lonely dog what should I do?

[Caney Creek]

I know I've read a puppy shouldn't be expected to hold it more than 1 hour more than her age. So I was under the impression if she's 5 months old she should be able to hold it for 6 hours.

I've heard that before but I always go by 1 hour per month of age, and that's what I generally see recommended on this site. And that is considered the MAXIMUM amount of time, not the ideal, and you can't expect a puppy to hold it for 6 hours simply because it is 5 months old. Every pup is different, and even those who can hold it for that long it should not be forced to day after day, twice a day.

She is housebroken, but I do clean up her urine from the crate every now and then, but really don't blame her, because she has no option when she's in the crate.

That's a good indication that she needs to be let out more frequently. It is obviously uncomfortable for her to hold her bladder that long if she sometimes can't even make it.

I walk her every single day at about 6pm for about 20 minutes. She's only 5 months old and I can see she seems really tired with just a 20 minute walk, so I didn't want to over walk her. I think walking her twice a day would be great, but I do have a problem waking up in the morning, so it's why I've only been doing it when i get home at about 6pm and then feed her at 7pm and she's sleeping by probably 10 or 11.

I don't think that her falling asleep at 10 or 11 each night is an indication that she doesn't need more exercise during the day. My girls are also asleep at 10 or 11 each night no matter if they've gotten several hours of exercise that day or none at all. Roxy's young you're right to give her a break when she gets tired, but I don't think that her tiring out after 20 minutes means that she only needs 20 minutes of exercise per day. Several 20 minute sessions during the day would be better for her right now, and most likely in the future when she's in good health and a bit older she will be able to go longer.

I am not a morning person myself so I understand the difficulty waking up and getting going in the morning, but I don't think that is really the issue here. She shouldn't be crated for so long during the day, and she needs more than a 15 minute break in the middle. It is extremely important for her health right now that she get let out more often or else she's not going to be able to fight the UTI, and it will very likely get worse if she keeps up with her current schedule.

Do you think if I come home for 30 minutes that I'm better off taking her for a 30 minute walk than letting her in the backyard for 30 minutes?

Definitely. A walk would be much better to tire her out and would provide some mental stimulation for her as well. Roaming around in her own yard isn't so exciting for her. Can you walk her in the grass next to the sidewalk if it's really too hot? I rollerblade around my neighborhood with Caney and Creek so that they can run next to me in the grass. It's GREAT exercise for them.


I agree with the others about hiring a new petsitter. Why are you still paying this family member if she's only spending 15 minutes with your pup?? Not acceptable IMO. There is no reason that she should have had such a problem walking Roxy, a gentle leader or a no-pull harness could have easily solved that issue. Roxy needs someone who will actually spend some time with her and give her love and attention, not someone who is annoyed by her and cannot even touch her because of their allergies. That's not the kind of person I would want caring for my pet. I'm sure you can find a reliable, caring, reasonably priced petsitter who will be much better with Roxy.

 

[BxrMommieNAZ]

Gosh I feel guilty to put my puppy in his crate for more than a couple hours a day total. I'm sorry, but the schedule you have her on is just way too long for any dog to be in a crate. I don't want to sound critical, but it's not fair for a dog to be in a crate and be let out so few hours of the day.

What about doggie daycare? I'd definitely consider the expense of that in exchange for knowing that my dog is happy and playing. There are several doggie daycares usually in any given area. I'd highly consider doing that. She'll be happier and have all her energy out and be able to have more of a dog's life than being stuck in a crate 10+ hours a day.

If I remember right his dog has MULTIPLE medical problems going on that have prevented giving anymore vaccinations right now so I don't think she'd be a candidate for doggie daycare at this point with their rules and regulations unfortunately.

Please correct me if I'm wrong OP.

 

[jboboxer]

