When Did You Start "trusting" Your Puppy?

[Cookiez]

This may be a silly question, and I realise it's different for everyone- but I am curious, how and when do you know you can start trusting your puppy inside your home?

When my Cavalier was a puppy she was kept in the laundry with a doggy door to the backyard. It wasn't long before she was given free run to the house (and mum's house was pretty big!). When we did have to go out for long periods of time, she would be kept in the laundry (for shelter) and would have access outside to toilet. By the time she was a year old, she was allowed in the house wherever she wanted and she knew to go outside for toilet and NEVER chewed a thing inside mum's house.

We now have a 9 month old Japanese Spitz. I would like to think that he's now trustworthy enough to be inside unsupervised by my OH feels differently. Codi is kept in a sectioned area of the house when we are out or at work. We don't let him in the yard because we only have a patio and it is landscaped with pebbles which he likes to try and eat. In his "pen" he has enough space to sleep and he has the spare bathroom to use as his toilet (we have put a puphead puppy loo there).

When we are at home, he is given "free run". He will take himself to the toilet when he needs to go and pretty much stays within our sight anyway. The only places he doesn't have access to are the bedrooms as they are carpeted.

Now it probably sounds like he's pretty reliable and perhaps you are wondering why my OH doubts him. He hasn't done it for awhile but when he was teething he chewed up our door frames DESPITE being given plenty of chew toys which we rotated everyday. About a month ago we came home and he dug at an area on the wall and took the paint off. We are not sure why he did this (maybe there was a noise) as this has never happened before. We asked our trainer and ruled boredom out of it as he is occupied with plenty of toys and treats and it was a one off incident.

My OH is worried that if he is given free run inside the home while we are at work we may come home to a war zone. Our house is puppy proofed but OH is worried about TV being knocked over, or something serious like that.

He's starting to get bigger and I would like to be able to give him a bit more freedom and I feel bad that he is inside a penned off area while we are at work. Any suggestions on what I should do? How much access have you given your puppies in the past and how quickly did you allow this to happen?

[Greytmate]

If he is happy in the penned area, I would leave him there.

If you want to leave him alone in the house, start off with very short periods of time, gradually lengthening that time.

That way, he can get used to being left in the house, and you can see how he goes before he gets a chance to destroy too much.

Maybe you could slowly get him used to it, so that by the time summer comes around you can leave him inside with air conditioning on all day.

But if you don't think you will be doing anything like that, I see no good reason to tempt fate by letting him be unattended in the whole house for long periods of time. Young dogs do sometimes have an absent-minded chew on things, and that may include expensive furniture or fittings.

[Bubitty]

ohhh thats a hard one and something I battled with many months ago.................

I think when she hit around 9 months I just took a leap of faith. I started by leaving her inside with her brother while I went on a short 2 hour grocery shopping trip. Then gradually it was a 4 hour shopping trip and so on.

I also would let her sleep outside of her crate. So say at 10.30 pm she was sleepy, I would let her be free range until morning and then check the house in the morning to see if she got up to anything at night.

I think you sort of gauge them and how trustworthy you think they are and then take that leap of faith. You do know what they would or wouldn't do deep down though I think.

[Cookiez]

If he is happy in the penned area, I would leave him there.

If you want to leave him alone in the house, start off with very short periods of time, gradually lengthening that time.

That way, he can get used to being left in the house, and you can see how he goes before he gets a chance to destroy too much.

Maybe you could slowly get him used to it, so that by the time summer comes around you can leave him inside with air conditioning on all day.

But if you don't think you will be doing anything like that, I see no good reason to tempt fate by letting him be unattended in the whole house for long periods of time. Young dogs do sometimes have an absent-minded chew on things, and that may include expensive furniture or fittings.

Thank you for your advice. He is quite happy in the penned area- he's been used to it since he first came home to us at 9 weeks, and that is where he sleeps at night. (It is across from our bedroom so he can see us)

Currently we turn on the air conditioning in our bedroom for him in summer when we are not home.

I more or less wanted to know if anyone else has ever been in this position as me... I suppose it is better for him to have more boundaries at the moment- plenty more years ahead to give him more freedom!

ohhh thats a hard one and something I battled with many months ago.................

I think when she hit around 9 months I just took a leap of faith. I started by leaving her inside with her brother while I went on a short 2 hour grocery shopping trip. Then gradually it was a 4 hour shopping trip and so on.

I also would let her sleep outside of her crate. So say at 10.30 pm she was sleepy, I would let her be free range until morning and then check the house in the morning to see if she got up to anything at night.

I think you sort of gauge them and how trustworthy you think they are and then take that leap of faith. You do know what they would or wouldn't do deep down though I think.

I think you are right in saying that you know deep down whether they are trustworthy. It's good to know others have experienced this! One half of me thinks that he would be ok, but the other half knows that he is still a curious puppy so I wouldn't be surprised if he got up to mischief.

