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Working FT w/ a dog - Please don't flame me!
As I mentioned below. My husband and I adopted a 2 yr. papillon mix from our local dog warden (pictured below!) We both work FT. We have him gated off in the kitchen with blankets, kong toys, something that smells like us, either talk radio or music on. We're generally gone from 7:30a-5:00p. We take him for a walk and play with him both before and after work and well into the night. When I lived with my parents we always had dogs and did the same thing and they seemed fine but now I'm reading all these websites that say it's not okay and I'm getting worried. If we're always with him on the weekends and spend quality time with him before and after work PLUS he sleeps in the bed. We give him tons of love and attention. Other people do this, right?
Re: Working FT w/ a dog - Please don't flame me!
Yes, you're fine. Many of us work full time and have significant others that do the same.
As long as you are properly exercising, training, and spending time with your pup, they should be fine.
Thank you for adopting
Don't beat yourself up! Plenty of dogs with working parents going 8 hours without a bathroom break.
I may suggest this--don't panic--but just make sure he doesn't chew the blankets. If he ate enough of it, it could cause an obstruction. But if he isn't a chewer, than by all means leave them with him!
My three year old corgi destroyed four blankets before I wised up and got her an indestructible pad. But please don't worry, just a suggestion!
Enjoy your new baby!!
Lots of people do it! We have two dogs (one of whom is a herding dog, aka incredibly high energy) and my H and both work full time. We have someone stop by mid-day to let the dogs out in the yard to pee, but that's it...no real exercise. They get tons of attention and exercise in the evenings, and that's fine with them. Weekends also involve lots of play time.
It's up to you what you're comfortable with. Maybe I anthropomorphize the dogs too much, but I shudder to think of having to hold it for over 8 hours. So we have someone give them a bathroom break, and that works for us.
My Lunch Blog
Don't feel bad! I'm gone 11 hours a day during the week thanks to a FT job with an hour+ commute each way (time to the train station, and then the train's schedule, etc). Thankfully, H's days are always shorter than mine, so our pup is usually only crated a max of 8 hours on a long day. She gets LOTS of attention in the evenings, and about an hour of doing her thing around the house in the mornings (I just haven't been able to get myself up earlier to fit in any sort of walk,
). She also gets to go to the dog park most weekends, and we play with her a lot then, too.
If at any point, you're concerned he needs more, look into a doggy daycare for him to go to a day or two a week, or getting a dog walker to come around the middle of the day.
PS: He's freaking adorable!!
B/w 1/8: betas 17,345, progesterone 25.6
Sure!
We both wok full-time and crate our dog during the day. He sleeps most of the time anyway, even when we are at home. It sounds like you are doing a great job. He's a cutie!
Congrats on adopting! He's very cute!
We crate our Scottie while we're at work and we both work FT, and DH often works longer hours. Like pp's have mentioned, as long as he gets enough excercise and quality time when you're home, he'll be fine. I know that B sleeps most of the day - I've set up a web cam to watch him before. And most dogs are the same way.
One of the PP's mentioned mind busting toys and I wanted to recommend the Kong Wobble as an easy one to start with. B loves his and it makes him work for his food and tires him out some.
Agree 100%
I just want to add that he is ADORABLE.
We both work full time and have an adult dog... the reason we rescued an adult is b/c our work schedules wouldn't work w/ a puppy. If your new dog is 2yrs, he's also an adult and can physically and emotionally handle separation for a normal working day (if your both work late regularly, you should consider a sitter or day care).
Our adult rescue is truly and literally the light of our lives... while I'd love to spend 24/7 w/ her, it's not a viable option. She's thrived with healthy walks/runs and at least 1hr a day of exercise (she's a setter... obviously exercise needs will vary by breed/size). Of course she likes spending more time with us, but that core 1hr exercise is key. As long as she hits that baseline, she's a happy girl. We do do other walks and try to stimulate her with toys (challenging w/ a setter) as well. But our non-negotiable is 1hr/day of exercise.
We're gone 10 hours a day M-F. We thought we were rescuing a 10 or 11 month old puppy who wouldn't have such a huge issue with being left alone that long. Turns out he was only 4 or 5 months old so we had some changes to make to our plan, but we got through it.
Your dog is ADORABLE!!
So cute!
And ours routinely does 8 hours a day. She has the run of the house but doesn't seem fazed to hold it that long.
October 13, 2012
Cute! My 1-2ish pap mix is crated around 8 hours about 4 days a week. He does fine. He is actually doing so much better now that he is comfortable in the crate. We had trouble with him destroying things, but he has his bed, blanket, a toy, and some water and he's fine.
ETA: We also got him a puzzle, and play thinking games like, "find it" after work. I dont know about your pap, but mine is crazy smart, and needs the mental stimulation. The brain work really does the trick at wearing him out.
Congrats on your insanely cute Pap!
I am so glad I saw this post!!! I am always feeling guilty about leaving our beagle home all day but it's nice to know I'm not alone.
I do have a question though. We were having issues with him eating holes in blankets and things like that while he was home during the day. We've started adding a regular walk around the block to his exercise routine ( he gets plenty of running and playing time in the evening, but this way he gets away from our house a bit and I was told it would be good for his discipline).
As long as he's not having trouble going to the bathroom, I shouldn't be worried, right? I assumed that would be the sign that he had any blockage.
It does sound like he's bored, and a beagle definitely needs more than just a walk around the block to get that energy out. Try some mentally stimulating toys like the ones from Nina Ottosson, or a tug-a-jug.