Dogs are very social animals and want to be with their “pack.” They also need a lot of exercise, even if they are small, so make sure you take your little poodle on a lot of walks EVERY day, especially right before you leave for work. Walk him for an hour every day. That way he will be more content to rest while you are gone.

Most dogs won’t play with toys by themselves, but one thing most dogs can’t resist are Kong toys filled with peanut butter. You can freeze them to make the peanut butter last longer because it will be harder for the dog to get at. Just make sure your dog is in a safe area so no bigger animals will come and attack him or try to take his food.

I have been reading the comments from other puppy owners.
I too am a first time puppy owner. He is a 9wk toy pootdle.
We have been on holidays and the dog has been sleeping inside, but we all must go back to work soon and I have been practicing leaving him outside with food/water/bed and some toys that he loves playing with. He has plenty of shaded cool area to rest away from the heat.

But he cries and just mops around and won’t play with his toys.
My question is, am I being cruel leaving him outside all day? I don’t mind if he is in the house when we are home but when we are at work we don’t want him in the house.

Can you suggest other toys to buy so he is not bored. He seems so lonely and sad out on his own.

Marianna

You may also want to check out my post on housetraining a dog: http://www.thatmutt.com/2009/08/25/dog-housetraining/

Good luck!

Don’t teach the pup that if it cries, you will come give it any kind of attention. Just ignore. If you want, you could keep the kennel in your room with you. That might be enough to stop the crying because the pup will see that you are near. But only do this if you want the dog’s kennel to always be in your room. Get some ear plugs and apologize to your neighbors!

Good luck!

The biggest thing is probably exercise. If the dog is tired, she will be less likely to freak out in the kennel, so if you aren’t already walking her for at least an hour every single day, make sure to do so. Run, Rollerblade or bike with her if you can. And do it right before you put her in the kennel.

Another thing is maybe she is spending too much time in the kennel. For example, if she’s in there at night and when you’re gone, try putting her in there only when you’re gone.

Do what you can to make that kennel as positive as possible. Stock it with the best treats. I put peanut butter in Kong toys or hollow bones and then freeze them so the peanut butter takes longer to get at. A friend of mine uses squirt cheese.

Feed her in her kennel if she loves eating.

And try not to always have the kennel mean you are leaving. You could try having her in her kennel next to you while you are watching TV or put her in there while you are doing vacuuming and cleaning, things like that.

Always reword when she’s quiet. It’s usually best to totally ignore any barking or crying completely. Let her out only when she is quiet.

If all else fails, you could always bring her to doggy daycare. That would be better than giving up the dog.

Good luck! Let me know how it goes and if you have other questions.

Other than that, the best thing you can do is kennel train the dog. Then, when he cries, ignore him. After a week or two, he will stop crying. If you go and let him out every time he cries, then he has you trained.

My dog sleeps down in our living room on his dog bed and every morning when it gets light, he comes upstairs and cries at our door. This is usually around the time we get up so it’s not a big deal, but if I don’t want him to cry, I put him in his kennel in the laundry room where it’s dark and he waits quietly for me to come to him.