Home Alone Puppies
Dogs need company as they are a social species. Dogs must not be left home alone regularly for more than four hours a day. So please don’t think you can get a dog, drop home lunch time and then again in the evening leaving her on her own for 8 hours or more.
Home alone puppies cannot be effectively toilet trained as they simply can’t hold their bladders that long. Even if you go home at lunch time.
Home alone puppies often suffer extreme separation distress leading to later relinquishment because of noise complaints or destruction to property as they struggle to cope, chewing reduces stress but causes damage to property.
Home alone puppies can be destructive because they become bored.
Home alone puppies can be nippy when the owners come back because they are so excited. They have stored up their energy all day and now there is someone to play with them. And you are shattered as you have worked all day and all you want is to sit down and have a cuddle with your puppy.
Home alone dogs that do not suffer separation distress tend to be independent as they have had to learn self sufficiency. Independent dogs tend not to be affectionate and are harder to train.
Do you have time to groom your dog? Some dogs need little maintenance and only need brushing a couple of times a week but others require daily grooming to make sure their coats don;t get knotted up.
Do you have time to exercise your dog? Most dogs need at least an hour off lead running about each day. And if they can't go off lead because they have not been trained how to behave then this time should probably be doubled. Dogs should be exercised in a variety of locations so that their mental experience varies. Different surfaces, different activities, different dogs, different scents.
Please see this useful resource from the Kennel Club. Responsibility and care
You can see that I feel passionately about this. Too often people have asked me to help them with problems such as toilet training, excessive bitiness, property damage which are almost impossible to solve because the puppy has had to self educate. Once a behaviour has been learned it cannot be erased, we cannot re write dogs' brains any more than we can human brains. To correct bad behaviours much time has to be spent on re education and supervision.
Puppies, like children, need a good education. You get out what you put in. If you are working all day you cannot educate your puppy.
- Dog related educational courses
- Christmas is coming
- Residential Dog Training
- Dogs and Swimming Pool Safety
- What do dogs find punishing?
- How to become a dog trainer/behaviourist
- What is Socialisation Anyway?
- Beware of the Chain Reaction
- The difference between reward and permissiveness.
- Speed learning
- Everything you wanted to know about castration of dogs.
- Why Dog Boot Camps May Not be the Answer.
- Is it play, or something else?
- Why there should be age limits for puppy classes
- Starting life with a rescue dog
- Calm or closed down?
- Before breeding from your dog
- Links
- About Puppy Socialisation
- Everything you wanted to know about the female season
- Thinking about getting a dog?
- Before you get a puppy
- Choosing your puppy
- Home Alone Puppies
- Outdoor reared puppies
- Dog Walkers
- Dog Boarders
- Grooming
- Yellow Dogs
- Poisonous to Dogs
- Are Classes Right for my Dog?
- Understanding credentials
- Dog Laws
A trained dog is a happy dog!
Paws in Hand can help hold your paws and hands right through from 8 weeks and beyond so that you can start teaching your puppy and learning how to socialise your new puppy and "Read dog" from the earliest stage.

Dog behaviourist Services
Denise is a qualified and experienced full time dog behaviourist and trainer. She holds a B.Sc (Hons) in Applied Animal Behaviour and also an advanced diploma in companion animal behaviour and training, DipCABT (Coape).

Useful dog information
Getting a dog or puppy is a huge decision and there is a lot to consider from how to choose your breeder, to how to decide which puppy will be most suitable for you all the way to being able to choose a dog sitter or groomer.


Aggressive dog solutions
Denise deals with any behaviour problem, especially aggression and anxiety. Many behaviour problems can be caused by medical conditions which is why she must work on vet referral.

Aggressive dog solutions
Denise deals with any behaviour problem, especially aggression and anxiety. Many behaviour problems can be caused by medical conditions which is why she must work on vet referral.
