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Original poster

Leaving a dog at home during the day

134 replies

quidamaz · 25/04/2020 16:55

Hi MNers.

Do any of you leave your dog at home during the day while you're at work? How do you make it work? Does your pup cope ok?

We've just got a new puppy (much loved, much wanted, but bad timing) but from September when I'm back at work he'll be alone from 730-430 every day with a dog walker at lunchtimes.

(PLEASE don't jump on me and tell me a hundred times why I shouldn't do this. I KNOW people do this! There's no way people don't leave their dogs surely? We had originally budgeted for doggy daycare but at £25 a day we can no longer afford it now DH has lost the business thanks to Corona. It's going to take us at least 18 months to get back on our feet financially at the very least.)

Thanks for any advice.

OP posts:
PanicAtTheDiscLo · 27/04/2020 12:15

Make sure you put in the training then op. It’s harder now with lockdown but you need to work up to leaving for a full day. Because otherwise pup will develop separation issues x

NoMorePoliticsPlease · 27/04/2020 12:18

Yes people do it but it is very very unkind, dogs are social creatures and want to be with their owners all of the time

MarginalGain · 27/04/2020 12:20

I think all day is pretty hard on a 7 month old puppy. Aren't they on 3/4 walks a day at that age?

I have a middle-aged Golden Retriever and I think it would be tough on her, but she would adjust her sleeping patterns I'd imagine. I'm not sure a puppy could manage in this way.

You might have to re-home him.

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

Dogs
getyoursocksoffhoney · 27/04/2020 12:26

Honestly OP more people do this than MN make out.
Obviously it does depend completely on the dog but I've now had 4 dogs and all of them have been completely fine with our arrangement and they are supposedly a nervous/anxious breed.
Our day goes like this - 7am 30 min walk, out the house 8.30-1, I'm home 1-2 and let them out in the garden, 2-5.30 out the house again and then an hours walk at night.
I think we've done this from 4 months old with all of them.
My old dog is actually hating us all WFH at the minute as we have upset her routine!!
Like a PP said they don't even wait to see us out the door, and sometimes I get home and they won't even bother coming to say hello.
As long as you have a dog walker they should be.
In real life I don't actually know a single person who pays for doggy day care...

MarginalGain · 27/04/2020 12:45

Honestly OP more people do this than MN make out.

While this is true (MN expects people to consider dogs far more carefully than babies), I think 7 months is a very tender age to be alone for this long.

I know quite a lot of people who have dog walkers, there are so many of them now that they're no longer extremely expensive.

Spidey66 · 27/04/2020 12:53

I wouldn't. We waited until my husband retired until we got a dog. We left her for about 7 hours once when we went to a festival, but will only usually leave her occasionally for 3-4 hours while we go out for a meal or the cinema (obviously not since lockdown.) I know that's not what you want to hear, but with owning a dog comes responsibilities.

vanillandhoney · 27/04/2020 12:53

He'll be 7 months old in September.

Which means he'll be slap bang in the middle of his teenage phase. When mine was that age, he went backwards on his toilet training, became a lot more vocal and needed constant supervision when he was awake so he didn't chew up my house. There is no way I could have left him all day, even with a dog walker coming in.

People aren't being horrible by telling you not to do this - they're being realistic. Please, please reconsider what you're planning to do here, because you could end up with a dog who has some serious behavioural problems.

Honestly OP more people do this than MN make out.

Of course they do, but that doesn't make it right, especially for a puppy that's only going to be seven months old.

gatsbylove · 27/04/2020 12:54

Many people do leave their dogs all day. Worth remembering that...

  1. It's a self selecting group. Those with dogs who obviously could not cope with it are likely to have found another solution, including rehoming. So anecdotally it'll look like close to 100% success rate when this is not the truth.
  1. Studies by the RSPCA suggst that up to 80% of dogs display stress behaviours when left alone (to varying degrees) and only 50% of owners can recognise them when shown the video. So even those people who report thier dogs are fine may not be giving a true picture.
  1. I know a LOT of dog walkers, including a fair number who now refuse to walk dogs that are left alone all day because, in their view, it is not ethical to do so and, therefore, enable. it. That's their own views so just included here to say "ask any dog walker" is not true also.

So dogs cope, some dogs do not. It's a throw of the dice. The big question for the OP is what are you going to do to...

a) recognise your dog cannot cope (and then)
b) react and change plans

snop · 27/04/2020 12:55

My pup is 9 months we only got her just before dp passed away suddenly, she's alone from 8am till 3.30pm 4 days a week with the odd family member popping in to give her a walk. Although not ideal and I felt really guilty about her being home on her own all Day, she has been absolutely fine. I got a doggy cam and tbh she sleeps most of the day.

Hoppinggreen · 27/04/2020 13:00

You know that just because some people choose to do a thing it doesn’t make it ok don’t you?

gatsbylove · 27/04/2020 13:02

I had a neighbour whose dog whined piteously from when he left for work to when he got back, but of course all he saw was the dog being pleased to see him when he got home.

Yep, I think this can happen, too. I used to live next to someone who once described his own dog as 'fine' being left all day to another neighbour. What they didn't say is that it took over a year of howling, barking, soiling themselves (the dog, not the owner) to get to that point. I think all of us can be guilty of selectively remembering so again, it's really important to be able to objectively observe the dog and identify stress-behaviours (even the subtler ones like yawning, pacing and lip licking).

