How do you have a puppy and work?

[Anonymous]

You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

This. OP, if you want to dog, then get an adult dog. Puppies need a lot of time and attention from people throughout the day. It is not fair to a puppy to keep it in a crate all day and only be let out for a dog walker.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

This. OP, if you want to dog, then get an adult dog. Puppies need a lot of time and attention from people throughout the day. It is not fair to a puppy to keep it in a crate all day and only be let out for a dog walker.

Uh, no.

Puppies sleep 19-20 hours a day for optimal health. Dogs sleep most of the day as well.

Have you ever had a dog?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

Are you one of those crazy rescue people who won't give a dog to someone who isn't unemployed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

This. OP, if you want to dog, then get an adult dog. Puppies need a lot of time and attention from people throughout the day. It is not fair to a puppy to keep it in a crate all day and only be let out for a dog walker.

Uh, no.

Puppies sleep 19-20 hours a day for optimal health. Dogs sleep most of the day as well.

Have you ever had a dog?

I agree with this - our puppy is happiest during the week when he is well rested. He gets cranky on the weekends since the kids want to play with him when he would clearly rather be sleeping.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

This. OP, if you want to dog, then get an adult dog. Puppies need a lot of time and attention from people throughout the day. It is not fair to a puppy to keep it in a crate all day and only be let out for a dog walker.

Uh, no.

Puppies sleep 19-20 hours a day for optimal health. Dogs sleep most of the day as well.

Have you ever had a dog?

Yes, I have had dogs since I was a child. In fact, I have a dog right now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

This. OP, if you want to dog, then get an adult dog. Puppies need a lot of time and attention from people throughout the day. It is not fair to a puppy to keep it in a crate all day and only be let out for a dog walker.

Uh, no.

Puppies sleep 19-20 hours a day for optimal health. Dogs sleep most of the day as well.

Have you ever had a dog?

I'm the first PP. Puppies need quality time when they are awake, for socialization and training. If the puppy sleeps all day and is ready to rumble when you're coming home exhausted from work, you will end up with a relatively common problem...

And to answer another PP's question, au contraire - an unemployed person would be perfect to train his or her puppy And I don't advocate for shelters or rescues either, it's Russian roulette with what you get. Dedicated people can work through many issues, but not all of them. If spaying and neutering and dog law creation and enforcement go a pace, in a few decades, we won't have that many dogs in pounds, and the puppy mills can instead transform themselves into reputable breeders with mandatory genetic screenings and dogs living in humane and socialized conditions.

[Anonymous]

Yeah my puppy definitely doesn’t sleep 19-20 hours a day. She would be a hot mess if she were left alone during the day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

This. OP, if you want to dog, then get an adult dog. Puppies need a lot of time and attention from people throughout the day. It is not fair to a puppy to keep it in a crate all day and only be let out for a dog walker.

Uh, no.

Puppies sleep 19-20 hours a day for optimal health. Dogs sleep most of the day as well.

Have you ever had a dog?

I'm the first PP. Puppies need quality time when they are awake, for socialization and training. If the puppy sleeps all day and is ready to rumble when you're coming home exhausted from work, you will end up with a relatively common problem...

And to answer another PP's question, au contraire - an unemployed person would be perfect to train his or her puppy And I don't advocate for shelters or rescues either, it's Russian roulette with what you get. Dedicated people can work through many issues, but not all of them. If spaying and neutering and dog law creation and enforcement go a pace, in a few decades, we won't have that many dogs in pounds, and the puppy mills can instead transform themselves into reputable breeders with mandatory genetic screenings and dogs living in humane and socialized conditions.

Wow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You either get a dog walker to come or put them in doggie daycare. Or get an older dog instead of a puppy.

+1

+100

no other way to do this.

