This guide outlines the best strategies for puppy care when you have to be in your workplace all day.
Have you added a furry, adorable, slobbering new member to your family? Raising a puppy is a lot of fun but requires a significant amount of work. Managing the balance can be a challenge if you’re juggling a full-time job with the puppy care needed for rearing your new ruffian.
Puppy care and training when you’re working
Fortunately, you can raise a puppy even if you’re working a full-time job. It’s worthwhile to learn a few puppy car tips to keep them safe, happy, and healthy even if you’re away from the house often.
Recognize that the breed will affect the the puppy care and training process duration
While every dog has a personality all its own, many behaviors are heavily influenced by breed. Breeds that are considered easily trainable include the following:
- German Shepherd
- Shetland Sheepdog
- Labrador Retriever
- Golden Retriever
While the breed has an effect on trainability, coat color does not. For example, Goldens come in a wide variety of colorings, including red, light golden, dark golden, and white Golden Retrievers, which are an especially popular type. Regardless of color, these are intelligent, friendly dogs that are typically easy to train. If you’ve got your eye on a specific color, don’t let training fears stop you from hand-picking your puppy from the bunch.
Develop a routine for feeding and bathroom breaks
Dogs are creatures of habit who are comfortable with routine. You want to develop a daily puppy care schedule for your pup’s needs. Feed your dog and take them outside at the same time each day.
A predictable puppy care schedule helps the dog feel more comfortable when you’re gone because they understand you’ll return. Also, establishing a routine can help speed up the housetraining process, another helpful thing to have when leaving a dog home alone.
Enlist help
How often do dogs need to go to the bathroom? The American Kennel Club recommends taking the age of your puppy in months and adding one to get the maximum number of hours between bathroom breaks. For example, a three-month-old puppy needs to use the bathroom every four hours.
If you work a full eight-hour day, you’ll need to enlist other people to help you with puppy care. You can hire someone to come to your house and let your dog out into your backyard or take them on a walk around the block. Ideally, you’ll also know a friend or family member who can step in and help during any emergencies.
Tire your dog out before leaving
A tired dog is more likely to relax and sleep while you’re away. You’ll want to exercise your pet before you leave it alone, even if doing so means you have to wake up earlier in the morning.
Many dog exercise options are available. You and your dog can go on a walk, play fetch, or even run around on a homemade obstacle course. The activity should last about thirty minutes to tucker out your little tyke.
Crate train your dog
Don’t allow your dog to roam your home unsupervised. If the puppy grows bored, they might tear up furniture or even try to escape. Instead, keep your dog in their crate or kennel when you’re gone.
During the first week or so, you’ll want to keep the crate in your bedroom, as your dog will be more comfortable sleeping near you. Ensure the crate is large enough that your dog can stand up and turn around.
Monitor your dog remotely
Keep an eye on your dog while you’re away with a remote monitoring system. Most systems require you to set up a camera that streams video through an app, so you can watch your dog in real-time using your phone or work computer.
Once your dog has grown accustomed to being left alone, they’ll often use the time to sleep, so you likely don’t need to monitor them every minute. Many monitoring systems use a motion-activated camera to help limit data usage.
Puppy care and training to be left alone
To leave your puppy or dog to be alone without having any problems, you need to think about its well-being. If it barks, howls, cries or gnaws at things it’s because something isn’t right. These unwanted behaviors can represent the pet’s suffering. So the first step in puppy care in this situation is to identify what’s wrong.
We separate the most common problems and, later, we will give some tips to improve the puppy care routine and make it be alone without suffering.
Little physical activity
Not wasting energy is one of the main reasons that dogs alone at home make a mess. Dogs that spend the day alone need to walk more often on the street. Try to put at least two walks a day into your routine. Before leaving for work, take a long walk where the animal spends energy walking and relax feeling full, seeing people and having fun with your company.
In addition to the walk, you can play with your pet indoors. Choose your favorite toy, set aside some time before going to work, and strive to tire the puppy. If you don’t have time to walk twice a day or play daily, hire a walker, the famous dogwalker. Another option is to leave the dog at the day care or day care, places that take care of the pet and carry out various activities.
Spending the animal’s energy before a long period alone is important to leave it relaxed, stress-free and tired to sleep for a few hours. This will be very valuable in helping to sort out the barking and mess of the dog alone at home.
Boredom and loneliness
In addition to a lot of energy, your puppy may feel lonely and bored. Evaluate his routine and see if he really doesn’t spend a lot of time alone. Some activities we can’t change, like work, for example. But it is possible to substitute activities such as the gym or the practice of sports for moments with your pet. Go running with the little dog, for example. You can also turn to day care and day care, which entertain and care for the dogs while the handlers are at work.
To complement your pet’s routine, add fun! Make the environmental enrichment with toys so he can have fun while you’re gone. Bet on toys with dispensers, also called interactive toys . They use feed or treats to attract the animal’s attention and encourage play.
Tip! Before leaving, hide your pet’s ration around the house. This “treasure hunt” will entertain you, amuse you and waste your energy while you’re gone.
Dog training
In addition to improving the pet’s routine and environment, you can also perform training that helps your dog be alone at home. This training can be done with puppies and adult dogs.
Get your pet used to being alone little by little. Offer a toy and let him have fun. Take the time to go to another room. Come back after a few minutes, avoid eye contact and don’t party when you meet him again. When he calms down, pet him and even reward him with a treat.
Try to do this training for several days. When you notice that the dog alone in the room is calmer when you return, leave the house and stay out for 10 minutes. Repeat the activity for several days until the animal gets used to it. Always returning without partying and rewarding good behavior with snacks. Gradually increase the absence period.
Don’t say goodbye or greet your pet when you return
Often the unwanted behavior of dogs is caused by our attitudes. That’s right! In the case of the dog alone that gets anxious, a very common reason is the party we have when we return home. This encouragement reinforces our absence.
Therefore, we must treat the moment of leaving the house and our return as a matter of course. Do not say goodbye to the pet when leaving. Simply grab your coat, keys and close the door.
The same goes for the return. Do not greet your puppy and make a fuss when you return. Even if you miss the pet, wait for it to calm down to pat it and pay it attention. At first this can take several minutes and be a little stressful for you, but don’t give up. You will notice improvement in a few days.
Wrap up
While working full-time does pose challenges if you’re raising a puppy, strategies are available that can help your dog stay safe and comfortable when left alone. With these puppy care tips, you can punch in the hours while your pooch stays home.
