Well I think you have to ask yourself- is she having accidents in the house? Has she figured out how to notify you that she needs to go out? Can she sleep though the night and not have any potty accidents?
I dont' see you setting yourself up for failure at all! Yes you should teach her how to be alone for short amounts of time but I dont' see the need to keep her penned up if she is doing well about going outside.
When I first brought Blazer home we kept him "confined" to the living room and kitchen/dining areas because that is where we usually are. He could roam free around there, though. He figured out very quickly that if he needed to go out that he could go to the door and either bark or scratch at it and I'd bring him out. I did train him to be in his kennel when we leave the house. I'd put him in there for short periods of time every day and each time was for longer than the last. He does fine in there and now I'm trying to figure out a way to give him a little more freedom when I need to leave the house. I don't entirely trust him to be left out yet.
__________________ Amanda  |