# Can you ever actually leave a Vizsla?



## Pippavizlador (Nov 22, 2018)

Hi. We have a gorgeous 10 week old Vizsla/labrador cross. We were torn between a lab and a vizsla so when her litter came up she seemed the perfect solution. She is great in so many ways - has taken really well to housetraining and even sits on command (we've had her 10 days). The big problem? We CANNOT leave her alone. I've read several posts that explain Vizslas are nicknamed 'velcro dogs' as they love to stick by you - have no problem with that and love having her with me as much as possible. But reality is she will need to work up to being left for 90 mins or so each day while I do errands, take kids to doctor etc. I don't expect this to be instant and am fully prepared to work on getting her there - my worry is, will she? I've seen some people say they literally had to change jobs and permanently work from home or tag team it with their partner. That won't work for us. I work from home, with the exception of two mornings per week. On those mornings I've already arranged for her to go out with a dog walker so the reality is she will not be left for very long at all, ever. But it won't be sustainable if I can't leave her for 90 minutes each day to go to the supermarket or run errands that dogs are not allowed to accompany me on (e.g. school appointments - we have two children, medical appointments etc). I'd be really grateful if someone could advise me if we've made a terrible mistake and should hand her back to the breeder so someone who will never have to leave her can have her instead OR whether we can get to the point she will be able to be left for a short while. Keen to know before we become too attached and before it's too traumatic for her. Many thanks.


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## gingerling (Jun 20, 2015)

"Vizslador", this is a thing?:eek

Regardless of the breed, all pups have issues with the transition from the litter and 24/7 companionship of litter mates and mom to a human household. The solution is to get into a routine ASAP and stick to it.

As long as your pup is feed and pottied and played with and the time in the crate isn't extensive...more than a couple hrs at that age....they adjust. Start now while you're home so she learns the routine and also doesn't equate the crate with being all alone.


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## Rbka (Apr 21, 2014)

Every dog is different. Our first guy used to be alone for 8 hour days as an only dog. We built his time home alone up slowly over the first year using vacation and rearranging our schedules. He has no separation anxiety symptoms and is pretty mellow for a V. I now work partly from home so he's alone less and we got him a brother when he turned 3 haha! They're now 2 and almost 5.

If I remember correctly when you're doing crate training the rule of thumb is the age of the dog (in # of months) is the number of hours alone they can spend.
All dogs are different and some may have more issues with separation than others, but I think all of us here on the forums leave our dogs home alone at least to a certain extent! Yes they're velcro, but they are highly intelligent and trainable.
Just be consistent, build up time alone gradually, say the same thing every time you leave and the same thing every time you get back to create a routine...
Where there's a will, there's a way! If you're committed to this pup then you'll succeed at meeting everyone's needs somehow 

As I said above, we eventually got a second dog. Multiple vizsla disorder struck. They keep each other company mostly although we ensure that we take them out on individual special excursions sometimes too


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## [email protected] (Oct 19, 2018)

I've had similar problems! I posted a similar reply to someone else: It has been really hard all round but the thing that is working so far is a strict routine in the morning which becomes more flexible as the days wear on. When we all get up he hangs out with us in the kitchen and eats breakfast and then we take it in turns to play / hang out with him until everyone except me has gone to school/work. This is about 90 minutes. Then he and I do a half hour spell outside, mainly walking but he has free time off the lead and we do some training too. One final wee and he is ready for sleep. His crate is like a cave and I put a cover on the front and an antler and an edible chew inside too. I have gradually built up this nap from an hour to 3 hours, partly with 'controlled crying' and partly by knownig how long he's held the wee the day before. After this he gets LOADS of praise. Then we repeat except I'm the only one with him and the afternoon nap is never as long. The evening are still a bit messy, at 4.5 months old, with both behaviour and willingness to nap when tired, but we are getting there. Good luck!


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## TereLiz (Sep 21, 2016)

Hi, Pippavizslador, I hope your baby is adjusting, but in case you're still considering the crate, it really was the best solution for us when Zelda was a puppy. I think Vs like the structure of having a spot like that stay in when you're gone, but mine never goes in it for a nap the way my other dog (a black-mouth cur four months older) used to. 

