To think it's going to be impossible to work with a young puppy?

[uhohhereweego]

I am a single mum to an 8 year old DD. We brought home a 10 week Labrador puppy around 10 days ago. I wfh however took 2 weeks annual leave to help settle her in so I had plenty of time. It's been great, we've spent lots of time with her. Lots of playing, training, cuddling, bonding, and lots of headway on potty training.

I'm due back at work on Monday however, and I just don't see how it's going to work. She hates her crate, even though I have followed all the advice. She cries and whimpers if I'm out of sight just to go to the bathroom, or if I'm on the sofa and she is on the floor. Never mind sitting up at the kitchen island with her running around.

Is this just something dogs get used to and I need to just accept for a little while?

What do others do? I mean it would be great if I could take 6 months off but obviously that's not possible and I don't believe any other dog owners do that either. So practically what do you do when you have to go to work but have a puppy that needs your attention also?

I can attend to her needs as in, can feed her (obviously), take her out every hour for the toilet. I could play maybe 5/10 mins morning and afternoon and then lots more at nighttime once work is done. But what about her whimpering whilst I am in meetings?

So you WFH and can commit to giving her access to the garden and regular play breaks and attention? That’s absolutely fine. Take her for a walk before work if possible, make use of your breaks and if possible give her access to go inside and outside independently. Summer is coming and that’s going to help.

I had a couple of weeks off then had to go to work for a few hours, dash home for a couple of hours then return to work. It was bloody exhausting but worked.

My dog also liked me in sight. You’ll have to figure out if you can work while in the same area or not. If it’s a not you’ll have to do your best, play calm music, put the tv on for company and give her a few minutes when you can.

the tiny pup stage is over quite quickly. You’ll be fine.

ps our lives improved when we ditched the hated crate!

I'm a sahm so I'm home most of the day. To be honest if I was working I don't think I would have got a puppy. They need so much attention. Mine is a year old and has only ever been left about 3 hours maximum and that's in his crate with food and water.

A crate needs to be somewhere your puppy feels safe and can retreat to, rather than somewhere you stick them when you are busy. I agree with everyone about the kongs and licky mats. The problem you will have is that you won't be able to carry on house training her if you're in back to back meetings so she might go backwards. And bored puppies are destructive puppies.

Oh no OP

I only got my dog because I started working from home never would have got a puppy if I was out all day. You could look at dog daycare or a dog walking service or a friend or relative helping?

I have very very very VERY understanding colleagues…. I leave the back door open all day and wear an extra jumper, I have a large supply of treats in a jar (for distraction emergencies - when presenting online to 200 people and puppy wants attention) and have totally puppy proofed my downstairs area and garden.

Buy the best waterproofs you can afford. We walk for an hour in the morning before taking children to school - lots of off lead play on the field (recall is the first skill I taught) and sometimes for 40 mins at lunch too so they can have a mentally stimulating sniff around and run if they want to. The lunch outing started around the five month mark when they got a bit bigger and a bit more into trying to chew my chair, my desk, my feet, my cables, anything… as a way of gaining attention.

Mine is six months old and I hate to say… but it gets worse before it gets better! I was close to insanity on many occasions. It happens less frequently now, but still more than I’d like ! They’re so worth it tho.

Lots of stimulating toys on rotation, a comfy bed they’re encouraged to sleep in. Never allowed upstairs, so sleep alone at night to encourage independence (I don’t use a crate).

Lots and lots of cuddles and play at regular intervals so they learn the rhythm of the day. Firm consistency.

Good Luck and try and leave the guilt in the gutter… it won’t do your puppy any favours if it doesn’t know it’s boundaries and that it can trust you to be the one in charge who sets the rules and follows through on them.

We didn't take any time off when we got our golden retriever puppy. We both work from home. She settled fine - my husband worked downstairs at the kitchen table for a while to keep her company but not for long. We had a crate but didn't really use it, we puppy proofed the kitchen and used a stair gate.

How about a few lucky matts? One frozen with water...peanut butter....fruits? I took one week of with our pup but was able to take him to work also.
I didn't do any of this 'sleeping downstairs with puppy for days/weeks on end' with that most mumsnetters seem to bloody do.

