ok so I started work last week finally but I am feeling soooooooooooooooooooooo guilty.  I am leaving my dog everyday from 10.50 to 16.10 - 5 hrs 20 mins.  My actual hours are 11.30-3.30 but it takes time to get there on transport.
We have a nice walk in the morning and I leave her with a nice stuffed kong and the radio on, but all I think about whilst I am at work is getting back to her. 
When I get home she is fine and very pleased to see me and we spend the rest of the day and evening together, but those hours at work are torture for me worrying about her.  I think she just sleeps but I can't help feeling bad and am thinking of not continuing the job.  I have never left her for more than 4 hours at a time.  Will she miss me?  Will she be bored and lonely?  Or will she sleep?
I guess what I am looking for is some reassurance that she will be fine when I am out and not lonely.

I sure she will be fine, she has the radio for company and a toy to keep her entertained.
Our 3 dogs get left for 5 hours per day, we always leave them toys etc but when we come home 9 times out fo 10 they are in the same place as they havent been touched.
The dogs sleep all day until we return.

Unless you notcie any destructive behaviour or anything untoward bout her behaviour then I would worry about her too much. Even dogs need some time on their own its character building!

I think your worrying more then you need to!!! :D

She most likly sleeps, all our dogs here get left during the day, when I'm home during the day they normally just sleep anyway.  I though "great I'm at home more, dogs can be more active!" but insted its "oh there's no point in my being home, the dogs are just asleep!" :D

They get used to it and aslong as she isn't destruptive in the house or she messes then all is fine I woudl say! :)

Maybe there's something out there she could chew that'd last hours?  Just going by my three, stuffed kongs (even frozen) last half an hour, give or take.  10" rolls fo the thick white rawhide chews last about and hour, but today I found something wonderful - sow's hooves (i.e. half a trotter, but only the hoof part) with stuffing - the stuffing goes in less than a minute, but all three dogs have been chewing those half-hooves for almost 2 hours now, and they aren't even halfway in!  And to cap it off, they are only 60p each :D  So maybe there's something like that out there for your pup?  Like the others have said though, chances are she'll be asleep, so I wouldn't worry too much.  It's a case of peace of mind - whatever makes you feel better :)

I worry about the same thing though - when I do work, it's anything from 2 to 6 hours (depending on type of dog to be groomed and how many), sometimes longer, and even though I'm in the room next to my dogs I worry about them being bored in there, being the smart things they are!  so these hooves are a godsend!

I wouldn't worry too much.  As long as she has a run before you go to work and quality time with you when you return she will get into a habit of having a snooze while you are out.

I would not leave my dogs unattended with hide chews, cows hoofs or ears.  They could easily choke while you are not there.  A kong filled is perfectly safe though

Sandra

Hi

Don't beat yourself up about leaving your dog. If she's not showing any signs of distress (destruction/messing etc) then chances are she sleeps while you're away. I felt awful too when we got our first dog. He gets a good walk first thing of about an hour or so. He's in the garden with a nice big kennel and access to the utility room via a dog door. When we first had to leave him at, I asked my neighbour to keep an eye on him over the fence and let us know if he showed any signs of distress. She confirmed that he sleeps in his kennel for most of the day and she rarely sees or hears him and I know on days when I'm at home he sleeps most of the time as this is his routine. I went through all of this again when we got our puppy. The OH and I arranged time off so that one of us would be at home for the first few weeks til she settled in but I was very worried how she'd react when we had to go back to work even though she has our other dog for company. She has adapted very well to the routine too. We always give them a nice treat each before we leave as well as leaving toys etc and now they know the signs that we are getting ready to leave and queue up by the back door, looking forward to getting their treat!

In an ideal world, we'd all be at home with our pets but for most of us, work is a necessity. In our case, if we didn't work we wouldn't be able to afford to have our dogs. As long as you're making the most of the time you are at home with your girl, I can't see that continuing to work should be a problem.

Only 5 hours? Oh, you're so lucky. Most people that I know (me included) work 8 hours (9am-5pm) and dogs have absolutely no problem staying at home. They mostly sleep anyway. It's not about the time when you're away, it's the time you spend with them that's important. If you have a nice walk before work and a long walk or any activity that he likes after work, your dog will be pretty happy. Dogs like humans adapt to anything as long as you give them a lot of your time when you're at home.