Hi all. We have a 4 month old Frenchie. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I happen to have been home with him pretty much solidly since we got him at 3 months. As a result, he has had very little exposure to being left alone. It’s nice to have been with him so much, but he does need to learn. I’d like to ensure that he can cope, as there will be a need for this in the future. Puppy sleeps well in his crate through the night. He does complain if I close him in there during the day to keep him away from hoovers, mops, laundry etc. He will settle and sleep after some protesting. I’m thinking of doing the exercise where I leave him in his crate for increasing periods, starting with 10 mins, whilst I sit outside the room. It’s worth noting that if I leave him sleeping on the sofa and go to another room, he won’t make a fuss. He’ll just come and find me when he wakes up. Any advice on what else could help, please, would be very much appreciated!
Best thing I read and then did was to ensure good things happen when you leave. So when I leave my girl she has her breakfast in food toy dispensers, kongs, licky mat etc. we gradually built up the time so she got used to my working hours. We also have a great little camera set up in our kitchen and I can check her on my phone. She also has radio 4 on! She also has a little walk before I go to work. Even if we go out in the evening she still gets a licki mat or kong. Seems to work for our pup.
Start training your puppy to be alone at short intervals. When you bring your puppy home for the first time, try to schedule it over a weekend
Gradually increase that length of time to up to two hours for a pup three months and younger, or up to four hours for a pup from three to six months old. Your pup will begin to adjust to being alone, as well as learn a valuable lesson: you always come back.
