Want a german shepherd pup 8 month, is it do able?

[RoystonVaseySmegHead]

My Friends rehoming her dog because she's not well, and has mobility problems. The dog is a german shepherd pup and is 8 months old. He's good with babies and cats. ( which is good because we have one) I work 10 minutes from home and am out from half 8-12 (come back for an hour lunch) then out again 1 til 4.
What I was hoping to do is see him on a morning for an hour (get up at 7/ half past then leave at half 8) come home and walk him in my dinner break, then take him for a better walk when me and ds are home and then would obviously see him all night until I go to bed at 11 ish. I'd be with him all day Thursday, Friday afternoon and all weekend. Would that be too long for him to be alone? Financially wed be ok with him, it's just making me worry we won't have time for him during the day, advice please?

Has the pup had any sort of training? Primarily, has he been taught to be left alone for any length of time? If not, you will need some time at home to accustom him to this or you will be trying to undo the joys of separation anxiety. He's also just entering the period of development in dogs equivalent to the 'terrible twos' when he will start pushing barriers.

He isn't an adult, fully-formed dog yet and shouldn't be having long periods of at one go (the recommendation is normally five minutes of walking daily per month of age - so forty minutes total at the moment).

Are you confident he can be left with your cat? Living with one cat does not mean he will be safe with others.

Have you researched the health and welfare issues present in the breed and are happy these are not present or are confident you can cope with them if they exist or are likely to emerge in the future?

What would happen to the dog if things didn't work out with you?

Lots to think about...

*Long periods of exercise

I know, I'm thinking about all of the things and for the cat issue, his litter would go in the bathroom with a baby gate on the kitchen door where the dog would be kept while I'm out so the cat can get in/ out as he pleases, and has lots of high places he can sit to be out of the way. The Dog wouldn't be allowed upstairs as I hate dogs in bedrooms and on beds so cat would have all of upstairs to himself as well. It's my ds's birthday on the 28th of this month and I've got a week off for the April half term, so would get pup around the end of the month/ start of April and use the holiday time to settle him in properly. 4 hours is the longest planned time he'd be left for, dp, my dad and mum all have keys for my house so could see to him if anything were to stop me getting home... he knows the basic commands (sit, wait, down) is tricky with recall but will work on that and plan to continue his training. My friend would gladly have him back if things don't work out (having him isn't even definite yet!) as she's friends with all the dog lovers in our area, as for vets etc obviously I'd have insurance and will probably get a vaccination plan from our local vet... what else should I think about? I haven't had a dog for almost 4 years but I've been thinking about getting one for the last 3.

And he'd get 10/15 minutes in the back garden at lunch time and half an hour walk after work (will obviously up his exercise as he grows and develops)

I'd give him lots of toys to keep his mind occupied as well

Watching with interest, as I'm contemplating the same thing.

Have you had a GSD before OP? They're a very special breed, but I would exercise caution for the very reasons shambolical outlines above - health problems, likely to push boundaries, sometimes prone to separation anxiety.

BUT, the rewards are enormous.

Handle the introduction between cat and pup well - I didn't, and while my gsd pup is the light of my life and such a darling, I am down one very pissed off cat who has absconded to the-house-of-neighbour-with-tuna. Not to be doom and gloom but I just thought ah it'll be fine and it er, wasn't!

With puppies, they shouldn't be left for more than 4 hours in a day - otherwise they will be making their own entertainment which may well be eating your kitchen units, emptying the bin or something else. And also seeking lots and lots of stimulation when you are there.

For an intelligent, energetic breed like a GSD I really don't think it would be a good idea

Dibbler it wouldn't be that long every day, dp works a flexible 16hr contract so is either out 9-2 or 2-7 ish at most, 3 days a week, or 4 hours split over 4 days usually in the afternoon. Long shifts are usually weekends. For me leaving him it'd be 8 hours maximum with an hour at lunch and that would be on a Monday and Tuesday. I've got a half day Wednesday (morning) and a half day Friday (afternoon) sorry for drip feeding I didn't want to waffle on in the OP and scare people off

google not personally but my best friend of 5 years had 3, one from a pup-5, then a 5-10 year old one and an elderly one so I think I've seen most life stages? And suppose I will definitely introduce them slowly. The dogs coming from the same person as my cat so he might remember him I'm not sure... here's hoping

Dogs are so much more than when you can walk them.
Are you ready for them to destroy your house? (Trust me, we have 1000 toys for the dog and we pay as much attention to him as humanly possible but 2 minutes alone and the place looks like a bombs hit it).
Going out is difficult.
Who will look after him if you go away?
Are your children ok with him?
There's so much stuff to consider, we have an 8 month old Labrador and I did all the research in the world but nobody pointed out that you won't get five minutes peace ever again

I wouldn't leave him alone unless in the kitchen where the only thing he could chew is the table, I know that trees way more to a dog than walking, it's the companionship I'm looking for rather than someone to play fetch with etc, I'm phobic of planes and boats so not going away abroad and would take him with us if we ever went in the uk (caravanning or dog friendly b&b) ds has never met him but it's a gradual introduction, obviously if ds doesn't like him then he won't be coming here, as for having alone time, I don't get that anyway

@RoystonVaseySmegHead haha fair enough! Although mine has eaten the damn table, and the freaking door frames.