Also if your dog already has a bladder infection I'd ditch the dried chicken (which I'm thinking is chicken jerky?) dried food only sucks the water out of them. Also does she have access to water through a water bottle during this time? You're basically not giving her the opportunity to drink anything for 10+ hours a day, that would give many things animals and humans alike a bladder infection, not to mention possible kidney problems. You can very easily get a gerbil bottle/rabbit water bottle and attach it to the outside of the crate with the spicket going through one of the metal bars (assuming it's a foldable metal crate) and then all she has to do is lick that spicket to get water. I have one attached to my boy's crate and have for over a year and it works great, he doesn't spend a ton of time in there but when he is he has full access to water. Not drinking enough water to flush out the bacteria causes bladder infections, and not going to the bathroom enough so that the bacteria sits in the bladder causes them as well. So assuming she doesn't have access to water while in the crate PLUS doesn't have the opportunity to relieve herself is more than likely what caused it. And yes, she CAN hold her bladder for 6 hours if need be, but would YOU want to have to hold your bladder for 6 hours all day every single day? I am not one to balk over crate time when it's a temporary situation, however this seems to be rather permanent. And for your family member that you're PAYING to just decide to stop walking her is unacceptable. You're PAYING them. I agree, if you're already paying for a family member to come over, get a professional dog walker or pet sitter or even just a teenager or stay at home mom in the neighborhood to come over everyday for an hour or so and play with her, interact with her, let her out to potty and drink, run around, etc.

Also do you stuff the Kong with anything other than chicken jerky? If you Google Kong recipes there are a TON of recipes for them online. You can take canned food mixed with a little peanut butter, mixed with some boiled chicken and mix everything together and then stuff it and then freeze it so it's solid and she has to work to get it out. One of those usually lasts my boy a good 3 hours or so and it's all healthy stuff in there. But I'd do fresh boiled chicken as opposed to chicken jerky.

And yeah UTI's (bladder infections) are not CAUSED by antibiotics they are CURED by antibiotics. Bladder infections are caused by bacteria and antibiotics kill bacteria.

It's not 10 hours of not having water or anything, it's 4-5 hours, then when somebody comes over she drinks water and then goes outside as well. I'm not sure if the person is here for 15 minutes to be honest.
I really don't want to be mean to the person who is coming to my house, since she is mentally handycap and I appreciate that she comes and helps us out.

I never expected this to be permanent, so I'm not sure why that was assumed. I just feel as if it's not safe for her to be roaming the house completely by herself. Even if she had the house to herself I think she would be extremely bored to be honest, even with the hundreds of toys we have around.

I was hoping that in 5-6 months that I could have her 100% out of the crate during the day when we're not there. I figured when she's closer to 1 year of age that she can be on her own without a crate.

I'm really looking at getting another dog for her to play with, even though I know it will be more work, I think she is going to be bored even if she's not in her crate.

When I'm home with her she actually goes into the crate most of the time and just sleeps.

 

[TinksDream]

I have a similar situation with Tink who is also 5mo old but it is only once a week that she has to be in her crate for an extended amount of time. I looked up doggie daycare and the price is pretty reasonable (actually less than I pay my dog walker) but there aren't any in my area that open early enough for me to drop Tink off. So, I have a dog walker that I pay to come let her out for at least 30min and then I have one of my brothers stop by and let her out again during the day and she does great and has no accidents.
I also quit putting her in the crate at night b/c I felt to guilty on those days I knew she was in there most of the day and she does fine in the house by herself. I have also been trying to leave her out in the house when I leave for short trips so hopefully within the next 6mo or so I won't even need the crate anymore.

 

[jboboxer]

I've heard that before but I always go by 1 hour per month of age, and that's what I generally see recommended on this site. And that is considered the MAXIMUM amount of time, not the ideal, and you can't expect a puppy to hold it for 6 hours simply because it is 5 months old. Every pup is different, and even those who can hold it for that long it should not be forced to day after day, twice a day.



That's a good indication that she needs to be let out more frequently. It is obviously uncomfortable for her to hold her bladder that long if she sometimes can't even make it.



I don't think that her falling asleep at 10 or 11 each night is an indication that she doesn't need more exercise during the day. My girls are also asleep at 10 or 11 each night no matter if they've gotten several hours of exercise that day or none at all. Roxy's young you're right to give her a break when she gets tired, but I don't think that her tiring out after 20 minutes means that she only needs 20 minutes of exercise per day. Several 20 minute sessions during the day would be better for her right now, and most likely in the future when she's in good health and a bit older she will be able to go longer.

I am not a morning person myself so I understand the difficulty waking up and getting going in the morning, but I don't think that is really the issue here. She shouldn't be crated for so long during the day, and she needs more than a 15 minute break in the middle. It is extremely important for her health right now that she get let out more often or else she's not going to be able to fight the UTI, and it will very likely get worse if she keeps up with her current schedule.



Definitely. A walk would be much better to tire her out and would provide some mental stimulation for her as well. Roaming around in her own yard isn't so exciting for her. Can you walk her in the grass next to the sidewalk if it's really too hot? I rollerblade around my neighborhood with Caney and Creek so that they can run next to me in the grass. It's GREAT exercise for them.


