May 13, 2011
I think we're rushing our training with our 4-month-old puppy. What are your thoughts on the situation?
Full Question:
Hello Cindy,We recently (only been 3 days now) got a 4 month old puppy and I was wondering your opinion. The dog is great in terms of how nice it is, and it seems to already be learning quickly. The issue I was wondering about was the time we spend with the dog. I am thinking that we kind of rushed into getting him without really thinking enough about the time that we should spend with him. My wife and I both work full time and can't really be home in the day time. I can and have been running home on my lunch break since we got him but I can't do this every day.
I was wondering, normally if I cant run home on lunch, he would be in his crate for 9 hours a day, and I am involved in sports sometimes after work and wouldn't be able to let him out maybe for an additional 3 hours on certain days, probably once a week or so. I deeply regret not thinking this through before we purchased him, it was kind of spur of the moment, we saw him and fell in love and didn't use our heads. I want to be fair to the dog so we have been considering returning him.
Since we have only had him 3 days we would like to get this decided as soon as we can before he (and we) get too attached. I appreciate any opinions you have.
Thank you for your time.
Cindy's Answer:
Hi Bryan
I think you’ve probably answered your own question, just by taking the time to write to me.
From the sound of your schedule and the fact that you are expressing some regrets only a few days into this, it may be best to return the puppy. Dogs need quality time spent with them every day, and I think you and your wife are really busy people that may not have the extra time a dog requires.
The other option would be to hire a dog walker to come in at least once a day to exercise the pup and give him a break from being in a crate.
I hope this helps.
Cindy
I think you’ve probably answered your own question, just by taking the time to write to me.
From the sound of your schedule and the fact that you are expressing some regrets only a few days into this, it may be best to return the puppy. Dogs need quality time spent with them every day, and I think you and your wife are really busy people that may not have the extra time a dog requires.
The other option would be to hire a dog walker to come in at least once a day to exercise the pup and give him a break from being in a crate.
I hope this helps.
Cindy
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