Tips for Leaving Your Dog Home Alone
Unlike teenagers, there isn’t a specific age that marks home alone freedom for dogs. It’s more about their behavior. Usually, most dogs have learned to potty outdoors and chew on their toys instead of yours around two years of age. Some dogs learn sooner while others learn later. Plus, staying home alone should be taught and not assumed, so set your dog up for success before handing out privileges.
Potty Train Your Dog
Yes, your dog definitely needs to be potty trained first. Complete freedom in your home is earned once your dog understands to potty outdoors and not in your home. Never leave your dog home alone for long periods of time unless he knows how to use a dog door, or someone is available to bring him outdoors to relieve himself. Dogs should not be expected to hold it for eight hours–that’s a long time.
If you notice potty accidents inside your home during the home alone trial, your dog is not ready for unlimited freedom yet. Take a few steps back and focus on potty training. Once your dog is potty accident-free for two months, you’re ready to try it again.
Train Your Dog to Chew on His Toys
Chewing should be a distant memory. Your dog should enjoy chewing on his toys rather than molding or walls. If your dog has usually enjoyed plenty of time loose in the house with you and he’s learned to ignore toilet paper, shoes, rugs or anything else enticing, then maybe he’s ready to enter a trial phase.
To set your dog up for success, remove enticing items and put them away. Now, bring out your dog’s toys, so he’ll have plenty of options to entertain and keep himself busy.
Start in a Small Space First
If potty accidents are non-existent and chewing is a thing of the past, then it’s time to try leaving your dog home alone for a short period of time. Instead of allowing free rein of the house, start small and gate off small areas in the beginning.
Usually, the living room is an excellent starting place, as your dog usually spends most evenings chilling with the family. Block off doorways with secure gates. Don’t forget to close bedroom and bathroom doors, then scatter toys about in his space and leave a few frozen food stuffed toys to keep him busy. If your dog barks or goes berserk when looking through windows, close curtains and blinds, put up a barrier to keep him from pushing window treatments sideways, and gate rooms with windows.
After several successful attempts, move gates back and try a larger area. Repeat weekly until your dog is completely comfortable with freedom throughout the house. Some dogs get a bit freaked out with too much freedom too fast, so move slowly and at your dog’s pace.
Leave Your Dog Alone for Short Periods
Try leaving your dog indoors alone while you’re mowing the grass or working in the yard. You’re still around and can check in frequently. If all goes well for a week, try leaving him alone while running short errands (one to two hours long). Slowly extend alone time by 30-minute increments.
For best results, bring your dog for a long walk before you leave. This ensures he snoozes while you’re gone. Don’t forget to scatter frozen stuffed toys throughout the area. He’ll stay busy for hours and likely leave your furniture and molding alone. 🙂
Avoid Leaving Two Dogs Home Alone
Oh, this is a tough one for me. As a dog trainer, I’ve heard horror stories. I don’t want to scare you, but proceed with caution. I know dogs that have lived together and stayed home alone for years without incident until a severe thunderstorm rolled in and caused a scared dog to fatally injure his housemate. Also, there’s this nasty little thing called redirected aggression that happens between dogs when something exciting is going on, such as the ringing of doorbells. Personally, I don’t recommend leaving two dogs alone all day. If so, at least separate them with gates.
Understand Mistakes Happen
Just when all is going well, you’ll come home to a toilet paper party in the bathroom. Or you’ll find potty accidents hidden in certain rooms. If this happens, go back to confining your dog when you leave. It’s not his fault. You may have moved too fast too soon. It’s not forever. You’re spending time teaching your dog to ignore the delightfully dangling toilet paper sheet and to potty outdoors again. If all goes well, it’s time to try it again. Or, if you’re like me, I never leave my dogs loose indoors while away. I put them in their dog crates where they happily snore away. Just move slowly and set your dog up for success!