[Anonymous]

OP here again, thank you for your replies. I still have some questions. Boxers are considered a large breed right? So that means their bladder is larger than say a chihuahua, right? My kids really want a puppy and one of my kids has ADHD, but I have seen him be exceptionally responsible with small kids and with my friend's dog. I know dogs help kids with ADHD by lowering stress and building time management skills. I'm a super patient person and I'll read a few books before getting a puppy. I can also lower my hours and work 3 times per week (6 1/2 hours per day including travel) for a few months. If we get the puppy at the beginning of summer and the puppy is 2 months old (is that usually how old puppies are when people buy them?), my husband (who works from home during the summer) and my kids will be able to bond, and train the puppy during the hours I'm at work. Then the puppy will be 4 months after they go back to school and my husband back to working at the office. But from what I'm reading it seems that 4 months is still too young to leave crated for 6 1/2 hours without peeing, correct?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here again, thank you for your replies. I still have some questions. Boxers are considered a large breed right? So that means their bladder is larger than say a chihuahua, right? My kids really want a puppy and one of my kids has ADHD, but I have seen him be exceptionally responsible with small kids and with my friend's dog. I know dogs help kids with ADHD by lowering stress and building time management skills. I'm a super patient person and I'll read a few books before getting a puppy. I can also lower my hours and work 3 times per week (6 1/2 hours per day including travel) for a few months. If we get the puppy at the beginning of summer and the puppy is 2 months old (is that usually how old puppies are when people buy them?), my husband (who works from home during the summer) and my kids will be able to bond, and train the puppy during the hours I'm at work. Then the puppy will be 4 months after they go back to school and my husband back to working at the office. But from what I'm reading it seems that 4 months is still too young to leave crated for 6 1/2 hours without peeing, correct?

No puppy has a bladder that big. If you do that plan and hire a dog walker for once maybe twice, you should be able to manage by that age. By 6 months, you shouldn't need to crate the dog if you gate the kitchen.

As for your kids - kids are not great with puppies. The dogs know they are kids and are much harder on them than on the adults. Plus, your kids have no parenting skills like speaking in an authoritative voice. Once the dog is older and calmer, your kids will be able to walk the dog. Your kids can certainly keep you company on a walk and take care of some of the maintenance, but don't expect much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

This. OP, if you want to dog, then get an adult dog. Puppies need a lot of time and attention from people throughout the day. It is not fair to a puppy to keep it in a crate all day and only be let out for a dog walker.

Uh, no.

Puppies sleep 19-20 hours a day for optimal health. Dogs sleep most of the day as well.

Have you ever had a dog?

I'm the first PP. Puppies need quality time when they are awake, for socialization and training. If the puppy sleeps all day and is ready to rumble when you're coming home exhausted from work, you will end up with a relatively common problem...

And to answer another PP's question, au contraire - an unemployed person would be perfect to train his or her puppy And I don't advocate for shelters or rescues either, it's Russian roulette with what you get. Dedicated people can work through many issues, but not all of them. If spaying and neutering and dog law creation and enforcement go a pace, in a few decades, we won't have that many dogs in pounds, and the puppy mills can instead transform themselves into reputable breeders with mandatory genetic screenings and dogs living in humane and socialized conditions.

Tons of dogs end up in shelters precisely because their unemployed owners can’t take care of them anymore.

Rescue groups won’t give dogs to people who don’t have jobs, it’s something they ask in the applications.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You do NOT work full time and get a young puppy, or a small-breed puppy.

Larger breeds have larger bladders and can go for slightly longer periods of time without needing to pee, but it's still bad for them to be without companionship all day.

A dog walker will take care of the most critical needs, but your puppy needs so much more than that to develop into a psychologically healthy dog.

Many many people do this all the time.

[Anonymous]

op, it sounds like you're thinking this through properly, not jumping into it without planning. If your dh is home for the summer and you don't work long hours it should work. By the end of summer you will have an understanding of what will work during the days you're gone for 6 1/2 hours.

I highly suggest reading "Before and After Getting your Puppy" by Ian Dunbar https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_7?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=ian+dunbar&sprefix=ian+dun%2Caps%2C227&crid=N5SYKWRI0LQZ

Also check out Dogstardaily.com

Dr. Dunbar explains proper crate training. He also explains having a safe, comfy confinement area that may help for the 6 1/2 hr days rather than crating during the day. By 4 months old, a boxer should be fine if he's taken out right before you leave and right when you get home. Plan to let him run his energy out morning and night - not just a short walk on leash.