Help !!!

[Paige_x]

I have a lovley dog. But i have a full time job and she is very michevious so i put her in her cage which is where she likes to be. As she feels uncomfertable without her cage, but im out for 8 hours a day she wees every day please help !

[tl]

Hello, I was in the same predicament we have a 2 year old rescue boxer dog I work and she is left 9 hours a day. I left old clothes in their for her and also some big roast chewy bones, which wont hurt her. Also we got a DAP unit from vets and this helped a lot, as well as the radio on!! She still has some bad days but its taken time really since February 06. We just fuss her lots as well when we've all got sorted. We slowly got there in the end.

[tl]

Hello i forgot to add that our boxer dog is also in a crate as well as she feels more secure in their.

[kita1]

How would you feel if you were left without access to a toilet for 8 or 9 hours!

Imagine how your dogs feel when someone is ringing the doorbell or the telephone rings and no one answers.

Cages should not be used for more than a couple of hours.

Could you not arrange for someone to visit your dogs during the day?

I used to work full time but my three dogs had the run of the house, yes they destroyed some things, but they got bored, it is something you must expect if you leave a young dog on its own, who is there to teach it right from wrong?. My dogs had each other for company. It must be awful for a dog sitting alone in a house all day, especially a young dog. Try not watching TV or reading a book, or listening to the radio, just sit in your house for an hour and imagine how they feel. My three were never left for more than four hours at a stretch without being let out to do their toilet and go for a walk. (My dinner hour was spent doing that). Also when I got home I stayed home, I never had nights out etc. my whole time was devoted to them.

What happens if the dog has an accident eg gets a bit of bone stuck in its mouth? What if there is a gas leak or a fire?

[tl]

In response to what the other person said. Some of us do have a life, also I actually went to the vet and asked his advice before i took my job on. He told me all of the above advice and also said that it is not the be and end all and it does the dogs good to left as they can become clingy and suffer from seperation anxiety as they are not treat as dogs!! Some of us have children, husbands and homes as well to make sure we all have a full life!!! Not just dogs!!!

[tl]

Also as told to me by the vet. Dogs do not have a concept of time. So if its going to destroy something it will do it in the first 5 minutes. Paige it will get over it and all will be well.

Good Luck xxxTL

[kita1]

I find it hard to believe that a vet (or anyone else for that matter) would advocate leaving a two year old boxer in a crate for 9 hours a day! I doubt any rescue centre would be happy with it either, certainly no breeder would be.

Would you put a four year old child in a crate for 9 hours?

And yes, I do have a life and so do my dogs!

[kita1]

How does a dog distinguish between the old clothes you leave in the crate with it and your new clothes that you have put in the washing basket?

If dogs have no concept of time how do they know when it is meal time, walk time etc?

Also, for people leaving their dogs alone how are your dogs going to keep cool in the hot summer days when they are confined to a cage?

[Snappy]

http://www.doggydayscreche.co.uk/

[tl]

with respect to dogs working out old clothes from new: there arent many animals that i know of that can do carbon dating!!

If you put a bowl of food in front of a dog it will want to eat it. If you show your dog a lead it will want to go for a walk . No matter how many times you do it in a day. The rooms are kept at an appropriate temperature for the time of year.

I am not cruel: before I started work I sought advice from more than one vet simply because I was worried about leaving my dog.The advice given to me was as I have suggested before in the previous posts.

Rescue dogs only get 1 meal and 1 walk a day. All other times are spent in a kennel. The life our dog has now is considerably better than that.

[orange-gnome]

I don't care what any number of vets have said about this subject, it is horrible!! Besides, I have worked as a vet nurse in 5 different surgeries and I know that vets just tell you what you want to hear on these type of matters! 8-9 hours in a crate every day of the week....terrible!!!!
You should hire a dog walker or rehome your dog to someone who has time for it.
Dogs in rescue kennels have room to run around and usually a seperate area for sleeping and going to the toilet, they also have other dogs to talk to during the day.....your poor dog must be going out of her head with bordeom!!!!
If you are going to leave her for so long she is bound to wee, honestly...she isn't a robot but a living creature!!!
Most people who have dogs have lives, jobs, husbands, houses and kids and if you can't properly take care of your dog as well then you shouldn't have one!!

