Going to be working fulltime..to crate or not to crate?

There's no way I wouldn't crate my 4 month old puppy while I went to work. If it really bothers you that much, can you find someone to come let her out during the day? Sometimes trainers often offer dog walking services. Call around and see what's near you. 

Could you perhaps get an ex-pen and keep her in an area like the kitchen or bathroom? It would keep her safe and confined, yet allow a little bit of 'stretch the legs' room.  Otherwise, I second the idea of having someone let her out for a second romp midday if you're worried about her being in there too long.

 Jules stays in the bathroom during the day. It's not too tiny, so for an 11 lb guy it's plenty of room.Granted, he also isn't a puppy, so doesn't chew on things.

With my two, I don't crate unless I have a reason to (the reason typically is if one dog is sick.  I'd rather clean a crate than the carpets!).  We close doors to rooms where they don't need to be.  If I had a pup, I'd probably baby-gate off an area like the kitchen where there is nothing to destroy and the floor surface is easy to clean. 

 Gordonsgirl,sorry but i feel literally nauseous after reading your post I was thinking 10 hours a day is far too long for an adult dog,and then got down to the part which mentions he is only 4mths old! Please,please,please dont do it.

If you want to work full time then i would suggest finding another way to contain your wee lad,considering you'll be making more money you can look into dog walkers,doggy day care,family,friends...ANYthing but caging him for that long. As for wrecking your hubby's handywork,what's more important, the health and well being of your dog or your furniture? 

Leaving your pup alone for 10 hours a day is,i'm afraid,going to take it's toll,but placing him in a confined cage for this amount of time is just...well cruel IMHO. 10 hours is a hell of a long time for any dog to be alone,and personally i wouldnt do it to my dogs.They cant read a book,watch television if they get bored,which any dog will be left for that long.

Tell work you've committed to a dog for the next 15 or so years and to get back to you when you're dogless  

Please i beg  you not to do this :(

grab01

Could you perhaps get an ex-pen and keep her in an area like the kitchen or bathroom? It would keep her safe and confined, yet allow a little bit of 'stretch the legs' room.  Otherwise, I second the idea of having someone let her out for a second romp midday if you're worried about her being in there too long.

 Jules stays in the bathroom during the day. It's not too tiny, so for an 11 lb guy it's plenty of room.Granted, he also isn't a puppy, so doesn't chew on things.

ottoluv

YOu can definately have happy, healthy pets and work full-time, just need to make some modifications.

Yup,i agree.I'm not saying that full time owners shouldnt own dogs,but the welfare of the dog during the day should be sorted before bringing it home.It just takes a bit of work and initiative on the owners part to ensure the dog is physically and mentally healthy and happy.

This is a very difficult one - the first thing is to ensure her safety.  Now there is no way in h*** that Bugs could not be crated at that age.  He was a monster chewer and explorer so if we were gone all day he was in his crate. Period. Did I worry, sure, but I didn't need to worry about his safety.  We didn't have to do this 5 days a week so or any regular basis but lots of people do. My friend and family had to do this for their golden from earlier than 4 months and she is a great dog. I think it will be OK, she will get used to it but you will have to be super committed to giving her before & after exercise and lunch exercise. Is it ideal? NO.

The dog walker is a great idea or just someone than can come visit at a particular time each day.  She will learn the schedule.  And I do think that she will spend more time sleeping in the day and be a busy girl when you get home.

All I can say is that Bugs was crated trained and to this day loves his crate.  he went in there today for a nap while I watched football.  We see crates as evil, my dog and many others do not.  The suggestion of a pen is good and also clearing a place in the basement - however I know you are in northern ME and that is COLD so in winter that might be too cold for a young pup.  Just my ideas and thoughts.

If you want the job and could use the money and take this opportunity it doesn't mean you are not a good mom to Sniper.  It just means you have to fit her training and exercise into your busier day.  Plus you can afford more toys!

My opinion is that of the general consensus here so far.  As someone who works a full-time job, I understand the trepidation about leaving a puppy crated for long periods of time (Honor's 5 months now).  I am in the fortunate situation that DH and I work retail, so our 8-9 hour days often overlap by a few hours (ergo, Honor is never really alone for 8 hours).  However, same-schedule days do happen, so we have established a connection of people (neighbors, family members) who can be called upon to take Honor out in the middle of the day.  Because we are aware of such scheduling conflicts at least a few days in advance, it is a simple manner of calling the person ahead of time.

In your situation, your best bet would be to employ the use of such friends or family members, or a dogwalking organization.  Take advantage of your relationships with friends and family, and see if one or more of them would be willing to help out.  Also, see if any of them would be willing to drop in if you get detained at work.  The nice part about having more than one dogwalker is that there's almost always someone who could help out in a pinch.

