 Advice for leaving puppy alone
I haven't had a Yorkie in several years and it's been many years since I've had a new, little puppy in the house. My ex is giving me one of her recent litter and I should be bringing little Jackson home towards the end of August.
When our other dogs were little, my ex was a stay-at-home Mom with our kids (both the furry and non-furry variety) so training was easy. Now that I'm a single Dad though, things will be a little harder for the little guy. I'm a maintenance supervisor for a local Toyota manufacturing plant and, when I'm on day shift, I am typically gone from the house from 5 AM to almost 4 PM. The rare stint I pull on nights is almost the same hours but PM to AM, but the same length of time away. When the kids stay with me, about half the time, it's a little better. They leave an hour and a half later than I do and get home about an hour earlier.
Either way, this is a long time for a little one to be left crated and I just don't think I can do it to him. My basement is finished but the laundry/utility room is basically just an unfinished, almost 250 sq. ft. corner of the basement. There's a door frame but no door currently and the floor is concrete so cleanup would be easy. I'm considering this being Jackson's area whenever he is left home alone. I'd make sure to leave plenty of toys, food and water with him and he'd have more than enough room to move around. I could pickup a baby gate to block the doorway and leave a pee pad close to the door just to get him used to going to a door when he was to go.
I'm wanting to get opinions/advice from others on my plan. Thanks to any and everyone that takes the time to reply.
- Byron Followell |