Hello,

I am trying to decide what breed would be most suitable for me and the breeds that I am most interested in are the Border Terrier, Boston Terrier, Shiba Inu, and Staffordshire Bull Terrier. I have done research on the temperaments of each of these breeds but my main concern is about how well each breed will do being left on its own while I work. Although currently I do not work full time as I am still at university and I have my family around all the time, once I am finished with my degree I will be looking to move out and so I don't want to go for a breed that is going to be distressed in this situation. I plan on slowly increasing the amount of time my future dog is comfortable being left on their own for (once they are no longer a puppy) but I was curious if there is any breed out of those 4 that would be a no go for my current/ future situation.

Thanks

Dogs are Social animals so long periods on their own will cause distress.

There is also the practicality of physical needs ( how long can you cross your legs?)

Therefore a way of providing for social and physical needs will be needed.

Some form of daycare.

ConnorLR:
Excellent you have been doing some ground work on a suitable breed.  No matter what type of temperament a dog has, leaving them for ANY length of time as a Puppy is a definate no no and as adults, they still require a lot of human company with basic feeding. toileting & exercise needs.  Again any breed of dog does not cope well with changes to their routine and to move home
away from familiar surroundings and familiar people such as your parents will be a wrench.

Perhaps rethinking you game plan and waiting until you complete Uni, have a settled place of your own and more of an idea what work commitments you will have would be better for both
yourself and a new addition.

Personally as a Breeder I would have real concerns and I doubt your current circumstances would fulfill the needs of a Puppy.  Not being horrible - just honest and imagine most reputable Breeders will share these concerns.

Under the circumstances you outline none of them, with good conscience, you can't work full-time and leave a dog on it's own whilst you work.

I agree no breed of dog should be left for hours. For me that's no more than 4 hours and then not every day .
You would need to make good arrangements for your dog every day so its not left alone . That includes during weekends when perhaps u have a social life that the dog can't join in with .
Its difficult to give advise on breed unless that problem is to be solved as it applies to all breeds

I'm going to echo what everyone else has said about leaving a dog. You need to work out what happens to the dog whilst you are at work. I personally as a breeder would say no to you, finish uni, get yourself a place and settled into a job and work out from there whether you have time for a dog and the finances. If renting not all places allow dogs especially if there is no garden. A mortgage for a 1st time buyer will take a lot of your funds too.

Looking at the breeds you've noted they are very different to each other. I would revisit this all when you're in a place of your own.

Nice useful post sj

How do your parents feel about a dog? I don't want to be completely negative, if the whole family is looking forward to a dog then maybe you could get one, and it could stay with your parents if/ or until you get your new place and work settled and know if a dog would fit in or not?

From your shortlist of 4 very different breeds I would recommend the border terrier, they are by far the easiest of that list. Great wee dogs, once adult and assuming he has mental and physical stimulation when you're there, he would generally be happy with a dog walker once a day while you're out.

Of course the gold standard ideal is for all dog owners to either not work or work part time, but that's just not the case in the real world, most dog owners I know, including myself work full time and make it work.

It's actually easier if you have multiple dogs, but then your dogs have to be your life. Everything I do outside work is dog related or dog friendly, if you think you're out at work for 9 hours (including travelling) and you sleep for 7 or 8 hours, then that only leaves about 7 hours in the day, make sure you spend all of that time with your dog. My whole social life revolves around the dogs, my friends are dog friends, we walk, go racing, go to dog friendly pubs, shows, whatever it's all about the dogs.

If you just want one dog and still want a 'normal' social life, pubs, dining out, dating, gym, then you're going to have to pay for someone to spend even more time with your dog if you can't do it. Then of course you have to ask yourself if that's worth it, if you have to have a dog walker twice a day, every day, doing all the fun things with your dog should you really have a dog?   Just something to think about.

My daughter had a staff and it destroyed her house when they were out at work. Floors, doors and anything else in reach. Eventually she rehomed him to someone who was home all day and all problems stopped.

gaby:> My daughter had a staff and it destroyed her house when they were out at work

Well done for highlighting such an important part of doggy responsibility. 
No company, no mental stimulation and no exercise will lead to total destruction of surroundings - and then the poor dog is labelled as unruly, unmanagable or beyond rehoming and end up in rescues.

Glad there was a happy outcome with a knowledgable owner in the end.