My friend has a 5 month old GSD which she has had since it was 3 months old. She had a sheltered dog run built in the back garden with a kennel and is planning on leaving her pup there all day one day per week while she's at work. Her and her husband work full time Monday to Friday and I believe the dog has had a fair number of times in the run on her own, but she was asking me for advice on whether it is cruel to leave the dog all day (say about 8 or 9 hours) one day per week on a regular basis. She has friends who help out on other days. I think she's worried that if she sends her pup to daycare it will never get used to staying by itself. What does anyone think? I found it difficult to advise as there are lots of different opinions out there. Do people think this is cruel?

IMO it's not ideal, but also not 'cruel'. It's quite a long time to leave a pup, but as it's only one day a week I think the pup will cope. There have been days when I have had to leave my girl for a day, with just a visit from a friend to let her out for a wee. We all have to make a living!!!!

I would agree with Stormy, it's not something that should be done long term, but the odd day some times cannot be helped.

As long as there's plenty of water, a supply of food, somewhere warm and secure for pup to get into and maybe something familiar to hand.

Is the run completely safe and secure and no chance of a 'nair do well' being able to pinch the pup. It is a long time for such a young one to be left, for myself I would be very reluctant to do this but sometimes needs must.

Is there a good neighbour to hand that might check that all is well?

The run is secure and padlocked. From what I remember it is open mesh on 2 sides and covered with a felt roof. She has a kennel inside the run and I know my friend puts chew toys in for her. I think she was planning on having that arrangement longer-term. Will the pup get used to it if she's in it once a week from this age or should I be advising she do something else? I suppose she could always employ a dog-walker to give the dog a break during the day?

Only problem I foresee is the dog barking and annoying the neighbours.

It would be nice if your friend could employ a dog walker to give the pup a bit of a break and more importantly a little company.  The probem is this is a guarding breed and left alone to it's own devices it is going to amuse itself, toys only occupy for so long, I would expect that this pup will enjoy playing a game of barking at anything that moves or makes a noise, dogs really do not enjoy being alone.  The older he gets he will sleep for longer, in a house he would most probably settle and sleep for hours, but outside I think your friend may well find she has a barking problem on her hands.

How is the house situated, are there close neighbours? This will all need to be taken into account. It isn't cruel to do this, the pup will have shelter, food and water so that is not the worry however with nieghbours it may well turn out to be unpopular, it may have been better rather than paying out for a kennel and run to have thought of a pet sitter either in her own home or dropped off at a registered sitter, that way the pup would have someone with him all day just on the full day away.

If the house is situated in a place with no neighbours then apart from the fact the pup will be lonely for a while I guess it would suffice, he/she will get used to any routine, for once a week it is not too bad, but I still think the house sitter would be a better option. :-)

My neighbour does this all the time, they have racing whippets with at least 4 of them in small open fronted runs, corrigated plastic sheets on the roof, and bricks making up 3 walls, in total the whole place is no more than 6 x 10  at its largest and 6 x 6 at the smallest sort of L shaped.  The dogs are in there permanently unless they are out for a walk or racing - this summer since August we've been blessed with the horrific howling of a young whippet pup morning noon and night for hrs on end until about a wk ago, the other dog/s in there with said pup have joined in, more than once I thought my own dogs had injured themselves on the yard only to go out frantic to find it was next door.

These people have been reported, logs taken but nothing done, she's a local Parish councillor who's explanation for the distrubance is its a puppy adjusting and the noise will stop - August thru Oct yep it stopped but no one did anything about it despite our complaints.  RSPCA didn't gain access and neither could the council.

So I'm pretty sure 1 day a week regardless of how anyone here feels about it won't be an issue to the authorities if our experience here is anything to go by.  Personally I'd not be happy doing it but accept folk do.

> Her and her husband work full time Monday to Friday

> She has friends who help out on other days

> advice on whether it is cruel to leave the dog all day (say about 8 or 9 hours) one day per week on a regular basis.

Would I do it?  No way, but I have to say that I also wouldn't contemplate getting a dog if, as you say, she and her OH work full time.  I don't think it's fair to ask other people to help raise a puppy into the sort of happy, healthy well adjusted, well trained dog that I would want.  Mind you I suppose that there's no point me shouting from my soap box either!! :)

We have a neighbour who works full time; she thinks her dog just sleeps like mine do but sadly she doesn't.  She is an anxious dog who spends much of her day waiting for them/or a visitor to come home and barks at every car door and passing walker.  The owners rely on a succession of different people to look after their dog for them and some are better than others.  I used to do it sometimes but stopped when we got our pup.  Some of her friends don't stay as long as they say they do or come later than they promise.  One of them shouts a lot, another never tells the dog anything.  Another takes it home and lets it travel unrestricted on the front passenger seat.  My neighbour and I have had lots of conversations about this but understandably she doesn't want to say too much to them for fear that they might stop coming.

It's so easy to think that they should never have a got a dog, or this breed (working springer), BUT they do have her and I suppose they must do the best they can.  However they now have a problem dog - of their own making - that is likely to get worse. When they do finally have the baby they are hoping for I fear they may need to rehome their dog.

Is it cruel?  Yes I think it is

Just another thought that at 5 months I'd expect a GSD to still be on 3 meals per day so someone should be about to give it the extra meal mid day.

I wouldn't say it is cruel but it is less than ideal.  Is there anyway they can get someone to come in at lunchtime to take the dog out for a quick walk round the block, feed it some treats, play a few games?  Some GSD's can become very bored and destructive.

Some GSD's can become very bored and destructive.

Not just GSD's any dog really, especially pups and adolescents, this is most probably the reasoning for having an outdoor run and kennel, to avoid destruction and toileting in the house.  I know many people with kennelled dogs for all different reasons, but the only reasoning for this case is avoidance of the pup causing the likelyhood of home destruction and toileting it really is one of the lesser reasons to have a dog in a home kennel and a lazy option.

If the owner is not there to toilet and occupy a dog from causing destruction then they should have a carer for the dog, to be honest it is a cop out in putting a pup in a kennel, the real solution is for the pup to have someone to care for it.

But even though it is a cop out, at least the pup will be safe and sheltered, though it would absolutely prefer company and someone to look after it as would any dog, I do feel sorry for the pup,  but at least I guess it will be safe and dogs really have little concept of the actual time they are left alone.

With the food, I would expect that they will just leave a good proportion of dry food and water down to last the day, at least that is what I would do. (Though I actually wouldn't leave a 5 month pup or any dog alone all day, I would find it unacceptable by my own morals, but hey ho others don't and the pup I guess will be ok, it will have it's basic needs, though as a pack animal being solitary is not one of them.)

I think the racing whippets have it better- because they have company being 4 together in one pen and are not entirely alone as this young puppy is.

I suppose dogs do get used to their routine but is very sad for this puppy as its too young in my mind to be left for that long.

A dog walker coming in for an hour at lunchtime would give the dog a bit of a life.

When we had GSD's when I was young and at school.
My Mum went back to work and then wondered why Misty the pup chewed everything...
They built her a kennel & run in the garden...but she just learned to undo the chain link..
so got out.

So knowing how resourceful some dogs are not all 'pens' are totally secure ;)