Thoughts...

A thought of regret passes through my mind, retail picks up this time of year, my work makes it so that I'm hardly home, and yet... I love my dog sooooo much, but I hardly have time to entertain him. Mind you I make the time to play with him for a few hours every night, but at the same time, he's got to be in his crate the rest of the time. This is why I got him the big crate, so he could be comfortable in it, but now, I think of it more as a prison, thinking I'll make it up to him later. I don't know what to do, I can't afford a walker, I don't want to give him up, but what's best for him... I can't bare to think of giving up my boy.... my puppy. I don't know what to do.

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Comment by Beth on November 23, 2009 at 7:14am: Oh, and if he must be confined and you can make some room, an exercise pen is wonderful. You can attach it to his crate and give him a much bigger area to enjoy while you are gone.

Comment by Beth on November 23, 2009 at 7:14am: How old is your dog? If he's older than one, you might try leaving him in a larger area with a variety of interesting toys. You can skip his breakfast and put his kibble in a food-dispensing ball instead, for example. If you can't afford doggie daycare or to hire a pet-walker or trade some sort of duties with a friend with a dog who might take him a couple days a week or stop by and walk him. Is there anything you can do for a dog-savvy neighbor in exchange for dog duty? Trim some trees, clean the sidewalks in winter (if you're in a snow zone), clear out their garage? Sometimes you can work out clever solutions. If you know someone with a dog who travels, for example, you might offer to watch theirs while they go away in exchange for dog-walking duties for you during busy retail season.

If he's younger than one, don't feel guilty! Young animals (and adult ones too, honestly) spend a lot of time sleeping whether you are there or not. And if he were a wild canine, at that age he'd probably still be spending most of his time in his den.

Comment by Stephanie on November 23, 2009 at 5:57am: Is there a neighbor kid that is looking for a little Christmas cash that could come over and play with him a little bit each day?

Comment by christy fry on November 23, 2009 at 3:40am: this is my busy season as well, I work up to 12hrs a day and work up to 3wk stretches with 1-2 days off in between....I'm always full of guilt this time of year but this only last 6-9wks before our slowest times which is jan.-feb. so alot now a little later....the pups get alot of time with me then...I'd wait and see if your time frees up and if it still constricted say 6 months from now then well maybe.....