I like the idea of giving them free run in the night when you are sleeping... Where did your pup sleep when you did this? Did they get up in the night to wander around at all?

[all that glitters]

My shepherd is coming up to 1.5 years old, and I only just started leaving her in the WHOLE house alone for 9 hour days starting a week ago We used to keep her locked in half the house (a lino big area) but now she has the whole house and 3 cats for company and the carpeted lounge, our big leather couches etc. She's never really shown any signs of destructive behavior like your puppy though... I wouldn't trust her if she did any of those things :D

[aussielover]

Clover was trustworthy at 4-5 months, basically the day we got her! Mindy, well I don't know when, if ever, it will happen for her...

she is a good puppy though, she just likes chewing alot. She is ok to be left for an hour or so if she is sleepy. she is quite a heavy sleeper and won;t wake for a while if she is asleep thankfully!

Edited July 11, 2010 by aussielover

[Gayle.]

Mine don't stay inside if there's no one home. They also don't stay inside if it's a nice day and we are home, they go out and enjoy the fresh air.

I would not leave Benson unattended in the house, ever. He thinks too much. I would trust Dusty with the run of the house, she's never chewed anything even when she was a baby.

I don't know about Isaak. He gets left inside when we're at work cos up til now he's been too small to be outside, but he's only had access to a tiled entrance and hallway. Tomorrow, however, he joins the big kids in the yard for the day.

[Cookiez]

My shepherd is coming up to 1.5 years old, and I only just started leaving her in the WHOLE house alone for 9 hour days starting a week ago We used to keep her locked in half the house (a lino big area) but now she has the whole house and 3 cats for company and the carpeted lounge, our big leather couches etc. She's never really shown any signs of destructive behavior like your puppy though... I wouldn't trust her if she did any of those things

Aww, that makes me feel a little better! Codi has a similar set up- the area he is kept in is all tiled. I have no idea why he liked the door frames... We were a little upset as we live in a brand new house! I got over it eventually though. Lol, at least it's contained just in that area!

Clover was trustworthy at 4-5 months, basically the day we got her! Mindy, well I don't know when, if ever, it will happen for her...

she is a good puppy though, she just likes chewing alot. She is ok to be left for an hour or so if she is sleepy. she is quite a heavy sleeper and won;t wake for a while if she is asleep thankfully!

I thought I was so well prepared by having lots of chew toys handy... Never expected Codi to like the taste of the house better. LOL. :D My other dog Coffee is like your Clover- trustworthy pretty much from day 1! So I was a little shocked with Codi!

Mine don't stay inside if there's no one home. They also don't stay inside if it's a nice day and we are home, they go out and enjoy the fresh air.

I would not leave Benson unattended in the house, ever. He thinks too much. I would trust Dusty with the run of the house, she's never chewed anything even when she was a baby.

I don't know about Isaak. He gets left inside when we're at work cos up til now he's been too small to be outside, but he's only had access to a tiled entrance and hallway. Tomorrow, however, he joins the big kids in the yard for the day.

Codi "thinks" too much too. He's very observant where as my Cavalier was very cruisy. If there's a reflection on the wall, or something moves across the floor, Codi will bark and try to "catch" it. Also one of the reasons why I am slightly worried about leaving him on his own...

I can see from this thread though that this is not uncommon and it's not just me who doesn't give my dog a free run all the time! What a relief!

[Bubitty]

I like the idea of giving them free run in the night when you are sleeping... Where did your pup sleep when you did this? Did they get up in the night to wander around at all?

My pup had access to the kitchen, the lounge room, hall and study. I think initially there was a bit of restlessness at around 5.00 am in the morning but she'd always just grumble if no one was awake and then settle down again.

[Cookiez]

I like the idea of giving them free run in the night when you are sleeping... Where did your pup sleep when you did this? Did they get up in the night to wander around at all?

My pup had access to the kitchen, the lounge room, hall and study. I think initially there was a bit of restlessness at around 5.00 am in the morning but she'd always just grumble if no one was awake and then settle down again.

I let Codi have free run today when I was having a nap in the bedroom. Normally I would put him in his pen but today I left my bedroom door open and he came in, sniffed around for a good half an hour and then curled himself up near my feet. He only left the bedroom when he heard my OH come home.

Maybe there's hope to letting him wander around on his own at night!

[W Sibs]

Charlie has free rein of the whole house from day dot. He was toilet trained by 12 weeks... and if he did any pee or poo inside, he will find newspaper and do it on that... but we always had the back door open for him to come in and out. He isn't a destructive pup at all.

Emmy is another story. I've only just started to leave my bedroom door open at night where she gets access to the hallway, bathroom, kitchen/dining area (i leave the backdoor open for her so she can take herself outside and not wake me up anymore)... and so far so good.

When I'm at work.. she only has access to the hallway, bathroom, living room, kitchen/dining and I have the backdoor open. So far so good.

