# Taking Puppy to work



## Duke14 (Jul 20, 2014)

Hello all!

I was planning to take a week off when Duke comes home so that I can really focus on training him, bonding with him, and start potty training. Today my boss told me that it's bad timing because we have a big job to do and while he's out of town doing the install, he needs me in the office! He said, "I'm not going to tell you what to do, you need to figure it out, but I need you here." This was after he suggested dog school...I explained he won't even be old enough for daycare. 

Crap!

So...have any of you taken your new pup to work with you? We have a small, quiet office and I can bring a crate for him and walk him frequently. I spoke with one of the partners about it and he said I should just bring Duke to work.


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## emilycn (Jul 30, 2013)

I would use it as a last resort only---you will soon learn just how distracting a v puppy can be. Do you have friends or neighbors that could watch him for you during the day? Or, If you have minions at work, you could play "pass the puppy" and have people rotating on puppy duty --- as a plus, it would be great socialization to be in the care of so many different folks.


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## samkins (Apr 15, 2013)

If the pup knows you are around he is going to want to be held and played with (and he is adjusting to life without litter mates and dog mom)... So have lots of towels, blankets and toys. 

Also, he may HATE his crate and it could be a very loud puppy crying. Also, for potty time, where are you planning on walking him? He is a brand new pup with no vaccines, you don't want him to get anything. 

On the upside, pups take a lot of naps, so he could always just snuggle up on your lap for the many naps (lots of towels). 

Is there any way to arrange for a late Friday, early Saturday pick up from the breeder so at least you have the weekend together?


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## Canadian Expy (Feb 27, 2013)

I'm fairly certain that I wouldn't have been able to bring him to work for a whole day and accomplish much, but it will depend on the personality of your pup and how much you will be able to focus on your pup at work. It took us about a week to get him used to the crate so that he would not make a peep. When he was awake he was a tonne of crazy puppy energy, including shark attacks and zoomies. In between naps and play I was constantly running him outside to potty so that I didn't cause him to have any accidents (when we first brought him home at 8 weeks that was every 15-20 minutes). It might work for you, but you may want a back-up plan just in case. 

I did take him to work with me when we put our house up for sale. At that time my guy was 5 months old and we had worked very hard on him staying at his "place" (pillow), so I could work without him being too much of a distraction to me and my coworkers ( I say too much of a distraction because when he was there everyone would pop in to visit with him, which he of course loved!). By then he was also over the dreaded shark attacks 

If you do give it a try I would come prepared with numerous chew toys to help keep the pup occupied and entertained. Congrats on your new addition and good luck!


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## number10 (Jun 2, 2014)

Hi Duke14 - That's quite a dilemma. I thought too long about it and I can see you have already got some good replies. Puppies really are very, very distracting. For my two cents worth: when still very little your pup will sleep a lot, and maybe for 1-2 hour stretches, and then she will need lots of activity and A LOT of attention in between. When awake, you will need to be taking her outside at least every 1/2 hour and after she wakes, plays, gets excited. etc. New puppies play rather than go for walks - they run all over the place, sniffing and mouthing, biting and jumping. And they get bored too!

The tricky thing about taking her to work is that she will require more attention from you than you may realise, and you haven't started her off on a good routine.

You don't say what you do or whether you have control over your day - if work dictates your activity minute-to-minute you may find it hard to manage a pup there. We find the same thing when people bring young kids in when babysitting falls through, LOL. They get nothing done! But if, as you say, you have a quiet office where it won't matter if you stop for periods and attend to pup before you go back to work, you may be fine. Good idea to get a playpen as well as a crate.

Anyway - I am sure there are people here who have successfully managed dogs at work, and they may have some good suggestions.


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## organicthoughts (Oct 9, 2012)

I think this is only a great idea to the people unaware of the reality check that a 8 week old v brings with it! Dog sitter for a couple weeks might be a better option.


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## Duke14 (Jul 20, 2014)

You all make very valid points, and hit on the reasons why I would much prefer to be home with Duke for at least the first week.

I work as an office manager, my work flow varies and it's usually pretty light when the boss is out of the office. Reception, accounting, grocery shopping, shipping...regular business paper pushing stuff. (There have actually been times when it was so light that I had nothing left to clean or organise and almost fell asleep...) He needs me there to answer the phone in the mornings and to receive any deliveries. The reason is that the other three guys in the office start later as they deal with clients on the other side of the country a lot and so there is a time difference they have to accommodate. 

