Getting a new pup and we can't stay home.

Hey Guys and Gals,

Went to the breeders last week and selected our new baby. She was born on June 2nd and really looking forward to her coming to live with us, I have a pic, but its very blurry

Now the problem is that we can't get leave to take care of her for the first couple of weeks and I really need some advice on what to do with her while we're at work (7h00 to 17h00, Tuesdays to Fridays). I don't feel safe leaving her outside in the garden while shes still a pup, so I need a solution for the first 3months, after which I'd like her to stay outside with our other puppy (Not a clue what he is, but hes loving and lazy, bout 6months old) during the day, and then they'll both sleep inside at night.

I was thinking of getting her a crate and leaving the crate in the bathroom with some newspaper for her to mess on, I realize this is going to make house training harder, but I'm pretty much at a loss with what to do.

Please help, at least we still have some time to figure things out :/

Is it possible for you to go home during lunch to feed her at least (from what the vet told me, you should try to feed pups 4 times a day)? When I bought Sasha, I couldnt take time off work so during my lunch break I had to walk home feed her and clean up her mess (I live about 10mins away from work). We leave her in the laundry room when we are at work but when she gets bored of her toys she chews on the wooden frames and scratches the plaster, so that might not be an option for you, unless you don't mind the damage. Unfortunately we live in a pretty crap area and its cold in winter so I would never leave her outside. Hope things work out

hmmmm thats a really long time to leave a dog without any walks or checks let alone a tiny pup-its really out of the question. I would say for the amount of time your out of the house someone is needed to pop in at least 4 times per day.......Do u have dog walkers in your area that would come and sit with pup and play etc a few times a day?

If you're not going to be at home at them times, you definatly need to crate train her. It'll stop her from destroying your house, get her into a routine and give you piece of mind that shes safe.

I wouldnt put her in the garden by herself, you wont be able to keep an eye on her and she could eat anything.. Zeus is 18 weeks now and he'll still put anything in his mouth.

We fed Zeus 4 times a day from when we got him (8 weeks) to 12 weeks and then 3 times a day which hes on now, so you'll definatly need to come home and to feed her.

Just make sure she has plenty of toys in her crate to keep her busy, and she'll be sleeping alot at that age so you'll be ok for a few hours until you get home for her lunch.

Can you not call in sick? Its a tough one leaving a pup alone at that age.. It might be too much for her.

Would you be able to take the puppy to work with you? It's really not fair to leave her all day alone and certainly not outside. Even for adult dogs the maximum recommended time to be left would be approx 4 hours.

There's at least the next 6 weeks before she's ready to go home anway, so couldn't you leave her with her Mum for an extra couple of weeks ?

I'm pretty sure between myself and my SO we should be able to visit her during the day for a couple of minutes at least.

Guess our lifestyles are quite different here in South Africa, most people work quite a distance from home (30+km) and they also leave home at about 05h00 and only get home again at 18h00. We also generally have gardens, even at the small townhouses (like mine), and most dogs spend their days outside, luckily our winters aren't as cold, but summers are a bit hot. Also the crate concept is new to me (I've read up on it since discovering it on here), definitely not something that is done locally, my SO thought I was nuts when I told here about it, said it feels like abuse to here to leave a dog in a cage, told her to read more about it lol.

Leave her at the breeders and pick her up when u can arrange time off. A cpl of wks isn't gonna hurt to wait ??

Personally I wouldn't leave a pup that long on it's own, they need feeding 4 times a day for a start , how can u do that if ur at work all day ?

From a social and bonding point if view, to leave it in a crate in ur bathroom all day isn't gonna do it a lot of good at all.

I would advise a dog walker if you can find one or seeing if the breeder can keep the pup a little longer until one of you can get some time off.

Can i ask why you are getting another dog? Is it because you want the other one to have a friend? If so you might want to pick one that is a lot older as pups close in age tend to not get on as well.

Crate training is only good when there is someone to actually take the puppy outside frequently. She is only small so will not be able to hold on for that long and will mess her crate a lot. As she gets older she will get worse obviously. But in this situation i advise leaving her in the bathroom or wherever will be cool enough / warm enough. I'm not a fan of crates and definitely not a fan of crates for that long as she may spill her water as soon as you leave the house, leaving her alone with no water all day. So please consider letting her roam free in the kitchen, as long as it is safe.

You really can't leave such a young pup on its own for that length of time.

If you can't be with her, or arrange for somebody else to be with her at least every hour or so then, to be honest, I wouldn't get her. She will need to be fed at least twice while you're out, and will need interraction from somebody if she's not going to go crazy with boredom.

