Can I leave my new puppy home alone for 8 hours while I'm at work?

Most dog breeds will do just fine with this work schedule - most people do work 8 hour days, so this isn't uncommon at all :) A puggle would be a fine choice, as they are usually quite friendly and easy-going little dogs in my experience. The most difficult time will be when you first bring the puppy home, since most pups won't be able to "hold it" that long without a potty break or two. You may want to see if you could take some vacation time when you first bring your new puppy home to focus on bonding and potty training before you have to start leaving them alone. Another option would be to have a neighbor, relative, or dog-sitter stop by at least once during the day to take the puppy out. Most dogs can go 8 hours without a potty break by 6-8 months of age, so as long as you have a plan until then things should be just fine.

It depends on the puppies. Tiny breeds like Shih Tzus are prone to hypoglycemia, so make sure that they have food available or that you come home every 4 hours to give them a snack. 8 week old puppies shouldn't be expected to "hold it" longer than 3 or 4 hours, so they will need potty breaks if you do not want them urinating in the house. You should also consider crate training before you go back to work, so they have a safe place to stay while you are gone and won't be able to chew up things that could cause them harm.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. As long as you are providing the puppy with a place to sleep, plenty of water and toys you should be ok to leave him for 3-5 hours with no problem. You can even look into the PetCube to interact with him remotely when you are not physically there. I also recommend using a product called FreshPatch to help potty train and give him a place indoors to go to the bathroom. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

No, Oscar is too young to be left alone for eight hours. He will not be able to hold his bladder long enough for this. He will need someone to come by every two to three hours to let him outside to potty.

They are adorable! At four months of age, 10 hours is too long for Coco and Chaz to stay in their crate. Their bladder isn't big enough to hold their urine that long, and they should be let out to potty every three to four hours. I would consider hiring someone to stop by at least once or twice a day to let them out to potty if you can't leave work to let them out. Dogs should be in crates no longer than eight hours, even if they are older. I hope this helps!

Hi there. I'm not sure if I understand what you're asking. With a 2 month old puppy, I wouldn't leave him home alone for more than 2-3 hours at a time if possible, as he won't be able to hold his bladder longer than that at this age.

If she is eating and drinking well on her own, then yes, she can survive being alone for that amount of time. If she is still nursing and not completely on to solid foods, then she would likely survive, but may not be getting enough nutrition, which can lead to problems if she has multiple days of being left alone for that long. If you are just leaving her alone for this long for one day, then she should be fine. If you are planning to leave her alone for 10 hours each day, then you should also worry about behavior problems developing. Puppies left alone for that time without human contact or other stimulation will develop behavior problems where they are less social and may be more aggressive and overactive. It's best to make sure that she has some contact with people and gets some exercise every four hours to ensure that she doesn't develop behavior problems later on. I hope that helps and all is well with Beetle.