Wow some tough comments here OP...... weve got a 1yr old collie, DH is WFH and he did struggle for the first couple of weeks cause winterpup was a little demanding land shark, but they kinda found a little routine and he had his bed next to his desk and taught him to settle on it, with a kong or a toy to keep him occupied and took lots of little breaks to help with toilet training etc. It was easier once we could take him for a walk, that helped him calm down. Now he sleeps most of the morning, plays at lunch and snoozes in the afternoon...or plays with his toys. Good luck 🐶

I work from home our dog is now 1.5 years.
I put a seat next to mine with a soft pad on it so she had somewhere to sit. I could then stroke her on calls etc.
She slept most of the time.
We also got a dog walker 3 times a week when she was older, she loves the dog walker and gets excited every time she arrives!
As she got older she would plonk herself in other places, we put beds in each room downstairs. She would sleep at my feet to start but then as she got older laying on the back of the sofa watching (and barking) at the world go by is her favourite.

Still comes in to check I'm here, we play on breaks and when the kids get home there is more play

My puppy is 16 weeks and can’t let me out of his sight. There’s no way I could leave him in a crate to do meetings etc for a good while.
They all develop at their own pace.

However, I didn’t have a dog until, with my first dog, I was self employed in a very active role where he could be right with me the whole time.
With current puppy I’m not working and don’t plan to for a while yet.

Well, I don't know about the "average person", but DH and I took 3 weeks each consecutively, plus it ran into the school Easter holidays (2021) so our two sixth formers added another 3 weeks onto the end. So a total of 9 weeks of full time attention. After that, for at least a month, DH and I co-ordinated our diaries so that one of us was interruptible and present whenever the other one had important meetings or looming deadlines. So for the first 3 months, there was always someone available to immediately meet her needs.DH and I both work from home, so it wasn't about leaving her, but about her having the attention full time to help her settle in, to play with her, to toilet train her, to begin simple training with her, to help her feel comforted and secure.

We didn't crate train her - we got one, but she didn't take to it, and needed the comfort of being with us in the early days. I would never have crated her for extended periods whilst we worked anyway. She now mostly sleeps in her bed in my study, or on the sofa in DH's study while we work, although she has the run of the house if she wants. She's a bit over a year now, and can be left at home for a couple of hours as needed. She's great, and a wonderful addition to the family, but DH and I thought long and hard about how she'd fit in and how we could meet her needs before we committed to bringing her into our family. The fact that you thought that 14 days would be enough to settle a new pup suggests that you didn't do sufficient research before making the commitment.

Not read all the comments but when I was a child and we got dogs it was always right at the start of the school summer holiday and my mum worked in a school. I did always wonder what other people did as I assumed puppies need around 6 weeks to settle in because that’s what we always did. I got my own dog when I moved countries and I was unemployed for 4 3 months looking for work! I would have thought wfh would be ok though as the main reason someone needs to be home is so the dog isn’t alone and so that you can let them out for a week frequently.

*wee

You'll be fine. You wfh so just have him with you. He'll spend a lot of time sleeping af your feet. I got a puppy when I was wfh and didn't take any time off. I only created him when he was over stimulated and over tired so needed a break. That was only when the kids were home as tlhe wanted to play with them.

The op works from home.

Anyway... we got out first dog as a puppy when I started wfh many moons ago. There wasn't really any problem, but back then zoom meetings weren't a thing.
However, I don't think dog noises from a basket or the floor would be very audible if you're using a headset, so long as it's not barking. Today I was talking to a colleague with my current dog, who is 16 and has some aches and pains, laid in my lap making a few noises... I'd warned the colleague that she might hear him but I don't think she could.

You probably need to start not giving your pup your "full attention" all the time on your non working days - she needs to learn not to be dependent on you all the time, how to play or sleep quietly when you are doing other things. (Or at least, your dog may need to have the illusion you're not fussing over her even if you're actually being observant)

Couple of Facebook groups on the attached photo which I recommend joining.
If you're in the house and able to let him out and play with him for regular short intervals then he will be fine.
Also look at 'canine enrichment' groups for ideas.