Beyond finding trusted dogwalkers, make sure to give your pup all the attention that you usually give when you're at home.  Also, I know that Honor benefits from taking a good long walk before DH or I leave.  I'm sure that you'll find the system that works best for your dog, and I commend you on actively searching for the best way to care for your pup in your absence.

Good luck!

PS.  Congrats on the promotion to full-time, though!
 

I think your best bet would be crated with a dog walker that could come by in the afternoon and let her out and give her some attention. At four months, I do think she needs to be let out mid-day, even if you are just coming home at lunch and letting her out for 15-30 minutes. I also think she would regress in the potty training department if you left her in a larger area right now, but the basement area you mentioned sounds like a good idea for when she's older. Be careful of exposed insulation in the basement if there is any...I did the basement thing for a previous dog and he tore out our insulation.

Do you crate at night? If so I would try to phase that out as soon as possible, and like someone else said, you'll need to be sure to set aside time in the morning to exersize her.

Good luck. I recently went from staying home to working 4 days a week...not quite the same thing, but I am gone one 10 hour day per week and 5 hours the other days. They made the adjustment fine.

 You could try a doggy daycare in your area.  Ours is only $10 a day and Jack loves it.  Not only are they active during the day but it is an *awesome* socialization tool--Jack picked up some great doggy manners from that place.  Try a google search for one in your area (that's how I found mine--they generally don't even need to advertise) or ask around at a training club, groomers, or vets.

 Thanks guys. The only issue with doggy day care or dog walkers is, I live in a very small town and there would be nothing like that up here. We don't even have dog kennels in this town for people to board their dogs, most leave them at the vet clinics. The closest would be almost 3 hours away. In fact, I had to travel those 3 hours to even do her puppy socialization classes for a couple of weeks with her. So that is why I am in this situation! This part of Maine has it's good areas (low crime, fairly good weather besides the cold, quiet community) but it also has its downsides, there is nothing here for either people or dogs!! The basement is heated, so I don't have to worry about her getting cold in the winter. Thanks for the suggestions, I am still just beside myself wondering what to do.

Edie

As for wrecking your hubby's handywork,what's more important, the health and well being of your dog or your furniture? 

 

Edie, I love my dog more than anything. But why would I put my puppy in a situation to destroy my DH's hard work? If I know she is going to chew, as any normal 4 month old puppy is going to do, why would I give her that option? Doesn't really seem like the logical thing to do. I do not plan on crating her for 10 hours, that is why I am here asking for everyone's thoughts and opinions, and I do appreciate your concern for her. But please do not make me feel like a bad owner because I don't want my puppy destroying our house. If need be, I will ex-pen her, as I agree with you that it is way too long for a pup to be in a crate. But I know other owners on this board work full time and they do crate, sometimes it is the only way to keep the dog safe. I am not a cruel owner, I am only looking for how to work with this new situation of having a full time job.

My DH and I both work full time (and together so there is no overlap). I don't crate Salem now but I did when he was a puppy after learning what he was capable of while we were away. When we first got him I thought crating was creul but I learned better.

When we first brought Salem home we were in an apartment and working on completing a renovation on our house. We brought him to live at the new house at around 4 months. While he was in the apartment he was kept in our bedroom while we were away. We came home mid-day to let him out to play but other then that we kept him locked in the bedroom. One day we came home and he was nowhere to be found. We panicked and looked all over only to find out that he had gone under the bed and burrowed himself into the box spring and he was sleeping in there! He also managed while we were in the apartment to pull up a corner of the carpet and play tug with it and tear out a huge section.

You think we would have learned better but when we brought him to our newly renovated house we kept him locked in the finished basement which is also our living room. He ate a huge chunk of drywall, pulled the carpet off the steps, ate a large portion of DH's old record collection, ate some lazyboy chairs, etc. We bought him a crate after that. I felt bad at first but honestly he loves his crate. He still goes in his crate now to sleep even though we dont lock him in there (he is 3 1/2 and I trust him in the house now). I set up a webcam one day to see if he was distressed and he just slept and slept. It wasn't safe for him or our house to be out and not secured. I was a bad dog mom to let him be so distructive but I didn't know better.

Just make sure that you give her lots of exercise when you are home. Keep in mind that it will be dark when you get home but you will still have to walk her and play with her. Those light up collar tags are great on a black dog. Get up early and play with her before you go. Also give her some things to do in the crate (stuffed kongs).

Edie

 As for wrecking your hubby's handywork,what's more important, the health and well being of your dog or your furniture? 

Edie,

I'm sorry but it is dangerous for a dog to be allowed to be out and destructive. Not only is it not appropriate for the dog to be allowed to wreck her husband's hard work, the dog could be seriously injured. Furniture and carpets are held down by tacks that puppies don't know better then to swallow. The puppy can chew through the drywall and eat fiberglass insulation.

People work full-time and still have happy and healthy dogs. It can be done and plenty of people do it.