should we get a dog?

[ginmakesitallok]

Just that really! Dp and I always had dogs when growing up, and have always wanted a boxer. Up until now I've said no, I work part time, so no one home 3 days a week (which I don't think is fair on a dog). But am now thinking we could get a dog walker for those days. Kids are 9 and 3 and would love a pet.

What do you think?

It could work, but not with a puppy. An older, rescue who is used to kids and used to being left for short times would be okay with that.

We have a 16 week old puppy and I work 2 days a week. What we did was take holiday between DH and myself to cover those 2 days for 5 weeks, in laws covered the 2 weeks of the Easter hols as they were looking after DDs anyway, and during that time got pup into a routine where he was gradually left for longer each day (easy as he slept from school run time until about 11). Now we have a dog walker who comes in for an hour at 11.30 so he is left for around 2.5 hours morning and afternoon, and is fine with this! I don't think it would have worked at 8 weeks when we got him, but because we gradually got him used to being left and he is house trained it works fine. The other days he is not left apart from school runs, although he still stays in his crate most of each morning, because he is asleep when i get back from school run and this allows me to get on and do stuff!! So yes it can work!

That's what we were hoping to do - get him in the sumer hols when we could take some time off - not sure if we could stretch to 5 weeks though.

I know there are lots of good reasons to get a rescue dog, but I would prefer to have a puppy

You can not get a puppy if no one is home three days a week.

How much time off could you get?

That wouldn't work with a puppy. Puppies are like babies, they need someone around almost constantly for the first few months.

Toilet training would be almost impossible with that arrangement. A tiny puppy has a tiny tummy and thus eats and toilets often.

Doggy daycare might be an option but many of them don't take very young puppies because they don't want to be responsible for training someone else's puppy.

If you want a dog you'll either need to rethink on the rescue side of things or wait until one of you can be home most of the day for at least the first three or four months.

I don't think it's a good idea - for a puppy or a rescue.

I have a boxer and am lucky to be able to bring him to work with me. I worked from home when he was a puppy but I can't imagine how difficult training him would have been if I wasn't with him all the time in those early days. Boxers are very demanding dogs with an incredible amount of energy. And puppies are generally terrified of being left alone.

A colleague of mine has a rescue dog and every day she goes home at lunch time to see what he's destroyed. He has serious abandonment issues that she was not made aware of when she got him, but can't bring him to work or put him in daycare because he is aggressive to other dogs - another issue she was unaware of when she brought him home. Her dog has destroyed crates, chewed through the sofa, carpet, electrics, almost hanged him himself over the 8ft back fence when he was left out on a long lead in the garden - all from being left alone.

Unless you have the time to put in with a puppy and then put him into daycare when he's big enough, I really wouldn't recommend it.

Will have a rethink. Thanks for the advice

How long are you out of the house for? Ours is left fro 9 until 3 with dog walker coming in between, could you not initially have someone do 2 visits if your day is longer? More expensive but not forever, just while pup is younger? He is crated and basically just sleeps in there although he has toys and things to chew, but I think as soon as he goes in he knows to just go to sleep. Helps that he was house trained quickly too. I'm sure there's a way!

Out between 8 and 5 - so would probably need 2 visits in between?? We always had dogs when I was young, my Mum worked fulltime, I don't know how she did it??

I know, in the 70s when I was growing up dogs were left all day! My dog walker charges £10 per hour, but you could have 2 30 min visits mid morning and mid afternoon, then have one in the middle of the day once dog is older?