Ok so me and the bf are thinking of getting a new puppy prob around Sept. When we brought Yoshi home my bf was currently out of work so he had all the time to be home with him and train him and whatever. So now we are both working. He works 5 days a week and I work 4 (hopefully that doesn't last too long). I work 8 hrs a day and he works 10. So the puppy will be home prob about 3-4 days a week for whole days. For those of you who had/has new puppies and had to leave them home for 8+ hours a day, please let me know what you did and any advice you have please.......

Thanks so much :)Amanda, Chris, Yoshi and soon to be Emi

Some of the best suggestions I've heard are either hiring a pet walker to come and walk your pups mid day or take your lunch break and go home and take the pups out for that time. Good luck.

A puppy will not hold it's urine for 8 hours if it's drinking consistently. I remember reading somewhere that your puppy is able to hold their pee for set a number of hours max. Typically to calculate how long it can hold it, it would be 1 hour + the number of months the puppy is. For example, if your puppy is 2 months old, it can hold it's pee for a max of 2+1= 3 hours. If it's 4 months old, it can hold it for 4+1= 5 hours, so on and so forth. Of course it also depends on how much water you give it.

I give my puppy water freely for the whole day when i'm around to take him out every 2-3 hours and stop giving him water at around 7pm. I'd then take him out to pee every hour and a half. My puppy typically goes to sleep at around 10pm and ill wake him up to pee at midnight (they usually like to pee after waking up). I'd then crate him and he'd be able to last til 7:30 am, and he'd still be able to squeeze some amount of water out of his system in the morning.

***It's important to immediately give them water in the morning after they go pee and that after 7pm they don't exercise anymore to prevent any dehydration problems.

I learned my lesson because I used to give my GSD water all day even into the night and he'd soil his crate if i'd be too lazy to take him out at like 2am/3am in the morning. This became a habit for him and he became comfortable going in his crate and that was a whole new issue to fix. I was definitely more irresponsible back then though so may you'd be able to make it work.

I wish you the best of luck!

Will

My pup was alone for about 8 hours each workday. I didn't crate her as she had the kitchen and pantry to stay in, though she did have a crate without the door as her den when she wanted to be in it. She quickly became newspaper trained so never had to worry about her being uncomfortable. Fortunately for us our next door neighbor is retired and asked if it was OK if she could take Scout for a long walk every early afternoon. May you be so lucky. I also left her with kong toys with treats, frozen marrow bones stuffed with peanut butter, and would pile toys and such into forts so when she knocked them over she would be engaged.

She now has the run of the downstairs while I am at work, and the furniture has suffered some as she likes to chew wood, and we added a second Shiba so can't leave out marrow bones and hidden treats like I used to when there was only her alone.

Anyone know what possible issues could arise if they are crated too long, or not able to get to the bathroon, but not wanting to soil in their crates? Just curious to what could happen.You can call me K (human) Her name is Stella (Shiba)

Dawn and I took a week off each when both pups came home. So both dogs had two weeks to get adjusted. After that we had the dog walker come over to let them out midway through the day. I'm also always running around for work so if I was in the area I'd run home for lunch.Joe & Dawn ruled by our shibas *Katsu* and *Tanuki*. Check out Katsu's Blog, It's a Porkchop Life

That's what I am planning to do as well. take 1-2 days off in the beginning and then a week later, I am taking a week off. I can still make it home around lunch to take him out/eat when I'm not on vacation too.Amanda, Scott and Jake (shiba)

Thanks :)Amanda, Chris, Yoshi and soon to be Emi

Of course Diane :) I want a black and tan from BethAmanda, Chris, Yoshi and soon to be Emi

Who's stealing Testsu?Amanda, Chris, Yoshi and soon to be Emi

WOW! Congrats Amanda!You can call me K (human) Her name is Stella (Shiba)

Thanks Kiernan :)

I've been looking into dog walkers and they're expensive. I really don't want her to learn to go in the house but if I have to I guess I have to. Question for everyone that did that, did that screw up the housebreaking for when you were home to take them out?

Another thing is that Yoshi no longer needs his crate so all day he just roams freely around my apartment. I'm sure he will try to free her from a pen or get in there with her...ugh. I live in a one bedroom apt so it's kinda hard for me to separate them all day.

Need some more advice!!!!!Amanda, Chris, Yoshi and soon to be Emi

Amanda, I didn't take more than one day off, and Stella was so used to her crate and housebroken, that I only had one minor laps in memory and she had an accident in the house cause of me. I work 7-3, and my mom can let her out by 2:30, and I usually get home around 3:30/4 depending on what time I can get out of the office. Of course while I am home, I take Stella out every couple of hours. As soon as she wakes up, or when she starts to get hyper/rowdy when she's playing. And of course a few minutes after she's had something to eat.

I do feel bad that she is in her crate while I'm at work, but since I have had a chance to see how she is and what she tried to chew she's better off in the crate. She only sleeps, and chews her toys, and tries to chew the corner of my bed/sheets/blankets.

She's learned to jump, so I am hoping that she doesn't associate that with the gates/fence/pens.

And I plan on getting this pen... http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3165602 ... It's kind of pricey, but she won't have the chance to climb the pen since it's only bars.You can call me K (human) Her name is Stella (Shiba)

Yuukon is now 8.5 months old and can hold it until we get home (which can range from 9 to 11 hours on long days). He very occasionally went pee when we had that setup when he was younger. Our biggest hurdle when he we first got him was having to carry him down 3 flights of stairs before he could get into some grass to go pee. We have moved now, so that isn't a problem any more.

Just tossing this out there, I've bought some of the exercise pens on Ebay for way cheap.. I've actually got one of the 8 sided metal ones 24" by 42" on the way for $54 total!!!

Awwwwwwwwwww! Yoshi and Emi. Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!

AWE! She's adorable! Can't wait to meet her too!!You can call me K (human) Her name is Stella (Shiba)

Dawe! She is so cute!

aw, congrats!!! she's a cutieAmanda, Scott and Jake (shiba)

Latest pic!!!!!!


Amanda, Chris, Yoshi and soon to be Emi

aww! so cute! her two week pic is silly looks like shes yelling to put me down with mom now. =)Nicole, Bella(Boxer), and Saya(Shiba inu)

She's so cute!!You can call me K (human) Her name is Stella (Shiba)

awww love the pics! I look forward to seeing the pics when she comes home with you!

cuteee! isn't it exciting being able to watch her grown from when she was first born? :)Julie (human) loved by Mika (shiba) - Mika's Blog