What is the pup like with stranger's? I have 2 GSD and one has a big issue with new people, I have to be very careful stranger's don't try and pat her....it can be very stressful at time's.

Tbh ours eats everything even if we're in the same room - if anything less stuff gets gnawed when I go out because he's busy waiting by the front door. That's just puppies innit he is definitely good company and very loving

Mine has eaten part of a wall, skirting board, tried a kitchen cupboard door, diswasher, fridge and mats on the floor. (All when I turn my back or leave her for seconds.)

Can you get pet insurance, they can have awfully expensive problems.

I'd say he's young to be left for so long, but it will depend what he is used to and on his temperament

I've two very typical GSDs but they are opposite ends of the scale, one is supremely confident, bright, happy with his own space, very family oriented, and the other is as needy as hell, quite insecure and would follow me to the gates of hell so long as they are not upstairs, he doesn't do stairs. The only time he isn't watching me is if he is asleep at my feet. And if anyone wants him to do anything he will check with me first if I am there. But he is well behaved when left with others.

I think as long as he gets a decent walk before you go to work in the morn, not a quick 10 mins around the block, then he would be fine for 4 hours.

If you could make time to walk him again at lunchtime, that would be preferable to 15 mins in the garden. Then I would leave him with a frozen kong (peanut butter) which will keep him occupied for an hour or so and put the radio on low.

Then another decent walk when you get home, around 40 mins.

So yes, it is doable but he would need three walks per day as he would be spending 8 hours alone.

There is a fantastic app called Borrow My Doggy that you could also consider using if you did get the dog and wanted it to have a bit more attention. It's used for people who maybe have to leave their dogs at home during the day, and people can register to walk these dogs. I walk two dogs now as we can't have dogs in our home but I'm desperate for one so it satisfies the craving! If you do go for it and get the dog it's well worth considering if leave it alone is one of your concerns!

I think perhaps if you were talking about having 2 or 3 hours with him before you go to work in the morning, this might feel realistic, but getting up an hour before you have to leave the house does not give you time to do anything much bar get yourself ready. Perhaps give some thought to whether that's a commitment you're happy to make.

Physical exercise needs to be restricted at this age (but not for much longer really), but I would be looking at building in time for a lot of mental exercise (training) which will also tire him out.

This may be a bit technical for those who think a GSD is just a GSD too, but the pedigree of the dog will make a huge difference to how energetic he is.

Honestly, from what you've written then no, I wouldn't think it was a good idea at all, but perhaps that view will make you re-consider that and see whether you are happy to make more commitment.

I wouldn't mind getting up earlier to walk him in the morning, I just don't know how long it would be for. I could do half an hour/ 40 minutes in the park down the road from me (so 10 min there, 10 min back then half an hour in the park) and walk to school some mornings.

Why is this dog more appealing than any other dog at this point? Do you actually want a dog right now or has getting a dog only arisen because this one needs a home? Your wishes & those of your family are the most important thing, this dog is not your responsibility (yet).

I've been wanting a dog for about 2 years but still lived with my mum until September last year (council had me as lowest priority housing) and stayed at dp's house 4 nights a week so it wasn't so able, now I'm settled in my new house I think it is so I'm going to see if it works out.. My old boys died 4 years ago and it's taken time to feel ready to have one again, as it does. I've always had a soft spot for labs and german shepherds, but was going to get a staff pup from a friend in July/August (ACCIDENTAL PUPPIES!! They were told she was spayed but got mounted by a neighbours dog and has been showing signs for around a week, she's getting scanned next week) but then when I told her about it my friend said she had to give her dog up and I said I'd think about whether I'd be comfortable having him. Ds has been asking for a dog for about a year and I obviously won't get the dog if ds doesn't like him. I also need to check with dm if she could put up with a pup around if we took him to her house at the weekend. At her house there's a utility room where he could eat/ sleep etc and plenty of space in the garden to play, then about 20 miles of moorland a half hour walk away which would be great for when he's older.

I agree with Whitney (seem to be doing that a lot lately!) about the type of GSD the dog is really impacting how workable this is likely to be.

Do you know anything about the lines he's from? There's not just a working/show split in GSDs but multiple types each of working and showing, plus pet lines. There are potential health and temperament issues (the latter particularly in some pet and showing lines) with all types and as he's barely more than a puppy these could arise in the future if he's from a less than ideal breeder.

It's also worth bearing in mind that he's rapidly approaching adolescence which could make things harder for the duration as it's not uncommon for them to seemingly forget everything they've been taught so far. They can also really start pushing boundaries which is something that needs managing very carefully, particularly with large (and intimidating to many people) breeds.

With regards to your friend and the Staffy litter, the mating might have been accidental but there are (very safe and reliable) options for terminating any pregnancy so there's no need to go ahead with an unplanned litter in an already massively over bred breed.