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?

We got a Labrador Puppy last August, we did wait until one 5+ plus was available, but that's not an option for you now, so it'll be a case of ignoring that part. I mostly work from home, if I'm not at home, then my husband is. It's not easy, but you can make it work with a bit of perseverance. I wouldn't personally try to crate the pup away from you while you're working as they won't understand what's happening, and will get very vocal very quickly.

I set up my office so that it was puppy friendly, put a tall pet gate on the door and kept her in with me while I was working initially. Whilst your pup is toilet training, I would decamp to a room with a hard surface and easy access to the garden if possible. If you can't puppy proof said room, you could get them a pen to go into instead - still allows them room to move around, play, access puppy pads if caught short during a call etc, but prevents your belongings, furniture and flooring getting trashed.

Routine would largely be that we would have a walk and a play in the garden pre-breakfast, then she would sleep for a good few hours. If I had a planned meeting I would take her out in the garden for a 15 minute toilet and play break, and then give her a toy stuffed with food, lickimat, that sort of thing while the meeting got going. She would usually sleep after this, but I also kept a bag of kibble and treats (weighed out each day so she wasn't over eating) on the desk so if she started getting fractious I could keep her quiet with food whilst I had to unmute myself to speak. Lots of play and activity at Lunch and then repeat the morning routine.

She's now 14 months and roams around the house as she likes. She prefers to be in with one of us, so we have a dog bed in each office that she can sit in, or she might take herself off to sleep in the kitchen or our bedroom if she's feeling that way out. She isn't a chewer though, so I don't have to worry to much about that - if yours turns out to be the chewing monster from hell, just close the doors on the rooms you don't want them in, or pop a pet gate on the door of the room you want to confine them in with you.

Why anyone would want to get a dog just to have it sitting in its crate most of the time is beyond me.

I would recommend anyone who works full time to consider whether they should even get a puppy

This
retired people &sahms
I never understand the soppy need for a puppy when there are rescue dogs.

I took a month of, but I had no children or commitments at the time.
Could you ask a dog walker to pop in for a bit? Or day care? or a neighbour? Only short walks at this age for a lab due to their legs/joints.

Off! Not of.

It’s so tricky when they are young. You do have to work on them getting used to you not being there the whole time. So start with 1 minute and build from there. Otherwise you’ll never feel comfortable leaving the house.

I work very part time from home and it’s the only way that worked with our Labrador puppy. I also took time off and so did DH. He did become ok with being left quite early though.

How will you do the walks when he’s older? They need a good hour and 45 mins per days I wouldn’t have been able to do that and work full time even from home. Unless you get a dog walker every day?

To clarify I know puppies only need short walks but I didn’t appreciate the amount of exercise they need when fully grown and the time that takes up. I can’t take on any extra work because of the dog walking!

you could consider daycare - the place I take my dog has a half kennel/half day care option which is cheaper. They spend some time in the kennel during the day but the rest of the time is with the daycare dogs running about like mad things. It worked really well for mine when he was a puppy on the days that no one was going to be in all day. He was always super tired when he got home which is always a bonus!

I take my girl to work with me. When she was a puppy I took the first four days off work and from then on she came in with me every day. Routine is key. I did crate train her although I know a lot of people don't agree with it. For us it was brilliant. Don't forget puppies need a lot of sleep and she got a far more restful sleep being in her crate because otherwise she used to wake up and get up. She had a morning nap from 10.30 till about 2.30, an afternoon nap from about 3.30 till 5 and then I used to crate her about 9pm and she would go right through till about 7 the next morning.

If I were you I would persevere with the crate training, be consistent and don't cave when she cries. My trainer told me you can easily tell when your puppy is crying because she is in distress or whether she just wants attention and she was right. Make sure you are taking her out every half hour for the toilet and straight away after eating, drinking, sleeping and playing. Once you are settled in a routine it will be fine. My girl is good as gold at work, as long as she gets her walk everyday she spends her time mostly sleeping or just pottering about the office.

Kong, frozen with her food in it, bit of plain yogurt, peanuts butter with no xylitol in it (it can kill dogs) carrot, ham etc give her that to work out.

Pizzle sticks are good

Mine was very similar. Left them alone for a couple of hours the day after we got him so that was his norm. Now he doesn't bat an eyid, he knows we'll come back and as long as he gets fuss and a walk and is fed he happy to go with the floe

I think Labs are especially hard work as puppies. I know someone who recently got a collie and they are similar. He needed to play all the time and she found it exhausting.

If you are working from home that's good as it would be bad if he was on his own all day. Maybe look up conflicting ideas about crate training because not everyone thinks it's good for the dog.

Its also hard when they can't get out and exercise because of the rule about not walking puppies too much. can you find him a play mate you can visit? Or them visit you? It's actually easier with two because they annoy the other dog instead of you. Its probably like babies, one day he will be calmer and you can tire him out on big walks and you will forget all about this tough time. Stick at it and you'll both be ok.

Yep all dogs are different. Mine was fine with being alone but I did put the work in to get there. Labradors tend to be chewy - mine chewed everything in sight- including the kitchen wall. So no way could I have worked full time.

We also couldn’t use day care as he became reactive after being attacked. It’s really not so simple sometimes and you never know what kind of dog you’ll end up with.