She and her brother were crated side by side when left alone until Zelda was six months or so old. If we didn't have the other dog, who is much lazier, I would probably have used the crate longer but nowadays he keeps her on the bed waiting for us and out of trouble. She disliked the crate at first and howled, but quickly adjusted to the routine of going in there in the morning on command ("Zelda, crate"). I could never find a pad or anything she wouldn't chew on despite having Petstages chews or an antler in there with her, so that's something to think about. Good luck!


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## sharvani (Feb 3, 2016)

Hang in there! We ended up crate training our boy when he was about 12 weeks. It was not an easy process but now he loves his crate and god forbid you leave the house and don’t close the crate door. 

We started by slowly building up time in the crate starting with a couple of mins at a time and slowly working up to an hour+. This process took a few months. Our Neighbors also asked us if we were skinning our dog alive while crate training. He did not like being left alone. 

Here’s a couple things I’ve found extremely helpful over the years. 
Never move their crate unless absolutely necessary. If you move homes or crate locations it can be like starting over. 
Have a set routine you follow before crating. Ie: treat ready, bathroom walk, in crate, leave house. If we forget any of this he can get anxious. 
Good things happen in a crate. He only can eat Kong’s or messy treats in his crate. 
An exhausted dog is best. Run them off leash until they are tired! Time will be shorter with the puppy. 
Daycare turned out to be our go to option since we worked full days. He was well socialized and came home tired! But we was still fine in the crate for a few hours. 


Now that he’s getting older I’ve tried to acclimate him to being left outside the crate and he will have none of it. He loves his crate and looks forward to some quiet time. Best of luck to you!


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## tegee26 (Apr 25, 2018)

Some other tricks we learned while crate training, and learned from our trainer.

Don't be afraid to have him/her in the crate while you're home. Also, put them in the crate several minutes (maybe 10+ minutes) before you actual leave the house. And don't take them out of the crate the very minute you get home. We've been told it builds anxiety in the puppy to cuddle them right before you leave and directly when you get home.

We've practiced never saying goodbye to our V and simply crate him or babygate him 10+ minutes prior to leaving. And simply walk out the door without saying goodbye. He's been great since he's been a puppy with separation. I am not saying he loves being alone because he doesn't, but it does help him not barking, etc while we're gone.


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## Aspenthevizsla (Jan 3, 2019)

I got my Vizsla (Aspen) at 8 weeks and started Kennel training her immediately. I started a routine where I would leave her at 7:30am every morning for 60 minutes. At 8 weeks old, I figured that she could hold her pee for an hour.... I was totally wrong. She freaked out in her kennel, tore up the sheet that I put over her crate, and peed. I had her crate divider up so that she didn't have too much space, and was up with her for at least an hour before leaving the apartment, and made sure that she was tired before I left. In theory, I did everything right and was incredibly frustrated that I could not leave her side for a mere 60 minutes. 

However, she got over this VERY quickly. It took just a week for her to get into a routine and was fine in her crate from 7:30 to 8:30am. The next week, I increased the time to 90 minutes and the next week was 2 hours. The first time couple of times that I left Aspen for 2 hours, she peed in her crate again and was howling when I got home, and the same thing happened when I increased the time to 3 hours. Eventually, she learned that I take her on a long walk when we get home and is excited to get a treat every morning for going in her kennel. Now, at 6 months old, she is good in her crate for 5-6 hours (as long as she gets her long walk/play time before I leave). Often time, I have to drag her out of her crate when I get home. Hope this helps.


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## Murphy 2019 (Sep 11, 2019)

Hi I have Murphy he is 6 months great sleeping at night straight in the crate no problems, my problem is day time when he has woken up he can not wait he starts barking straight away it's not that he needs a pee because I no he can hold it he can see me and hear me he just will not stop barking, I have tried ignoring him, telling him quiet, water, moving his creat, nothing is working what am I doing wrong.


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