Labrador at Home

slumped

Hi All,

We got a labrador recently, a golden one, rescued from a shelter. He is playful and is constantly wanting his belly scratched! He's about 2 years.

My concern is in relation to the dog being at home for extended periods on his own.

Typical day:

Up at 7am - play ball with dog for 10-15 mins. Change water etc.
Leave at 8.30am - back at 1pm. Play ball etc. for 20-30 mins.
Leave at 2pm - home at 4pm. Walk, play ball, groom etc.

We don't let him in the house just yet, he has a dog run (kennel and meshed area) and a decent garden to play in.

I leave the radio on all day when we are out and he sits beside it.

Is this acceptable attention for the dog? We intend to allow him into the back kitchen/garage when it gets colder at night.

Please advise!

Thanks
S

Arcadian

Your dog would be fine alone for that length of time if he were allowed in the house. Add the amount of time you are at work to the amount of time the dog is in his run while you are home (including night time) and you get a dog that's left alone for pretty much most of the day.

SuzyS1972

Have to agree with Arcadian.
Is there a reason he;s not allowed in ?

Thing is after say 5pm - he's on his own until 7am - thats 9 hours of loneliness for him.

He seems to get a great bit of exercise and play but I would tend to think that being on his own for the other periods of the day really means he's on his own a huge amount of time.

Labradors are a working breed and enjoy company and exercise etc.
Please re-consider making him more a part of your life if you can.

If he came from a rescue centre he may not have had the best start in life !
And to be fair - the rescue really should have discussed all this with you. Personally I would be reluctant to let a dog be adopted into a home where he's be on his own so much. I've no doubt you love him and take good care of him - but think how you'd feel on your own for 12 hours a day - you'd be bored.
No matter how large a garden is a dog simply won't amuse himself - exercise himself for 12 hours a day.

Sigma Force

Those hours sound fine, plus if you stick to a strict routine of walks he will wait patiently for you to come home and know exactly when he is to expect a walk and play time etc.

peasant

Hi

From an excercise point of view, he's probably getting enough ...you coming back for lunch and playing with him is good.

From an attention point of view ...well, not so good. Why can't he be more of a part of your life? With the amount of excercise he's getting, he should be pretty relaxed for the rest of the day, why not let him ly by your feet in the evenings rather than lock him out ...or at least give him the choice, if possible.

Some dogs prefer peace and quiet but most dogs I know would rather be with people. Our three have a huge garden to play in, but given the choice they'd rather ly near us and do nothing. This gives them a chance to make sure they catch all "stray cuddles" that may be going around

Also I'd say you yourself are missing out on a good bit of the doggy experience. There's nothing nicer and more relaxing than having a happy and content dog snuggle up to you during an evening and quietly falling asleep or enjoying a slow rub or cuddle. These are the moments where you can really bond with your dog (and he with you) ... which in the long run just makes you a better team.

slumped

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the advice, a lot of it heeded.

We have experimented over the last two-three days and have allowed Dougal into the kitchen/utility/garage area and he loves it.

He just comes in and as the previous posted says, he looks for 'stray cuddles'!

Thanks again, Dougal doing fine!

S