time alone?

1138 Views 4 Replies 4 Participants Last post by CWhite, May 25, 2008

stephaniek

Discussion Starter · May 16, 2008

Right now my pup Cyrus (7 mo.) is lucky--I'm a stay-at-home mom with a toddler, and my husband works from home, so Cyrus is almost never alone. (Without people, that is. We have another dog and 3 cats, so he's never truly alone in the house).

I'm just wondering if we should make the effort to get out of the house more often to get him used to being by himself, since our lifestyle may change in the future when my daughter goes to school? I don't want to set him up for separation anxiety later in life. I know it's a problem most people would love to have--too much time with their dog! But it actually takes some planning for me, my husband and kid to go out on our own.

am I overthinking this? Currently the animals are alone maybe a couple of hours a week.

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rokanhaus

· #2 · May 16, 2008

If he is a well adjusted balanced dog...longer time alone in the future shouldn't be a problem. Is he crated now for a decent period of time and is content with that? Is he relaxed when left in the car when you run an errand? if the answer to these is yes, I wouldn't worry.

I would make sure that he is comfortable with a long duration between "potty outtings", and doesn't get used to going out on a whim every time he feels the need just because you are home to cater to that.

Other than that I would not worry unless he is behaving in way now that makes you truly sense it could be an issue.

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Fodder

· #3 · May 16, 2008

i agree with the above poster. its good to plan ahead and think into the future, but in my experience if a dog has separation anxiety you'll know it no matter the amount of time he's left alone. so if he does okay now when you leave (no signs of stress, anxiety, destructiveness) then chances are pretty good that he'll stay that way.

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stephaniek

Discussion Starter · #4 · May 16, 2008

Great, thanks! We are not crating him; we have a very small house and I just don't see where a crate could fit! He takes down time of his own accord either on his bed or lying on the landing of the stairs.

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CWhite

· #5 · May 25, 2008

HI,

I stayed home with my pup for almost a year. I didn't know how she would react to being crate for most of the day with me gone. She is fine.

When I go home we go for a very LONG walk and she is very happy to see us.

She is also a working line pup and has adjusted quite well.

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