To shut my dog in the garden for the day?

[Dogingarden]

Please read the full thing before you call me cruel.

I will be gone from about 8am until late on the night because I'm travelling for a medical procedure that I can't put off any longer. There is no way to make the time shorter due to where I live in relation to the hospital and I need the treatment asap.

I had a dog sitter booked but she had an accident and is currently on crutches and unable to drive. The others in my area are booked or just far too expensive. I have family but only my brother is able to drive and works 12hr shifts so he's only able to visit after 8pm. The house is rural detached with no close neighbours.

He can't go to kennels because I accidentally missed his vaccine boosters during the move and the local ones won't take him without them being up to date.

Dog is a large terrier. I have a large, safe garden with plenty of shady spots regardless of the time of day. I would leave multiple beds for him, including a dog house that was already in the garden when I moved in. There is also an automatic water bucket fitted to the house (previous owner) which he uses happily when we're in the garden. I will leave dry food out.

He absolutely will not toilet in the house, even with puppy pads, so he'd potentially be going 12+ hours without a wee which makes me very uncomfortable because he's had kidney issues in the past.

Please don't be awful - I'm terrified of what the biopsy will show and I'm doing my best.

She can't afford it.

And she's getting a biopsy.
Her health has to come first on this one occasion.

The dog will just have to manage, as a one off.

Could you explain your predicament to your local dog kennels and ask if one of their workers would be prepared to have them at their home if you paid? Also some people who look after dogs in their own homes while people are on holiday take only one dog at a time. If there is one in your local area that could be a solution as boosters less necessary. I would guess that most reputable dog home people would normally want boosters but if you explain your predicament they might be willing to help.

I’m a cat owner, but on the off-chance something goes wrong, I’d pay the expensive sitter. Don’t you have a local facebook group? I’d ask on there if anyone golden hearted would do it, if I couldn’t afford the sitter. Agree with others, what if you are kept in?

It depends where she lives and what day her treatment is. If it's 30c outside, even with access to water and shade, the dog may get heatstroke and heatstroke can be fatal. She asked whether it will be ok. I don't see the point in pretending it will definitely be ok.

She hasn't said where she lives, if it's only forecast to be 20c where she is on that day then heatstroke isn't an issue. I still wouldn't do it but in the heat it could be fatal. I can't see what's wrong with pointing this out.

Borrow my doggy is an app that people can use to request free pet care. I don't think it's insensitive to suggest she explores all the options.

It sounds like you're new to the area but if you go out for walks from your front door and when you bump into other dog owners, ask them if they're local and, if they are, explain to them? I know it's a bit weird to ask a stranger for a favour but dog walkers are often very friendly.

I personally couldn't do this to my dog. I'd worry that he might get distressed being stuck outside all day. Your dog might be used to being left for a few hours in the house, but is he used to being shut out alone in the garden for hours at a time? I'd then worry about him looking for alternative ways out of the garden and injuring himself or going missing. This could also cause separation anxiety in the future.

I'd have to either book the expensive dog sitter or leave him indoors and have a dog walker pop in and take him out for a while part way through the day.

The op doesn't seem to want suggestions or solutions, probably wants everyone to say yeah leaving a house pet outside alone unsupervised for hours when it is hot is ok when it really isn’t.

Could you put camera up in garden and if theirs a problem call your brother?

Will one of your family members that can’t drive, come and stay for a day or two to look after your dog?
mine wouldn’t stay outside but I have a dog flap so I know he could get out if he needed to

I haven't had chance to read all of the replies properly but he absolutely loves the garden and will actively choose to be out there if the back door is open. There's a lot of mature trees in one area that provide shade all day. The previous tenant also built a dog house in the garden.

I can't afford the expensive sitter - it's hundreds of pounds at this point because my appointment is on Thursday 10th.

If I have to stay in, my brother will stay overnight at my house with my dog. He's tried to change his shift but he's a nurse and it's not possible.

I'm so worried about leaving him but I can't figure out another way at this point.

My parents love at the other end of the country and are quite elderly so the trip is too much for them. My brother has tried to change his shift but it's not possible.

@Dogingarden I have a large terrier too, she is definitely an outdoors girl. I would build him up to it over the next couple of days.

Leave him outside for a few hours today, a few more the day after and make sure he's ok.

Does he go into the dog house? If not get some treats in there and a comfy bed and encourage him, also try the temp in the middle of the day to make sure it's shady. Spend some time getting him used to all the areas of the garden and I'm sure he'll be fine. Good luck with it all.

Working dogs work in much harder conditions and it’s not roasting today either

It's forecast to be 28c where I live on Thursday. Other parts of the country are forecast to be much hotter. It's too hot to leave a dog outside all day.

It's not a working dog, it's an indoor pet dog.

Do you think a working dog would adapt quickly to being cooped up indoors for 12hrs?

For peace of mind the ‘expensive’ option is the right thing to do.

if your dog is stolen or gets out then you are to blame.

Haven't RTFT so I don't know if anyone has suggested it, but could he go to the house of the original dog sitter? I know she is on crutches, but she could still look after him for a day.

Is he likely to get anxious? Have you tried leaving him outside for a few hours and see how he does? Leave him while you go out shopping or something? If not, and you haven't got time to test this, it would be the expensive dogsitter for me. I would be more worried about the dog's anxiety levels as it sounds as though they will be perfectly physically safe. This is the kind of thing that anxious dogs won't recover from.

Pay for the vax and book at the kennels.

Considering I haven't had chance to look or reply to the thread until now I don't know where you've got that idea from. I really wish people wouldn't make up stories.

It's also forecast to be a max of 18c on Thursday. If it was going to be very hot I wouldn't even consider it.

They won't accept him because it has to be done 30 days before the stay.

It doesn't need to "adapt" to it. It just needs to manage it one time...

If he is a dog that barks a lot ….no

My friend went out one day and had forgotten to lock the back door..dog went out door shut behind him. Only when she looked at Facebook and a local person complaining about a dog barking in her area….she assumed it wasn’t her dog until she got home !

I live in Northern Scotland and it's 18c on Thursday. If it was those temps I wouldn't even consider it.

Also, only you know your dog. If you think he will be fine, and not get upset and go crazy then go for it. As you say, the weather will be fine and he has plenty of water and shady patches.