That is ridiculous to say that dogs don't have any concept of time....who can really say that for sure?? My dog takes himself off to bed at 10 every night, at 7 goes to the door for a walk....every day!!!! Besides having to be cramped in a crate for so long, their mucsles and joints would begin to ache without enough room to walk about in after a few hours...I really cannot believe your attitude about this, and to complain about her weeing is just crazy talk!!!!

[kipchik]

Oh for gods sake,WHY has one person got to be right and everyone else is wrong,i'm sure tl loves her dog,THAT is the advice she was given,that is what she is doing,My dogs have the run of most of the house,but then i am only out a couple of hours a day,if you've got a neighbour who you get on well with maybe consider asking them to let her out for a wee,me and our neighbour will take turns to let each others dogs out,

[lankeela]

Well I was about to give a reply, but have decided nothing I can say will change your mind, so why bother? Suffice to say you would NOT get a dog from me.

[kipchik]

Yippee!!!!

[orange-gnome]

Kip....everyone has their own opinion and is entitled to it...don't get flustered about it....everyone is different you know!!

[wolf63]

I am about to go on the search for a puppy. Due to ill health I can no longer work, (apart for 3 half days in a charity shop). I am lucky that I have the finances and time to allow me to balance my life and dog - when I get him.

In 1992 I adopted a rescue dog, he was aged 5 years and had been in the 'orphanage' for months. He was a big, nervous dog and potentially a problem.

I worked full-time and spent most of my free time with him. The relationship worked and his temperament actually improved greatly over the 9 years that I had him. I never left him over 8 hours. There were some accidents, but he there was no sign that he suffered from the situation. He had free run of the house.

It depends on the age of the dog, it would not be a good idea to leave a puppy or young dog for this length of time. That is not to say that it is cruel or neglectful.

The vets at my surgery are brilliant and caring and give advise on these matters readily, they do not always give you the answer you want. The are experts, animals lovers and human beings - they know that people work and that a dog has to fit into this situation.

Some of the answers on this page are almost aggressive, people have the right to their opinions. I am not saying that I am right and they are wrong.

There is never a right answer in a situation like this.

PS I need sympathy - my pusscat, George, was put to sleep last week and I feel really lonely and lost. He might have been a vicious psychopath, but I loved him loads.

Susan

[kipchik]

Didn't realise i was getting flustered,but there is different opinions which is why wolf63 post is so damn good,some people do come across so self-righteous and THAT does get me wound up,but like wolf says there is no case of neglectfulness just varied advice from different angles,is one right?and my sympathies to you wolf on the loss of your cat,think we've all been there!!xx

[orange-gnome]

I never said it was wrong to leave your dog...I think it's wrong to leave your dog for that long stuck in a crate! And tls dog at least is young and a boxer...which are very energetic dogs (I have one I know).
I was slightly aggressive with my answer because tl was very aggressive and rude about answers that Paige_x got.
I can safely say that NOT ALL vets are animal lovers, like I say I have worked with lots of them and could tell you a thing or two about some atrocious things they have done!!!
I am not saying that all vets are bad but you can't assume you have a good vet just because s/he has the qualifications and/or has worked as a vet for umptine years.

[orange-gnome]

"oh for gods sake, WHY..." seems pretty flustered to me!
Self- righteous?? Check out how rude tl was ..."some of us do have a life...''!
Nobody ever suggested that your dog should be the be all and end all of your life, but a little consideration for them, their needs and happiness is essential or you shouldn't have one.

[orange-gnome]

You don't call being stuck in a cage for 9 hours every single day neglectful???!!!!

[kipchik]

orange-gnome there are some people on here that come across so damn right ALL the time it gets so bl**dy tedious,when there are varied opinions but only ONE of them is right EVERY DAMN TIME,over and over but it does not make them right,,,,,,,,,but on the subject of bad vets yeah i do agree,we see one with our last rott,he was a a***hole,several complaints against him,and yet the vets acknowledged them,and didn't hide the fact that he wasn't wanted,he was a partner though so carried on working,,,,hows that then??????