When I'm at home, she has free rein to the whole house except the study room, clothes room and toilet (she has a thing for toilet paper)... I'm starting to leave the bedroom door open now.

She is a very curious pup and has the need to stick her nose into everything, then taste everything and leave her mark (teeth marks) onto everything she has sniffed.

She has been so good lately... I decided to give her more "freedom". So far so good

[MsKatie]

Mine are outside in the yard when we aren't at home and crated at night in our bedroom when we go to bed - the rest of the time they have access to the lounge, hall and kitchen with the door open for them to go in and out to the yard as they please - they seem quite content and I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving them with access to the the house - there is far too much they could destroy

[Bubitty]

I let Codi have free run today when I was having a nap in the bedroom. Normally I would put him in his pen but today I left my bedroom door open and he came in, sniffed around for a good half an hour and then curled himself up near my feet. He only left the bedroom when he heard my OH come home.

Maybe there's hope to letting him wander around on his own at night!

Great stuff!!!! If you don't try, you'll never know! I've taken several leaps of faith during her first year and they have all paid off!

[Cookiez]

Mine are outside in the yard when we aren't at home and crated at night in our bedroom when we go to bed - the rest of the time they have access to the lounge, hall and kitchen with the door open for them to go in and out to the yard as they please - they seem quite content and I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving them with access to the the house - there is far too much they could destroy

It's really good to know that there are people out there who are being more on the "careful" side like me. I've never had to do this with a pup before... Codi just seems more curious and a lot more observant about things. I wish I had more of a backyard so that he has more space to run around when we're not home. We make up for it by taking him on 2 walks a day though.

Great stuff!!!! If you don't try, you'll never know! I've taken several leaps of faith during her first year and they have all paid off!

Thank you Bub. A leap of faith is exactly what it is. Lol. I think I still have a lot more "trusting" to do but maybe he's getting there. He's definitely a lot more well behaved the last couple of months. Our trainer did tell us that 8-9 months will be his naughty age so we'll see how it goes... I might try and have another nap this afternoon and see how he reacts.

[Cookiez]

Charlie has free rein of the whole house from day dot. He was toilet trained by 12 weeks... and if he did any pee or poo inside, he will find newspaper and do it on that... but we always had the back door open for him to come in and out. He isn't a destructive pup at all.

Emmy is another story. I've only just started to leave my bedroom door open at night where she gets access to the hallway, bathroom, kitchen/dining area (i leave the backdoor open for her so she can take herself outside and not wake me up anymore)... and so far so good.

When I'm at work.. she only has access to the hallway, bathroom, living room, kitchen/dining and I have the backdoor open. So far so good.

When I'm at home, she has free rein to the whole house except the study room, clothes room and toilet (she has a thing for toilet paper)... I'm starting to leave the bedroom door open now.

She is a very curious pup and has the need to stick her nose into everything, then taste everything and leave her mark (teeth marks) onto everything she has sniffed.

She has been so good lately... I decided to give her more "freedom". So far so good

Hehe maybe it's a JS thing- Codi loves toilet paper too. Lol. Here's the evidence: (complete with the "I didn't do anything face")

[Niques]

When home, I now trust James anywhere. He's grown out of the need to grab absolutely anything he can find (with the exception of a potplant in one room and lace curtains in another).

When alone, he's still cordoned off downstairs. I generally trust him, I just worry what would happen if he got bored. I can see the couch not faring too well Very soon he'll start being left upstairs for short periods of time (and hour or so)...maybe with someone peering in through the window I really just have a feeling that he'll do fine, though. Could prove foolish, but I'm confident (hopeful ).

He's always been generally fine in the living areas. I occasionally feed him (piece by piece) part of his breakfast in the bedrooms and that's really helped to teach him to be calm in these areas and that there's more fun to be had than just stealing everything in sight.

[W Sibs]

[Hehe maybe it's a JS thing- Codi loves toilet paper too. Lol. Here's the evidence: (complete with the "I didn't do anything face")

I know that face all to well...

[Nushie]

We are just letting our 4 month old have short term access to house if we are not there. He isnt confident with stairs so he stays upstairs in the lounge / kitchen area. But instead of putting him in his pen if we go down to the shops for 15mins or i go downstairs and jump in the shower etc. He seems okay, he usually brings a toy(s) over and chews them at the top of the stairs, but as yet no issues.

Whenever we are home he pretty much as run of where ever he feels and he has been so good with his toilet training that we dont tend to keep a close eye on him anymore.

I would say start off slow. Give him 5-10 minutes on his own and then 15-20 and grow from there. That way if he does get into something, he wont totally trash it before you get back to find him.

I dont know how your house is set up but i would also consider not giving him entire access to the house first off. Maybe increase his freedom to a single room (slowly build up time) and then give him access to 2 rooms etc. until eventually he has the whole house.