was about a 4" gap at the very bottom of the inner kennel fence (wood) where it attached to the house on one corner. It was so small I never even considered it a problem.

It's been fixed now, but this is the sort of thing these guys are really, really good at finding.

Everyone here knows I'm not a huge crate fan, but that doesn't mean it doesn't work. It just doesn't work for me. It DOES work for many, many people though.

However, is it possible to put the crate in, say, the kitchen and leave the door open, but allow the pup to have access to the rest of the (puppy proofed, of course) kitchen? If this is a long-term thing, training to use a piddle pad may be of use. I will say the idea of a grown golden using a piddle pad is a bit humorous LOL

You could get a Carlson gate to put up ant the kitchen entrance. It has a door for people to open and go through.

Gated in the kitchen, with his crate available for sleeping if he wishes, and plenty of water available would be great if you add one more ingredient.

A dog walker.

Have the Dog Walker come in at noon, and walk the dog. Or maybe a next door neighbor you trust. You offer a Neighbor, say, $50 a month to come walk your dog once a day and you might get a bite. The way the economy is, that's a very easy $50 that can pay the light bill, and your dog will be more comfortable.

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