Maybe also enrol him into local puppy training and socialisation classes, it's good to bounce ideas off other dog parents.

Well we got our first dog 12 years ago and were so inexperienced (25 years old) we didn't even take a half day off to get him settled.
We realised within hours that he had separation anxiety and would cry when we left the room.
We then spent the whole of Sunday afternoon and evening working on desensitising him by walking towards the door and walking away, touching the door handle and walking away, depressing the door handle and walking away, standing outside the door for 10 seconds and re-entering the room, standing outside for 15 seconds and re-entering the room and so on. We HAD to get him sorted by the next morning, and we did (and my husband would only be out for 4 hours a day as he was semi home based).
I'd do things differently now, but he ended up rock solid.

Haven’t read all messages so apologies if I’m repeating what others have already said. I have a 14 week old sprocker puppy and work part time. We have a good routine going with meals, activity and naps timed so that she settles while we aren’t around. We have a dog walker on the days I work, so she has a maximum of 3hrs by herself at a time. If your pup is still not used to being in the crate or separate from you, then I would put the crate in the same room as you’re working. Make sure the pup is tired and practise getting pup to settle near you. In time you should be able to move the crate a bit further away, and eventually into another room. Do you attend any puppy training classes? I would be getting advice from your trainer on games you can play to help your puppy feel happy and safe when you’re not in the same room. As others have said, 10mins twice a day isn’t going to be enough. If you can’t stop work for more short breaks then you probably need to get someone to come in and spend time with the puppy while you work. Just as an idea of what we do. 6.15am-8am feed pup, training, play, garden time, 8ish puppy goes back to bed for a nap. If I’m working the dog walker comes in at 11 to give her food and play. I get home at 2pm and again she has a walk or other socialisation experience, afternoon food, play, nap. Later in the afternoon/evening she will have a walk with my other dog. Dinner at 7 and by 8pm she’s ready for bed.

Two weeks is ok. Then wfh . Don't be judgemental she's not out 24/7

We took a week off and just made sure we had lots of playtime breaks during the day and at lunchtime.
It will work out

I was in your shoes in January. We mainly WFH too (DH all the time and me most of the time) and it’s been okay. I put a dog bed next to my desk and let the dog out as much as possible. A walk before work, one at lunch, and our DD walks him when she comes home from school. The thing I found hardest was to keep everything that he wanted to chew/destroy out of his way. If he found a sock or cable, I’d find that distracting during meetings as I’d have to pause to retrieve whatever it was. I used a bitter apple spray on cables so he wouldn’t wrench my IT equipment.

Hi OP - I'm a dog walker and have lots of clients in your situation!

Firstly, please don't feel too disheartened - it is manageable if you WFH but I do think you need to be prepared for quite a few accidents and for your puppy to bark and whine for your attention.

The main issue is that the puppy is very young so you can't tire them out with exercise - but I would make sure they get out for a short 15-20 minute walk before you start work, and ideally another one at lunchtime. This will help break up their day, give them the chance to toilet and sniff/explore, and hopefully tire them out a little bit too.

I would also try and have a set routine of naps, play, enrichment (snuffle mats, kongs, chews, lick-mats) and just cuddles/attention too.

As she gets older, you could get a dog walker to take her out for some shorter walks too - I do 30 minute walks for puppies up to six months of age, and then hour-long walks after that. It'll give you a break and give your pup some much needed exercise, stimulation and attention. You could even get a walker in now and they could play with puppy in the garden/go and sit outside and do some socialisation :)

Good luck!

I used a bitter apple spray on cables so he wouldn’t wrench my IT equipment.

Good idea.
And do your best to make sure she can't get at socks or anything like that - our neighbours had a dog die because he ate a sock.

Have you tried putting a blanket or old towel over the cage to make it darker? When my dogs were small, that was the only thing that would make them settle down and sleep. If they had to be crated, I would give them lots of activity, tire them out, put them in crate to sleep while I got on with work, and repeat. But I also just let them wander about when I was working. I fenced off an area so they were never out of sight, puppy-proofed it, and provided toys and activities to amuse them, and they pottered around while I worked. It worked well for me, but I guess it depends how tied to the computer you are.