i am looking to get a Labrador puppy. I have been reading and researching and planning for a while. I live alone but my work have agreed for me to take the dog with me to work (a charity with a small of office for 3 people with laminated floors, direct access to outside and space for a crate and play area next to my desk, plus my boss who works upstairs also has a dog). The issue I have is that next year I have 8 weekends (basically about once a month starting from February) where I have to go away for work from a Thursday to Saturday evening. For the first one the puppy will only be 4/5 months old and I feel that is too young to go to kennels. I know that there are options for dog sitters and stuff, but I can't guarantee or set that up before getting the puppy and so it feels a bit of a risk to get the puppy and then hope I can get something sorted. So my questions are- is that too young for kennels? Do breeders ever consider taking them back for those weekends? Or is something that means getting a puppy just isn't sensible? (I really hope it's not the latter!)
Hi and welcome to the forum I work and quite often take Harley to work too, it is brilliant that your work are happy for you to take the pup in. I would start looking into local dog walkers that offer overnight stays to see what's out there. I have a dog walker who is brilliant. The wife does day care and overnight, the husband does the dog walks. The day care and overnight is in their home and they are really well cared for. Harley (my lab) stayed there overnight Friday as we had to go to Plymouth flat hunting for the daughter. She loved spending time there. They have regular dogs that stay overnight due to owners work commitments and it seems to work really well. Hope this helps a bit.
There are home-away-from-home style house boarders, some of which take on puppies. I'm not sure where you live but you could seek out something like that. We've done that with our older dog and it was great, no kennels etc. Lots of cuddles, walks. Over Christmas we'll be putting both her and our puppy (who will be 6 months old by then) in that sort of boarding environment.
Thanks for the welcome! I live in Cambridgeshire. I have looked at a couple of home boarding places but it would work out very expensive as I would need it each month and the ones I've found would be £20-25 over 24hrs and so £80-100 per stay. Is that about average for home boarding? I'm not looking to cut corners and realise that getting a dog does of course have lots of associated costs, that's why I'm trying to factor it in at this stage before I get a puppy.
Welcome to you. £20 - £25 is about average, yes. If they come to your house it's more. My friend does this and charges £40 for 24 hours. No dog loving friends? My friend and I look after each other's dogs regularly and it works really well - no cost for either of us. Her dog is with us for three weeks at the moment. Having two is easier than one in many ways Don't worry about him being too young at 5 months to stay in someone else's house, they are incredibly adaptable, so long as the boarders know and use your commands and routines. I'm boarding 8 month old Paddy (GR) at the moment. ...
I upvote Mags' "dog loving friends" option. I know it isn't something you can plan on finding with absolute certainty, but it would be VERY unusual if you don't start to make friends with other dog people as soon as you get your pup. I have pretty much been everyone's dogsitter for years now and really love it. Heck, if I lived in the UK, I'd be saying "Ooo, ooo, pick meeeee!".
Yes that's average, I've seen anywhere from £18 - £30. Worth it though imo, unless you have other options.
