How many hours a day can a Saint be left alone?

[davejen]

Hi I'm a first time poster but I have learned quite a bit already from just reading your posts and looking at various sites on the net. My Girlfriend and I (Jenna and Dave) are thinking (quite seriously) about purchasing a saint puppy as a new addition to our family! we have a Gigantic dog already (miniature schnauzer about 5 LBS soaking wet AFTER feasting) and a 11 year old boy (Matt). Our concerns have nothing to do with size; cost, shedding, drooling (in fact Matt and I are looking forward to see how far the saint can fling his/her drool!). The only reason we did not purchase from one of the breeders we are looking at in the last month is because both Jenna and Myself hold 8 - 4:30 jobs (really we leave at about 7am and don’t return until 5pm - 5:30pm each day). So our idea was to hold off until the New Year to see if my job would allow me to work from home so I could be with the saint. That does not seem to be panning out as hoped, so my question is this: How long (realistically) can a saint be left alone at home? We have a decent sized backyard and a smaller back room also a detached garage where we could setup to be his "home away from home". But is that realistic? On the weekends wherever we go the puppy of course could come with us (got a nice big SUV that some dog drool and fur will really make it feel used!!  ) Any advice would be super!! we are very enthusiastic about getting a puppy and having him/her as part of our family however, we also want to be super parents and give the puppy all the attention he/she needs and wants! so if we should wait we will wait until I get to work from home.

Thank in Advance!

[greek4]

I leave every morning at 6:30 and don't get home to 5-6 some days, depending on work load and traffic.  As pups both my dogs were left for up to 10 hours each day and did fine.  You could get a dog walking service to come once a day and get the pup out if possible or one of you could come  home at lunch.  Working is a fact of life, as long as you know you will spend as much time as possible with your pup then you should get one.

[Carolyn]

I leave at 8am & hubby's home between 3-4pm,  so thats about 7 hours, they could go longer but I myself couldnt imagine not going to the bathroom for  7 or 8 hours. What does your little dog do? Puppys are hard to let go that long. Any doggie day care around?.
Carolyn

[davejen]

Well the nice thing is Matt comes home at about 3pm (3:15pm I think) so he lets out the puppy, over the last few years the schnauzer hasnt been bad but hes 12 years old now and cant hold it as long so about once a month theres some presents when we get home!

[Saintgirl]

First off, I wanted to say that I think that you have great taste in the kind of dog that you want to add to your family, Saints are a personal favorite for me! Second, I personally think that ten hours is a long time for a Saint pup to be left on its own. Saints REALLY need to feel like they are part of the family, or they can develop some nasty destructive habits. Imagine a fully grown Saint weighing in anywhere from 120-200lbs destroying your couch because it is upset that it has been left alone. Personally I believe that without a dog walker coming to your home or doggie-daycare a Saint may not be the best choice for you. Some breeds of dogs are more independant than the Saint Bernard, and may fit your lifestyle better. However if you can find a way to accomodate a Saint into your life, they find a way to make your life a little more complete. Good luck!

[davejen]

There are two doggy day cares quite close to us, and we had discussed that option.  My question would then be, has anyone had their saint puppy "raised" by a doggy day care?  Does the puppy get confused over who their family is?

[shangrila]

I believe that a full grown saint would do fine with your schedule. A puppy, however, cannot go that long. If you cannot come home from work, you could see if a neighbor, friend, or relative can walk the pup, (not just let it out to pee, but actually take it on a 20-30 minute walk, multiple times a day) or else you would have to hire a dog walking service. You cannot take a puppy to doggy daycare, at least not for the first few months. First, the puppy has to be old enough to have all of its vaccinations before it is safe to be near strange dogs, and second because many doggydaycares will not take pups who aren't potty trained.

I think that saints are wonderful dogs, and I don't neccessarily think that your work schedule would be a problem as long as you plan to give them lots of love and attention after work. But unless you can get someone to take out a puppy every other hour, I would suggest looking into  rescuing a grown saint.

[coonie1970]

I agree that a dog walker or family to come in a few times a day would be a good idea. I would worry though as to how your St. would fair at about 9 months. Judge was his most distructive at that age. He chewed...EVERY THING Head board of my bed, table legs. coffee table just to mention a few. Even with a big back yard Im thinking that your St. would surely find something to get his teeth into. Judge LOVES to dig too and can escape in no time.
Im thinking though that your other dogs would keep him/her preocupied. Judge didnt have anyone to keep him company.Also, I am home almost all the time and have been since we got him so he wasnt used to staying alone.Good Luck!!! Hope this helps a bit.

Coonie