I don't have any friends or neighbors who can help. We moved here a few years years ago and it seems everyone in our posh end of suburbia is too busy working three jobs to afford their giant houses (we rent a townhouse) that they don't have time to let new people into their lives...I left everything I know 5 hours away when the Drs told us my father in law either needed to live with someone or be put in a home, so we packed up and came to him. He's doing remarkably well considering they gave him 6 months to a year and it's been three and a half.

The good thing is that my husband is a manager in a restaurant so he is often home when I'm at work. I am sure my father in law could handle walking him every now and then but his faculties arent quite what they used to be (if you know what i mean) and he has been having trouble remember things so I'm not really comfortable leaving our very young, untrained puppy in his care.

Duke will likely be a distraction as I don't know if he will like his crate. I am sure he will be upset that he has been taken away from everything he knows. And, well, he's a puppy, who doesn't love a puppy? I am concerned about him getting into something, there aren't any fields around my work, its a nice area but it's industrial/commercial. 

I don't know exactly what date the breeder will release him. He will be 8 weeks on a Thursday, so if I can pick him up on the Friday morning I could have three days with him before I have to be in to work, and maybe my hubby can arrange to work only nights that week so he can be at home with him...

I'm up for the challenge, I just want to make this transition as easy on Duke as possible which is why I'm a disappointed my boss can't accommodate this for me. 

If I do a dog sitter, I might as well just pay to board him at the breeder.


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## Duke14 (Jul 20, 2014)

organicthoughts said:


> I think this is only a great idea to the people unaware of the reality check that a 8 week old v brings with it! Dog sitter for a couple weeks might be a better option.


Which is why I am concerned and planned to take the time off. This has always been the plan. My boss is a little bit reactive though and is starting to get freaked out about this big install we have to do and he hasn't yet found a replacement for the person who normally helps him whose last day was today. To be honest, I can schedule shipping from home, I can work from home, I'm all set up but he really wants me physically in the office.

If I delay picking Duke up I can board him at the breeder but all the daycare faciliities I've found so far in my area won't take him, he's simply too young.


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## Canadian Expy (Feb 27, 2013)

If you must work that week as per your boss, then leaving Duke with the breeder is the option I would choose. You can then postpone your vacation and pick up Duke the next week. When you do bring him home you can then use that time to bond, work on crate training, house training, etc as you had initially planned. At least with the breeder he is somewhere he is comfortable and with someone you can fully trust. He is far to young for daycare.


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## samkins (Apr 15, 2013)

We picked up Moose on Friday morning and I took Monday off, then both my husband I and were back to work... It was enough time for him to settle. 

We left him in a play pen in the kitchen and my husband came home two times a day to let him out, feed him, and play with him. It worked out great for us and may be worth exploring.


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## jld640 (Sep 29, 2010)

The breeder is a good option.

If you choose work, here are a few plans to put in place ahead of time...

Potty place: Pick an area. Watch to see if other dogs frequent the area - some industrial areas don't have many dog walkers. Grass or barkdust can be disinfected the at the end of each day. Call your local vet and let him know the area and how much activity you observed so he can determine if disinfection is necessary and what to use. Call the landlord and make sure he is on board with the disinfecting agent (usually dilute bleach) and stress that it's only for a week. If you can't make the grass concept work, get a large cat litter box and put a puppy pad in it. Carry it to the same place each time. Duke will get the idea. Make sure you have plastic bags so the used puppy pads don't stink up the office.

Phone: You will not be heard on the phone over puppy whining. Stage the crate in the hall or in the next room so when the phone rings you have someplace safe to put Duke if he starts whining. Folks were quite understanding anytime I had to tell someone to please wait just a moment while I put my new puppy out of earshot.

Productivity: Your productivity is going to go though the floor. If your boss really just needs you physically present, that shouldn't matter too much. You'll be able to get some work done just no where near your normal workload.

Mental equilibrium (for lack of a better term): You will be constantly tired from being so short on sleep. Anything you can do to prevent frustration ahead of time (clean the office, check to make sure you have enough supplies, make sure all your laundry is clean, etc.) will help you handle whatever nonsense catches you by surprise. And there will be some. Take a deep breath. Paste a smile on your face. Remind yourself that it is only for a week. Handle whatever happened. Then tell Duke how happy you are that he is finally with you.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

My father past away the week I was to pick up my female June.
The breeder had no problem keeping her a week longer for me. In fact he said "I will keep her for you as long as you need".


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## Sydney (Jul 28, 2014)

TexasRed said:


> My father past away the week I was to pick up my female June.
> The breeder had no problem keeping her a week longer for me. In fact he said "I will keep her for you as long as you need".



I'm sorry about your father, texasred :'( :'(. 

But that is a very nice breeder.


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