How long do I leave him home alone
 

Hi I seek advice on how long I can/should leave my pup home alone.

I have a beautiful boy, Little Buddy, who’s now 1 year 9 months old.
The longest I ever leave him home alone is 4 hours. Occasionally 5 hours max! I watch him on camera and he’s usually just fine, though looks bored if he’s not sleeping. Occasionally he’ll howl right after I leave, seemingly from loneliness 😞 But then he settles in.

He’s in a pen/fenced area where he has his crate, water, pee pad if he needs it, his blanket, soft music, a ceiling fan, and of course toys, chew stick, and puzzles/kongs. I never ever see him play with his toys or chew stick, just the puzzles/kongs, but once they’re emptied of their treats, he just sleeps or sits around, moving from one spot to another. And sleeps some more.

He holds his bladder/bowel with no problem, and will only occasionally use his potty area, if he really needs it, otherwise he prefers to wait to go out.

My question is, when can I increase the time he’s left alone to say, 6-7 hours? I haven’t been willing to make that jump because I don’t know if that’s too long.
I’m new to all this.

Right now, I hire a puppy sitter/walker to come in if I’m going to be gone that length of time or longer (days I have to go into the office) and she comes in about every 3 hours—in my mind, to alleviate boredom and to get some exercise.

I don’t know if my mentality is right or what to think about all this, or what to do. Thus, I seek your help. Thank you!!!

In my opinion, it depends on the size of your pup. If the pup is tiny like 3 to 7 Lbs, they have small bladders and cannot hold urine for long periods like a 20 Lb dog can. Also him preferring to wait to make outdoors may cause UTI although through my reading UTI in male dogs is not common like in females.



My guy weighs 11 Lbs, not a tiny boy. I have the same issue. He's good alone for 6 hours, he's a rescue but we're a team for 10 years now. His prev. owner used pee pads so he knows what they are. I do leave them down but he has never used them, he'll wait for me to come home then pees a river. Like I say, tiny dog, tiny bladder.

Thank you, Matese! That was super helpful. He is between 14-15 lbs so also a big boy! I didn’t think Yorkies got this big! I will try to ease into the 6 hour mark. He does have a pee pad in his room if he needs it. I’ve seen him use it on occasion, but it is rare.

My now passed girl weighed in at 17 lbs. Not fat, she was sleek bodied, she passed at 17 years old. I bought her in 1997, there was no media about puppy mills back then. All my yorkies were gotten from pet stores, most likely puppy mills, but all were healthy and bigger than standard size (5 to 7lbs). If I were to get another yorkie, knowing what I know now, I would only buy from a breeder that breeds for their next champion show dog. That is not to say you would get a quality show dog, but you would get a healthier dog and more likely closer to the standard weight. Size matters not to be, a yorkie is a yorkie no matter what they weigh.