I agree with the others about hiring a new petsitter. Why are you still paying this family member if she's only spending 15 minutes with your pup?? Not acceptable IMO. There is no reason that she should have had such a problem walking Roxy, a gentle leader or a no-pull harness could have easily solved that issue. Roxy needs someone who will actually spend some time with her and give her love and attention, not someone who is annoyed by her and cannot even touch her because of their allergies. That's not the kind of person I would want caring for my pet. I'm sure you can find a reliable, caring, reasonably priced petsitter who will be much better with Roxy.

We have been walking Roxy with the gentle harness and Roxy walks right beside me, but when she was younger she would pull a lot. The family member who is walking my dog is mentally handicap to a certain degree. She drives a car and used to work at a grocery store at one time, so you can understand stand somewhat of her capabilities. She is one of the sweatiest persons I know and she's not trying to be cruel. When she comes over, she still runs up and hugs Roxy and really likes Roxy a lot.
She has always had a hard time keeping a job and I do know she suffers from allergies and I can't force her to continue to come and look after Roxy when I'm not there.
We were paying her only 30 dollars a month to give you an idea of what we were giving her. She actually volunteers at a place that's less than a quarter of a mile from my house, so all she had to do is stop by on the way to her place that she volunteers. We could give her more money, but I really don't think it's a money issue, because it really can't get any easier, especially since she's already in the car on her way to a location that she only has to take off 20 minutes of her day.

 

[jboboxer]

If I remember right his dog has MULTIPLE medical problems going on that have prevented giving anymore vaccinations right now so I don't think she'd be a candidate for doggie daycare at this point with their rules and regulations unfortunately.

Please correct me if I'm wrong OP.

I've been giving her shots once a week and actually for the past 2 months I've been taking Wednesdays off, since I have the vacation and she needs the shots. So instead of taking off an hour or two, I've been taking the whole day off.
So on a given week she's alone on 4 days of the week or 3 days out of the week, since i'm off every other Friday.

 

[BxrMommieNAZ]

It's not 10 hours of not having water or anything, it's 4-5 hours, then when somebody comes over she drinks water and then goes outside as well. I'm not sure if the person is here for 15 minutes to be honest.
I really don't want to be mean to the person who is coming to my house, since she is mentally handycap and I appreciate that she comes and helps us out.

I never expected this to be permanent, so I'm not sure why that was assumed. I just feel as if it's not safe for her to be roaming the house completely by herself. Even if she had the house to herself I think she would be extremely bored to be honest, even with the hundreds of toys we have around.

I was hoping that in 5-6 months that I could have her 100% out of the crate during the day when we're not there. I figured when she's closer to 1 year of age that she can be on her own without a crate.

I'm really looking at getting another dog for her to play with, even though I know it will be more work, I think she is going to be bored even if she's not in her crate.

When I'm home with her she actually goes into the crate most of the time and just sleeps.

No offense, however yes it's 10 hours without water. She cannot possibly drink enough in 15 minutes time to sustain herself for a 10 hour period and she NEEDS ACCESS TO WATER 100% OF THE TIME! Do you only drink 1 glass of water every 5 hours? Probably not. I know both of my dogs regularly go to the water bowl AT LEAST once every 2 hours if not more often throughout the day and I do not consider them to be water bowl nuts. But a dog that size needs to be drinking enough water for their urine to run clear when they urinate and I can guarantee that with the amount she coudl possibly drink in a 15 minute time period (which let's face it she won't be at that bowl the whole 15 minutes) is not going to be sufficient for a 10 hour day, and then you're putting her back in there at night when you go to bed and she still has no access to water. I would 99% guarantee that is the #1 reason she came down with a UTI, not enough access to water and not enough access to relieve herself.

I would not personally recommend you getting another dog. If she is not well behaved enough to be out of the crate by herself then another dog isn't going to fix that problem and would probably make that problem worse. Yes dogs enough other dogs company but whether alone or with another dog if they get into things they will get into things when you are not there whether another dog is there or not. Contrary to popular belief most 2 dog households do not have the 2 dogs playing together constantly. If you want another dog get another dog for YOU not for your dog, that's the wrong reason and more than likely will not solve your problem anyway. There are ways to entertain her, such as have someone come over and take her for a 30 minute walk in the afternoon or play with her in the backyard for 30 minutes to an hour, get puzzle toys (many have listed companies that make them if you search on this site for them), stuff and FREEZE a Kong, give a raw meaty bone before you leave, all are things that can help entertain while humans are away.

