Outside Puppy

[BrunoBella]

Welcome my montage

I am another cruel owner who puts their dogs outside to play :p :p

I'm sure your pup will be loved

[shoemonster]

Make sure you post piccies ok!!!

:p @ BP!!!

Edited July 10, 2006 by shoemonster

[MyMontage]

I will be sure to post some pics when he arrives....

13 DAYS TO GO!!!!

:p

[ReXy]

welcome cant weait for pics.. enjoy your baby , and good on you for doing all the right things for the baby

[Dogsfevr]

Rememeber one thing there are owners who are home all day & the dogs spend all there life outside,get no social activities,no compainship time .

It seems people think because you work & want a dog your irresponsable especially if you want a pup.

Older dogs from rescue can be just as much work as a puppy so i dont see that as an arguement for someones situation & there is nothing wrong with someone wanting a pup to train there way & enjoy it from 8 weeks to old age.

As a groomer i can tell you now the worst owners for not brushing or training there dogs are the ones home all day

[Working_Setters]

IMO Miranda has given you some excellent advice.

Waiting until I'm home fulltime would mean not getting a dog until I'm 65!! I'd miss a lifetime of happy and fulfilled dogs!! Agree taking a couple of weeks leave to ease pup into new environment is ideal, but also often not possible. I choose the litters from which I'll take a pup VERY carefully, there may only be a suitable litter once every couple of years in the entire south-pacific region. My work is not flexible as to when I take holidays, so often the arrival of a new pup and my holidays don't coincide.

As to the crate for a pup that will grow into a big dog question, get a big crate that comes with an internal divider. Progressively move the divider to give the pup more room in the crate as it grows. You don't want to put a pup into an adult sized crate or it will live in one end and toilet in the other end, which is not what you're trying to teach it. You want it to live/den in the crate and toilet in the yard.

[JulesP]

Not sure if anyone else has suggested this, it's a long thread, but ask your puppy's breeder were the pups are currently sleeping - in or out and go from there. My border pup was living in a stable before I got him and found the house very hot at first. He seems to have got used to it now. So if pup is in a nice warm place before you get it then take a while to get it used to the outside.

I do think it is better to have 2 dogs or a dog and cat if you are a 'working mum'. Good excuse to buy more pets anyhow!!

Good luck with your new pup!

[ReXy]

Rememeber one thing there are owners who are home all day & the dogs spend all there life outside,get no social activities,no compainship time .

It seems people think because you work & want a dog your irresponsable especially if you want a pup.

Older dogs from rescue can be just as much work as a puppy so i dont see that as an arguement for someones situation & there is nothing wrong with someone wanting a pup to train there way & enjoy it from 8 weeks to old age.

As a groomer i can tell you now the worst owners for not brushing or training there dogs are the ones home all day

that may be true with some people that stay at home all day, not everyone is the same.

the same goes for people that have pets and work all day.. not everyone is as resposible and takes all nessasary measures to ensure the saftey pup, this is why we have so many backyard orniments that end up in shelters..

[MyMontage]

Update....

We have now had Charlie the OES for a week.

We got him on a Saturday and I went back to work on the Tuesday. We have decided to keep him inside (our back garden is pretty big....a bit too much to play with!) and everything is going really well.

He is a very laid back puppy and isn't at all phased with us leaving for the day. I practiced with him on the Monday I had off and he does not make a sound when we leave the house. He has about 20 million (slight exaggeration I know) toys to play with throughout the day when we are not there, and when we come home they have all moved spots so he obviously keeps himself occupied. We have the radio playing for him on a talkback station so it's just constant voices for him too.

When we come home from work we are entering the house like we had never left, not fussing over him or anything. He just sits in front of us when he wants his pat! Then he has his dinner. He has a lovely nature.

I've been getting up at 5am to play with him to wear him out for the day also. He has a crate in the room where he is during the day and he sleeps in there fine. A couple of days a week my boyfriends dad comes over to visit him aswell.

He sleeps in our bedroom with us at night time and does not fuss at all until 3am when he goes outside for his piddle.

So to everyone out there who's opinion was for me to not get my puppy I can understand where you are coming from, but I do hope that you realise that full time workers can also be responsible full time pet owners at the same time.

I did happen to ask my boss for Furr baby maternity leave....he just looked at me funny!!

[Dog_Horse_Girl]

Great news! Congratulations!

BTW - I don't think full time work goes against dog ownership or most of us wouldn't have dogs. BUT a young pup has special needs and those needs must be met. As long as that happens, a pup will do fine if the family members are away all day.

I've only raised one pup and it's hard work, which is one reason why I prefer to adopt older dogs (usually six months and up is what I like). Sure, you've still got hard work - an older dog may come with 'issues' to resolve and behaviours to change, but that's part of the bonding process too. We've had toilet training, separation anxiety, destructive behaviours, and all from our older dogs!

I've also recently started foster caring and if a pre-requisite was "no full time employment" then more dogs would be PTS rather than being rescued. And how would we pay for our fosters' needs without having a full time income, let alone our own dogs' needs too?

BTW - when I had my pup, I worked full time rotating shifts - we managed. His schedule, like mine, was a bit all over the place, but we managed. He was kept indoors but I didn't have a secure yard so him being indoors was a given. He was mildly destructive from boredom if his toys disappeared under the furniture (he was too scared to go in and retrieve them) but absolutely fine with enough fun stuff to do. I had never heard of a crate...or a Kong...or separation anxiety. And I was in my early twenties. And Aussie had a great life as an indoor/outdoor dog. He died in 2001 and I still miss him terribly.

[ls_l]

Mine are outside 24/7 and have no probs with it and have proper shelter against wind, rain etc. Another big difference is that I'm a stay at home mum, so I'm ouotside very often and play with the pup. What I reckon matters the most isn't if the pup is kept outside or inside, but how much INTERACTION it gets. Mine are outside dogs and happy.

Its a question of choice. I guess that having an older pup and a younger pup, they don't get bored when I'm not out there with them, so that could be a little thing to maybe think about?

I must admit that if my landlord were to allow pet inside, then I wouldn't mind having the youngest one inside from times to times..(I actually take her inside but keep her in my arms, so that we can't be blame for anything...shhhh its a secret )

[TessaBella]

Miranda - I agree. I had my pup outside from 10wks of age (when I got him). I couldn't take time off as I was a uni student but I worked out a program with my mum who would be home most of the morning and then go out to work in the arvo, leaving the pup alone for no more than 3-4 hrs.

I am also a uni student. And I'm getting my first ever puppy in January. This may confuse some people (the length of time, that is) but because I cannot afford to take time out from Uni, I'm getting her at a time when I have a month off to train and accomodate her and get her used to being alone for a few hours each weekday prior to going back to Uni. So although I am young, have never owned a dog before and seem to be out of my mind I'm doing everything in my power to be responsible for this puppy and to help it and care for it at a time when it needs it most.