is it safe???

[barkleyinNH]

i have an 8 month old sheltie male..named Barkley. My question is when is it safe to leave him home alone outside of his crate?
We havent had any accidents for a few months, but he is a chewer. We left him out after he was fixed and he chewed a hole in our new carpeting so my wife and i have been scared ever since. He does have plenty of chew toys.
As it stands right now my mother comes over from 11-1230 to take him out for bathroom breaks and walks.
My wife and i both work from 730am to 530pm and we are afraid thats to much bored time for him
Any thoughts?

 

[OntarioSheltie]

I don't think there's any right/wrong time to start leaving a pup out, (within reason, obviously you wouldn't give an 8wk old puppy the run of the house) it completely depends on the pup.

My Sadie was doing very well so we started letting her out. She was approx. 7 months old. This lasted one month, then she started chewing things. Now whenever she's left out for long periods, she chews.

If you think you'd like to start leaving her out and alone start with a small area like one or two rooms in a place where there's as little to destroy as possible

Start leaving him out for short periods, like 15 minutes, half an hour. If he doesn't chew anything slowly start leaving him alone for longer periods.

An alternative to leaving him out or crating would be to buy a pen for him. They're usually made of metal and come in different heights. There are a number of metal panels so you can shape it how you want but they'll basically make an octagonal shape if you attach the ends. You could put one of those in a room with his crate in it, that way he has more space to run around during the day but its harder for him to destroy anything.

 

[GeeRome]

I personally prefer not to take the risk. Dogs are perfectly fine crated during the day, especially if there is someone coming to visit half way through the day to play with them and take them out. They just sleep anyways, so why not stay crated? Then you know for 100% certain that they won't chew something, damage something in the house, or get into something that could potentially harm them ... or worse. There are so many household risks that a dog can get into when unsupervised, I don't like to take that chance. And getting a dog accustomed to a crate is much easier than barricading them in a certain area, purchasing cupboard or fridge locks, pinning up chords, and ensuring that all small objects are picked up each time you leave the house.

 

[Narmowen]

I don't think there's any right/wrong time to start leaving a pup out, (within reason, obviously you wouldn't give an 8wk old puppy the run of the house) it completely depends on the pup.

My Sadie was doing very well so we started letting her out. She was approx. 7 months old. This lasted one month, then she started chewing things. Now whenever she's left out for long periods, she chews.

If you think you'd like to start leaving her out and alone start with a small area like one or two rooms in a place where there's as little to destroy as possible

Start leaving him out for short periods, like 15 minutes, half an hour. If he doesn't chew anything slowly start leaving him alone for longer periods.

An alternative to leaving him out or crating would be to buy a pen for him. They're usually made of metal and come in different heights. There are a number of metal panels so you can shape it how you want but they'll basically make an octagonal shape if you attach the ends. You could put one of those in a room with his crate in it, that way he has more space to run around during the day but its harder for him to destroy anything.

I agree!

While I trust Luke (my 8 month old) for short period, I can't trust him for long periods (like when I'm out shopping) so he stays in a crate. It's that or come home to an eaten apartment!

 

[BarbV]

I don't think there's any right/wrong time to start leaving a pup out, (within reason, obviously you wouldn't give an 8wk old puppy the run of the house) it completely depends on the pup.

My Sadie was doing very well so we started letting her out. She was approx. 7 months old. This lasted one month, then she started chewing things. Now whenever she's left out for long periods, she chews.

If you think you'd like to start leaving her out and alone start with a small area like one or two rooms in a place where there's as little to destroy as possible

Start leaving him out for short periods, like 15 minutes, half an hour. If he doesn't chew anything slowly start leaving him alone for longer periods.

An alternative to leaving him out or crating would be to buy a pen for him. They're usually made of metal and come in different heights. There are a number of metal panels so you can shape it how you want but they'll basically make an octagonal shape if you attach the ends. You could put one of those in a room with his crate in it, that way he has more space to run around during the day but its harder for him to destroy anything.

I agree! I also have my 8 month old with his soft-sided crate inside a pen. It works great! Gives him a little extra room to get up, have a drink of water, stretch his legs and go back to sleep.....and dogs do sleep 80% of the time anyway. And no risk of chewing anything that you don't allow.

Bacca now has the routine so down pat, that whenever I put my shoes on, he jumps into his crate/pen and settles right down, even if my son is still home!

 

[Rassy]

I personally prefer not to take the risk. Dogs are perfectly fine crated during the day

Blehh ,, puppies are fine crated in the day,, Im not a big fan of dogs being jailed up with no where to go during sunlight hours, too boring and monotanous for them..there Brains will go to mush.,, might as well own a hamster then..

 

[BarbV]

Blehh ,, puppies are fine crated in the day,, Im not a big fan of dogs being jailed up with no where to go during sunlight hours, too boring and monotanous for them..there Brains will go to mush.,, might as well own a hamster then..

Frankly, I'd rather my pups be bored and but safe.

Today, my son was home all day so Bacca was left uncrated. My son called me at work in the afternoon saying that Bacca was acting weird. Turns out that Bacca got "stoned" by eating a roach my son had left in an ashtray high up on his desk. It only took seconds for Bacca to find and eat it. (yes, again! - for those who remember my previous episode with Bacca and the clouds! This time I opted not for the stomach pumping.)

He's fine but has a terrible case of the munchies (yes, truly! He's been eating all afternoon! ) and very wobbly on his feet.

So, definitely - until your dog is totally, 100% reliable, do not give him free roam of the house.

 

[GeeRome]

Blehh ,, puppies are fine crated in the day,, Im not a big fan of dogs being jailed up with no where to go during sunlight hours, too boring and monotanous for them..there Brains will go to mush.,, might as well own a hamster then..

I hardly think there is any need for the snarky holier-than-thou attitude.

And as for their brains going to mush, I have yet to see any evidence of that.
These are not given for "mushy brains". http://i34.tinypic.com/25tvm8l.jpg

 

[Janice]

Shelly gets kept in her cage when we are at work and my son's at school. Shelly has food, water, toys and her bed in the cage. (We had her in the garage in an exercise pen but it's to cold out there now.) It's for her safty!! When someone is home Shelly has the run of the house. But her food and water are alway kept in the cage we free feed Shelly so when we are home the cage door is alway open for her to eat and drink. Now I must tell you Shelly cage is pretty big. Heck my son can even fit in it!

 

[Rassy]

My apologies, wasnt meant to offend,, was just a personal opinion.