I am not necessarily criticizing on the crate time. When my spouse was in the law enforcement academy and I worked all day my female had pottying issues when we first got her and yes she was crated for about 9 hours at a time (she was approximately 3 years old then), HOWEVER she always had a rabbit water bottle on the side of the crate so she had access to water 100% of the time and my male has had the same access even though he doesn't spend as much time in his crate. I am a big believer in that you have to do what is best for your pup, your home, and your situation and unfortunately it's not a perfect world and those things don't always match up the way we'd like them to in a perfect world. However I DO think you need to modify a few things (water access being a HUGE one) in order to get the basic needs down. She NEEDS more than one water break in a 10 hour period and obviously her body is telling you this as she has a bladder infection. You can also put puzzle toys in her crate a frozen stuffed Kong with something better than just chicken jerky (which will just dehydrate her more), and if you can afford it hire a PROFESSIONAL pet sitter/dog walker to come in for 30-40 minutes is usualy the standard for their rate minutes a day to give her some mental and physical stimulation.

 

[jboboxer]

I believe what I'm going to end up doing is just taking a long lunch break and walking her 30 minutes and hopefully spend 30 more minutes with her, so I'll be with her for an hour during lunch.

I could leave her in a certain room, which does give her more room, but I think she will be just as bored. If she's in a crate or a room, she'll have more room I agree, but I think that she's lonely by herself. I'm sure out of the 10 hours that she's alone that she sleeps at least 5 of those hours if not more, but I think being alone for 5 hours is a little bit sad.

I'm hoping that getting her another dog will help. But if I get a puppy that's not housebroken, chews things up, then it might be in a crate as well. It's also for the saftey of the puppy. It seems puppies will chew, eat and do things that aren't safe for them. Two friends of mine had their puppy die, one from eating something it wasn't supposed to and another one found some cables or something strange and when he came home the dog was actually strangled. Maybe these things just made me paranoid, but I want Roxy to be safe until I feel she can handle being by herself.

She's starting to listen really well at least to me. If I say no, she stops and if she picks up a shoe and I say drop it, she will drop it instantly. She's a really good dog, but she doesn't listen to my wife really well to be honest.

 

[BxrMommieNAZ]

I believe what I'm going to end up doing is just taking a long lunch break and walking her 30 minutes and hopefully spend 30 more minutes with her, so I'll be with her for an hour during lunch.

I could leave her in a certain room, which does give her more room, but I think she will be just as bored. If she's in a crate or a room, she'll have more room I agree, but I think that she's lonely by herself. I'm sure out of the 10 hours that she's alone that she sleeps at least 5 of those hours if not more, but I think being alone for 5 hours is a little bit sad.

I'm hoping that getting her another dog will help. But if I get a puppy that's not housebroken, chews things up, then it might be in a crate as well. It's also for the saftey of the puppy. It seems puppies will chew, eat and do things that aren't safe for them. Two friends of mine had their puppy die, one from eating something it wasn't supposed to and another one found some cables or something strange and when he came home the dog was actually strangled. Maybe these things just made me paranoid, but I want Roxy to be safe until I feel she can handle being by herself.

She's starting to listen really well at least to me. If I say no, she stops and if she picks up a shoe and I say drop it, she will drop it instantly. She's a really good dog, but she doesn't listen to my wife really well to be honest.

Again I would really discourage you in getting another dog at this point. It wouldn't have to be a puppy (I'd REALLY advise against that), but regardless you shouldn't get another dog to fix a problem, you need to fix the problem FIRST and then get another dog if YOU still want another dog. Adding more work, stress, etc to your environment as well as hers is, IMO, an extremely bad idea. It's like having another baby to fix a bad marriage, it very rarely works and more often than not makes things worse in the big picture.

 

[ehayes21]

I totally agree with the above post. So bottom line..your pup needs to have access to water at all times and she needs more of a break during the day...which is pretty easy to work out.

I also agree with NOT getting another dog...it's not the answer. Getting another dog is double the work and is not as easy as you think it would be. They DONT entertain each other as you think they will, yes they may play but they always look to you. They each need individual time and each dog brings their own issues. My suggestion is to wait until your current dog is two and then add another if you are up to it.