Spidey66 · 27/04/2020 13:04

I wish mine slept for 16 hours a day.

Her bed is in the kitchen, we close the kitchen door from about 10pm to about 6am. She's not always in bed straight away, but if we go into the kitchen for water during the night, she normally is and will be woken by us, then go back to sleep. I get upb at 6.30am for work and give her breakfast and let her out for the loo. Even when I'm not working (currently wfh part time and going in part time) I still often wake up then, so do the same and go back to bed.

She might nap for an hour or 2 during the day.

But she's a very energetic border collie and as far as shes concerned, life's too exciting too sleep.

Booboostwo · 27/04/2020 13:06

Nobody doubts that it happens OP. Of course people leave their dogs alone for long periods of time, which is why dogs bark, howl and destroy the house. If you don’t have neighbours around at least they won’t suffer, but that doesn’t mean your dog won’t suffer,

A small minority of dogs cope being alone for long periods most days, but a young puppy is unlikely to be in that minority. More likely than not, your puppy will become destructive and stressed.

GreyishDays · 27/04/2020 13:07

Does your OH work the same hours as you?

Floralnomad · 27/04/2020 13:09

My main issue with dogs / pups being home alone with a walker coming in is that some people do leave them locked in small cages in between and that is wholly unacceptable .

MarginalGain · 27/04/2020 13:09

I think my dog sleeps, realistically, 21 hours a day. She's so lazy. Fits right in.

rookiemere · 27/04/2020 13:45

I haven't read the full thread, but when our circumstances changed and DH got a new job where he couldn't work from home initially, I asked through borrowmydoggy and a local FB dog borrowers and owners group and from the latter found two lovely students that were really keen to take our dog out for walks on their free afternoons. NB we had a lunchtime walk already booked in with the dog walker and this is only a couple of days a week as I can wfh one day and don't work another.

People will come on and say that the students aren't insured, but that's a risk we're prepared to take.

rookiemere · 27/04/2020 13:56

Also worth checking how long the dog walkers will be out for. Our previous walkers had him out from 9-12 for the morning and 1-4 for afternoon so one walk a day more than enough. NB they weren't out walking all that time but picking up other dogs and some time at their house before the dogs went home , so it's worth checking out a number of dog walkers.

gatsbylove · 27/04/2020 15:07

People will come on and say that the students aren't insured, but that's a risk we're prepared to take.

Just on this, it's worth being clear on the public liability if your dog harms someone else which being walked (even the nicest dogs can bolt, for example, causing RTAs). It might not just be the risk of damage to the dog you are contending with, but other people's injury claims etc. Borrowmydoggy may provide some PL cover...

Just calling it out.

mencken · 27/04/2020 15:47

hopefully you are not just 'no neighbours' but out of earshot. The dog driving us nuts is over a quarter of a mile away. Nothing travels like the screams of a neglected dog.

and also make sure the walker isn't taking too many at once, that they are all on leads unless in an actual no-lead area. Which is NEVER a public road 'oh but there isn't much traffic'. The person it attacks may well sue.

rookiemere · 27/04/2020 15:55

gatsbylove fair point and also depends on temperament of the dog. Ours is a soppy sort and never gets in fights or displays any signs of attacking anyone, but is overly excited at chasing squirrels so I've asked the students not to let him offlead on their walks, which means it's not quite as much fun for dog but minimises any risks and is definitely better than no extra walk.

Myneighboursnorlax · 27/04/2020 16:10

A dog walker is going to take him for 1.5 hours a day

A 1.5 hour walk is probably a bit too much for a 7 month old puppy - the general rule is 5 minutes per month of age until fully grown. Could the dog walker do two 45 minute visits instead, one mid morning, one early afternoon?

Justmemyselfandi999 · 27/04/2020 16:11

This situation is far from ideal, but what I find most baffling is that everyone is only considering best case scenario.
What about when pup is recovering from neutering and can't have excersize, or if they develop an injury, or worse need orthopaedic surgery or develop epilepsy? These are regular occurrences, and dogs will need close monitoring and may not be able to have lots of excersize or group walks with a dog walker.
I've a year old dog who at 5 months needed his first lot of surgery for a condition, and only recently is sound enough for a decent amount of excersize. Post op he needed physio every 2 hours, couldn't be contained in a small space as it hindered his use of the joint, and needed watching very closely. I really hope it works out for the dog.

Pasithea · 27/04/2020 16:18

Totally selfish Totally unacceptable. Pets are a full time commitment as are children. .

vanillandhoney · 27/04/2020 16:37

People will come on and say that the students aren't insured, but that's a risk we're prepared to take.

It's a big risk you're taking, though. Being with an insured walker covers so many problems. I'm a professional walker and fully insured/first aid trained. My insurance covers public liability, injury to the dog, injury to myself, lost dogs, lost keys, transport, dog theft, the dog going missing, the dog accidentally getting run over etc etc.

The prevalence of uninsured walkers makes it much harder for those doing it for a living. I would never, ever leave my dog with someone uninsured - the risks are far too great.