Yes, our lifestyle is very differnt here and we are fortunate to have excellent weather and large gardens. However, a small pup (especially a Staffy) needs human company and, as they grow, at least 2 walks a day not to mention the mental stimulation. You will need a few weeks at home to settle her to her new surroundings, to bond with your other dog and to get used to you leaving her for short periods. Even assuming she gets used being left (in a safe room rather than a crate) they get bored quickly and you may find that their destructive tenancy know no bounds. Please consider firstly taking some leave for the first few weeks (or leave her with the breeder until you can) and second consider getting a puppy sitter at least until she is older. Dont forget that even although we live in the city, there are plenty of raptors in our skies and a puppyout in the garden is a prime target.

As a matter of interest, which breeder have you chosen?

do u not have a good neighbour that could come in for you?

DemonicBunnee wrote: said it feels like abuse to here to leave a dog in a cage, told her to read more about it lol.

Unfortunately, leaving a puppy alone in a crate for 10 hours a day is abuse. A crate should only be used as a safe sleeping 'den' for overnight use, and for short periods when you can't be there to oversee her.

Jackieb wrote:Leave her at the breeders and pick her up when u can arrange time off. A cpl of wks isn't gonna hurt to wait ??

Personally I wouldn't leave a pup that long on it's own, they need feeding 4 times a day for a start , how can u do that if ur at work all day ?

From a social and bonding point if view, to leave it in a crate in ur bathroom all day isn't gonna do it a lot of good at all.

Agree

i was lucky enough that for the first 7 months of romeo's like i was able to be with him all the time and take him to work with me.
I know we might sound harsh, but the fact is, that pup can not be alone for that amount of time. when she gets older you will end up with a very troubled dog

is there any one at all that can check on her? a realitive or good friend?

Romeo wrote:is there any one at all that can check on her? a realitive or good friend?

Even thats not enough for a pup so young

Speaking as a breeder i would'nt allow you to have one of my pups.
My insides would churn just thinking of it either left for hours on end in the garden or stuck in a cage for most of the day

For Callie's first 3 weeks, when she was too young to go to doggie day care, we crated her during the day (8-5) and had a dog walker come twice for 1/2 hour each time. It wasn't perfect, and it was only long days for 2 days a week (I work 2 1/2), but it seemed to work.

Don't think I would have wanted to do it for 3 months though...we could see a difference in how she behaved the nights she spent the day in the crate and the days I was home with her.

micheled wrote:For Callie's first 3 weeks, when she was too young to go to doggie day care, we crated her during the day (8-5) and had a dog walker come twice for 1/2 hour each time. It wasn't perfect, and it was only long days for 2 days a week (I work 2 1/2), but it seemed to work.

I would have said the same thing to you - 9 hours a day in a crate for a young pup is bad, even with someone coming in twice a day for half an hour.

I just don't know how it can work. I personally can't stand mine being left for more than 4 hours and they are all older. Doggie daycare can be a big help but not with such a young pup. Sorry, have to say it the way I see it.

I agree Caryll. I really could see the difference in her on those days. I think we did it a total of 5 days, she stayed at the breeder's an extra week to minimize the time we had to do it.

I must say though that I think our dog day care has been good. It's run by a trainer our breeder likes, they have a separate puppy program, she gets lots of exercise (and scheduled puppy naps) and the staff seem to know Callie really well. She's dramatically better with other dogs since she's been going and I wonder if it's because she spends 2 days a week in the company of other dogs.

micheled wrote:I agree Caryll. I really could see the difference in her on those days. I think we did it a total of 5 days, she stayed at the breeder's an extra week to minimize the time we had to do it.

I must say though that I think our dog day care has been good. It's run by a trainer our breeder likes, they have a separate puppy program, she gets lots of exercise (and scheduled puppy naps) and the staff seem to know Callie really well. She's dramatically better with other dogs since she's been going and I wonder if it's because she spends 2 days a week in the company of other dogs.

FYI, response was for orig post. 16 wks is prob fine with all shots etc.

Yes, ours took Callie at 13, I believe because she'd had 3 parvo and 1 bordetella dose (don't quote me on that).

I wouldn't get a puppy if I couldn't spend time with it. They can't be left alone for so long when they are that young. Why don't you consider waiting to get the pup until you can spend some time with him/her?

As has been said by all above, its not fair to leave a young pup alone for that amount of time, nor is it safe or healthy for her. She won't be getting fed enough and will be left all day in her own mess. I'm sorry to be so harsh, but that to me is abuse, and if I knew anyone doing that, I would report them to the authorities. If you don't have the time to train and bond with a new puppy, please don't get one.