Hi, I have a medical appointment I need to attend next week when my puppy will be 11 weeks and I am anxious about leaving him alone. I should be a max of 2hours including travel and my husband might be able to get home before I’m back. We have been using a crate since he came home and he is happy to go in to it when I’m in the same room and will happily sleep there. I’ve also been giving him a kong or chew and he is happy while eating for me to leave room but is rather upset if he’s finished or gets border and I’m not in room. Is there any way to get him used to more alone time over the next week? I worry that he will get used to crying if o just try and leave him to settle by himself. We still have a smaller crate in our room overnight for him to sleep in, would it help if he was sleeping downstairs and used to being on his own more? thanks
An 11 week old pup will be fine being crated for 2hrs. I would ease in to it starting now. Crate the puppy for 30min and leave the house. Then increase it by 15min daily and you will be at the 2hr mark with minimal issues. I will have a similar issue. I will need to return to work when my puppy is 12 weeks old. Lucky for me I can go home for lunch to feed and let her out for a bathroom break. I will need to build her crate time up to 3-4 hours before returning to work. Good luck and let us know how it goes...
We have a 10 week old lab and will need to leave her when she is 12 weeks for a maximum of 2 hours on a Friday afternoon. But also each morning and afternoon for 20 mins at a time(max) for school drop off and pick ups. Our pup sounds similar to yours in terms of crate behaviors. Sleeps in a crate in our bedroom and has a daytime crate that we plan for her to sleep in eventually. She doesn’t mind being the daytime crate for short periods with a kong (10 mins without whining is pretty much solid now) but we are in the room or in the next room. If we pop treats in (when she’s not whining) she seems to go back her kong for a few minutes. This seems to go on until we decide to get her out (maybe 20 minutes) I’m thinking of starting to increase the time and leaving the house bit by bit over the next week (she’ll be 11 weeks old then) I’m not sure about it though, I might try what J Leonard mentioned above. I just worry that I will make her hate the crate (and I need her to love it!)
We need to do the same thing. I think I might try what you have suggested. we’ve been crating up to 20 mins while in the room or next room with “drive by’s” where we pop a treat in (when she’s calm) and this helps her re ignite her interest in the kong. I guess she’ll whine and cry more if we are not there to pop a treat in. So I expect she’ll cry while we are away. And that’s my worry - I want to her to love the crate not hate it! Gah!