😞 why didn’t you research puppy care before you got it?

Please don’t put the dog in a cage all day, that’s just cruel. Kongs, puzzle and chew toys are useful, tbh a lot of the time they will be sleeping as well.

She works from home and only 3 days a week!

I WFH and have a ten-month-old terrier. More or less from the beginning I was working with him in his playpen alongside my desk.

The pen was brilliant because he had plenty of room to have fun and couldn't distract me by getting into any sort of danger, or destroying anything!. That helped him to become accustomed from the get-go to the fact that I would ignore him when sitting at my desk.
And then I abandoned the pen after a few months at most.
I honestly can't remember any problems, other than the one time he suddenly awoke from a deep sleep while my boss was on the phone and spotted my monitor cable. Hs primeval instincts told him that a snake was about to attack him so he snarled with all the volume his little body could muster.

I guess there must have been a tough-ish time when he was too old to stay in the pen but too young to have developed a full sense of our routine. But now he is completely perfect.

I think terriers are probably easier than most gundog breeds in this respect though. They tend to go from super-high arousal to "Wake me up when its time for the next walk" in a flash.

My dog is in his crate sometimes when I wfh as he needs a nap...
I don't agree that crates are automatically cruel..
We have a cover on ours as the FOMO was high...is a springer spaniel so needy as well as gorgeous...he has a long walk am (age appropriate length) then a nap then food then walk/play/train then nap and repeat....puppies are supposed to sleep 18hrs or so

It was harder when he was a pup as the walks were shorter...but as he's got older the walks have got longer but he's got calmer so will chill more..
We've done quite a lot of settle/chill training....but still 2 decent naps a day am and afternoon in his crate..

I took a week off. Just plenty of verbal reassurance, put for wees and a quick play every so often.

She's currently asleep beside me!

Firstly, ignore the comments about crating being cruel while you’re home in the day. Dogs are den animals and with the right training, their crate can become a comfortable place for them. Many dogs often go lie in the crate without being asked because they like it.

Puppies are hard work but it doesn’t sound like you made the decision lightly! Many people get a pup, don’t take time off and crate them for 8 hours while they’re out so you’re already ahead of some others.

We’ve had 2 puppies in 2.5 years and working from home is definitely a struggle, especially with our 5 month old one who has way too much energy! Some things that may help:

• Establish a routine every day and follow the same times. Make sure to go for a decent walk just before you start work so he’s a little tired and you can probably get a couple of hours uninterrupted.
• Get a playpen for the room if crate training isn’t going too well. It will give him more space and he should learn to entertain himself in there while you work.
• Mental stimulation is just as important as physical and may tire him out more! Short training sessions throughout the day (5-10 minutes at a time) are a good option. Definitely try a kong, mine likes to have ice cubes stuffed in hers. Throw some treats in a hand towel, fold over a few times length ways and then tie almost in a bow. It should take him a while to get to them. There’s a good Facebook group called canine enrichment that has a bunch of ideas.
• Look for a doggy daycare nearby (although not necessary if finances won’t stretch). It helps with socialisation and you’ll get an exhausted dog at the end of the day! We send ours 2-3 times a week depending on our schedule. Alternatively, offer daycare on your days off so that he has a playmate. It’s a lot easier them when they have another to play with!

You’re clearly a caring owner and doing a great job by the fact you’ve bothered to post here and ask questions. It’s never a perfect time to get a puppy and they’re so much harder than they seem so keep going!

Have you done training to get her used to being quiet? As in play/ignore? She shouldn’t be shut in the crate ever, not until she likes it. Cover it so it creates a nice dark little safe space, and when she goes in by choice, give her a treat. Some of the whimpering you just have to ignore I’m afraid. She needs to just learn that she’s a) safe and b) whimpering doesn’t get you to appear.

Key thing is establishing a routine that works for you and puppy. Dogs thrive on routines so the more you establish this, the better for them and the faster they’ll settle.

Do not leave her shut in a crate for any period of time until she loves it. Have her in the room you work in, but ignore her completely (unless she’s being quiet). At her age you may have to power through a bit but she will adapt quickly.

Suggested routine (goal is to give her all she needs/get energy out):

1 - Feed then big walk (once jabbed obvs) or 30 mins playtime in morning before work. Lots of ball throwing/toy play/sniffing around garden time. Realllllly make this count!
2 - Create a space in the wfh room that is hers. Possibly put covered crate in there.

3 - Mid morning toilet break.

4 - Lunchtime - another play session/walk. 15 mins maybe.

5 - Mid PM toilet break

6 - Dinner time and next big play session/walk.

7 - Toilet break before bed.

Obvs a couple of those loo breaks are just while she’s a baby.

Be quite rigid with the routine and do what suits you. It will get better but she’ll be a baby then an adolescent so it’s around 18 months/2 years they properly calm down!

Good luck. Hope she’s not a working lab line ;-D

Kinda cross-posted with @LookAtThatCritter who wrote a far more eloquent post than I did! I second all they wrote :-)

You're a fool to have thought this would work - or that getting a Labrador puppy as a working single parent was a good idea.

I took 3 months off work when our lab puppy came home (self employed). I also had another adult at home full time.

Most people I know had 4 weeks minimum.