Hi there,
Congrats on finally being ready to get a dog! I don't think it's a problem to leave a dog for an hour. Just make sure that s/he is in a crate so s/he can't get into trouble. Also, crate training will really help with the potty training.
As for the antique rugs, of course the goal is to have your dog housetrained and not pee on any rugs. But that takes time. I've had my dog for almost three weeks and she's doing well with training, but I think I've been lucky. Also, we've had our fair share of accidents on the carpet, and when we have company over and Meg gets excited, she still has accidents.
I would either block off any rugs and keep your dog in a tiled/hardwood floor area, or see if you can move the rugs to storage for the time being.
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