Leaving a pup alone during working hours

k mac

Similar problem here OH has her heart set on getting a bichon frise puppy. Situation is she works 12 hour days 7 days a forthight so has 7 days at home. Out of the 7 days she works i would have 2 full days at home meaning the dog would be locked in the house for a max of 8 hours 5 days in every two weeks. Question is would this be too cruel on the dog, out of the 5 days there might be some days i get home for lunch to let her out for a quick walk.




Mod note: This post was originally posted on a 4 year old thread. In order to avoid confusion, I've split it away into its own thread.
Thanks,
DBB

AryaStark

You would not be able to leave a young pup alone for that long. Even an hour is long when they are young. Depending on where you live you might be able to use dog dare care center. They are great and really good socialization for a young dog. A pup could not go until they have all their vaccinations and extra ones like kennel cough.

My dog is now 3 years old. I could never imagine leaving her alone for the amount you would have to. 8 hours, 5 days a fortnight is far too much. You will have a very sad dog. Even coming home at lunchtime wouldn't be good enough.

Don't get the pup until your situation changes and you can give it the proper love and attention it will need.

scudzilla

We have a 4month old pup and a 5yr old, both boxers, the longest we've left her in the house is 2hrs as we had a really important meeting to go to, even that 2hrs i felt was pushing it.

Brodi (the 5yr old) we've left for 6hrs before, not a bother on her

Inexile

Arent Bichon's companion dogs who thrive on company so they would really feel the isolation if left alone for that long. And a pup wouldl be worse.
Think you may need to be looking at an adult dog and getting in a dog walker or doggie day care to cover the days you are out.

Gran Hermano

I'd the misfortune to spend some time living beside a bichon with separation anxiety. It'd howl incessantly if left alone for more than an hour. Luckily I moved. For a small dog it sure made some noise.

boomerang

I couldn't do it to a puppy, OP.

Toulouse

Bichons can also be difficult to toilet train at the best of times. Leaving a pup alone for so long on such a regular basis means that she is going to run into trouble with most training that you would do with young pups.

OP, I think you already know that it's not a good idea, perhaps you should show your partner this thread.

cocker5

To be honest OP its not fair on the puppy... at all its faaaar too long and will lead to all sorts of issues, destruction, separation issues, toilet training issues etc to name a few..

have you considered giving an adult Bichon a new home? this would work far better for all of you.

deadwood85

I also lived next door to a couple who got a bichon pup and left it there 9 to 5 everyday,,the howling never stopped and the guy told me the dog **** everywhere.

Which is obvious as a puppy needs training.

Don't know your living situation but if its an apartment it could lead to trouble.

If its only 5 days you can easily do doggy day care.

Or there are plenty of older dogs in the pound every type of breed who wouldn't mind being alone on certain days.Plus you are saving their life.

Plus you get to skip the puppy training, which is a lot of work if you want a well trained dog.

sadie06

Whatever about the rights and wrongs of leaving any dog for that long, a Bichon is 100% not the dog for you. Any I know suffer separation anxiety to the extent that all three sleep upstairs with family members (which was none of these families original plan) as they all caved to the incessant whining and door scratching all night.

One family have spent hundreds upon hundreds of euro trying to sort out the day time issues (dog whines and barks for 8 hours solid while they are at work and is drenched in sweat, with bulging eyes every evening when they return) and nothing has worked. Their neighbours (terraced house) are close to breaking point.

If you are not going to be around, don't get a Bichon.

Saipanne

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Don't get the pup until your situation changes and you can give it the proper love and attention it will need.

Like what, becoming unemployed?

Saipanne

Saipanne wrote: »

Like what, becoming unemployed?

Why would you have to be unemployed? My wife and I both work, yet our dog is never left on its own.

Saipanne

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Why would you have to be unemployed? My wife and I both work, yet our dog is never left on its own.

Explain.

Arbiter of Good Taste

Saipanne wrote: »

Explain.

Doggy daycare
During the day leave with a neighbour/relative who has a dog

Think outside the box maybe?

Saipanne

Arbiter of Good Taste wrote: »

Think outside the box maybe?

Allow a vagrant to sleep in your shed?

ShaShaBear

Saipanne wrote: »

Allow a vagrant to sleep in your shed?

Seriously. Two people who work are not necessarily both out of the house at the same times, and there could always be more than two people in a house. Suggesting something like that just sounds rude.

OP, if you had a child, you wouldn't go to work and leave him or her alone in the house for 8 hours, and it is no different with a puppy. I don't mean in the sense that you should treat your puppy like a child, but rather that they are just as reliant on their human "parents" as babies are. They cannot let themselves out to go to the toilet, nor do they understand "holding it in". They cannot make themselves a snack while you are gone (and puppies require more than two feeds a day) and cannot get themselves a drink if they are thirsty. And obviously, they have no-one there to make sure they do not hurt themselves, meaning they could eat something dangerous or seriously hurt themselves while playing unsupervised. They can also get very destructive out of sheer boredom, loneliness or just because there is no-one watching. You run into problems like tearing at skirting boards, eating walls, shredding carpets, chewing furniture or shoes. Just like a child might colour on the walls, pull apart the soles on your shoes, tear up that really important letter you need to apply for your mortgage.

Older dogs, just like older children, overcome some of these obstacles - they learn to hold it in, they don't need feeding as often, and have learned through training what is and isn't acceptable behaviour while they are unsupervised. But just like older children, just because you know you taught them, doesn't mean that they won't act out from time to time. Hence while you might leave them unattended a little longer with peace of mind, you still wouldn't do it all day.

Again, just like kids, some dogs are more clingy and sensitive than others, a Bichon Frise being a very obvious one.
If you are serious about getting a puppy, you would either one, the other or both need to take some holiday time to get your puppy used to being at home, and you would need to consider full-time daycare - be that a friend or relative that minds the dog in your home, or that you actually use an external service. Your other option would be adopting an adult dog used to independant living, and simply get a walker to call in to break up the day so they are not alone for 8 solid hours.

I hope this gives you a better idea of the responsibilities involved. It really wouldn't be fair on a dog, and you are signing yourself up for a very upset and mentally damaged puppy in this living situation.

DBB

Saipanne wrote: »

Allow a vagrant to sleep in your shed?

Saipanne, quit the argumentative posting please.
Thanks,
DBB