[linkkm]

My boyfriend and I have been more liberal with Nico (almost 1 and a half year male) over the holiday break and have let him run around the house as we ran errands (sometimes less than a half hour to about 3-4 hours). So far so good...he hasn't destroyed anything that we know of!

Just wondering if there are brave souls out there who let their V out during the day for 8+ hours. If so, any stories? It seems that when we leave Nico out, he usually just curls up on the bed and naps for most of the day.

 

[linkkm]

Ok..nevermind..there's another post on this very topic. Guess I should have read the other posts first!!

 

[scooby]

Hi linkkm i'd love to try Scooby with the free run but am a bit chicken he's just 1yr old, how old was Nico when you started ? 8)

 

[Lisa]

Wow...I can't trust Catan with free run of the house when I'm looking right at him. Maybe one day.

 

[linkkm]

We've given him an hour here and an hour there for probably 4 months or so. It was only over the holidays that we ran out for hours at a time and he seemed not to get into any trouble. Either that...or we just haven't found his destruction yet!

 

[jas]

I started to after about 8 months but ended up putting a stair gate at the kitchen entrance and have confined him to the kitchen. He was chewing slipper newspapers etc so leave him in the kitchen with the crate door left open. 98% of the time he is usually in his crate when i return. hes now 10 months

 

[Sahara]

Tizane's almost eleven months now and she's had free run of the house for about six months. It was kind of a necessity when it started, but she did really well aside from digging her way to Tahiti in the back yard a time or three. We do keep all the doors to the rooms in back shut so she can't get into any of the bedrooms. But aside from shredding her own toys and the aforementioned holes in the backyard she has been very well-behaved. Now that's not to say she won't pull something in the future. Usually one of us is home in the daytime (although asleep) so that helps. Typically though, when I get home from work, she's crashed on the couch and is really happy to see me as she knows a long walk or a trip to the dog park is forthcoming.

 

[treetops1974]

we started leaving Rio alone for an hour or two here and there - usually in the morning when we're dropping the little one off to school and running a few errands. he usually just sleeps in our bed looking out the window at passers by.

i'm worried that he may become territorial over space - which kind of defeats the purpose of crate training.

he never got into chewing furniture ... just the odd shoe and cell phone ... but I am afraid that he will get into something he really shouldn't if left alone.

 

[sarahaf]

Rosie's only 6 months, but if I leave her for downstairs for 5 minutes to get something upstairs, she gets into something she shouldn't. She's a master thief of glasses, toilet paper, shoes, ornaments, food, pill bottles, etc. I'm hoping some of it is being a juvenile, though.

 

[DragonTheRevolutionary]

wow, really, my vizslas LIVE indoors and don't do anything bad, this, this makes me laugh

 

[scooby]

Scooby's never been a chewer (just had 2 weeks when he loved my slippers when he was about 10mths) so maybe should trust him more.

 

[Lisa]

Catan is now a year old and can not be trusted for a minute. This morning I went outside to start the car and put windshield washer fluid in, I did a once over to make sure there were no cell phones or remotes hangin about before going out. By the time I got back in the house I found a trail of poop bags through out the house. The box was completely gone except for one small corner. I guess he'll be pooping that out over the next couple of days.

 

[Crazy Kian]

The other night I was making dinner. I had a frying pan on the burner with some meatballs in there sizzling away.
What does he do as I turn my back.....gets up on his hinds and reaches in the hot pan and takes a meatball
I swear the little dude has no fear ;D
But, I will say this. When he is very tired after a long run with his buddies Rio and Catan he is an angel...he'll just crash out on the sofa.
Who knows, maybe one day he will be trusted alone

 

[marishavh]

I'm lucky with my V Bentley, as he has always been Mr perfect when it comes to being left alone. He's had free run of the house since day 1 when i got him at 5 months old and the only thing he has ever chewed that he wasn't meant to is a pencil.

I have a funny story actaully - one time I went out for about 2 hrs and when I came home Bentley met me at the doors frothing at the mouth! I of course freaked and thought maybe he had eaten something poisonous. He kept running to the lounge and back to me again so i went in and there on the coffee table was half a sandwich I had forgotten about and left. It was surrounded by the biggest drool patch I have ever seen! The poor dog knew he wasn't allowed to steal food off the table and must have sat watching the sandwich for the whole two hours, probably going through a mental battle as to whether risk taking it or not!

And yes.. i gave him the sandwich!

 

[Tali]

What a wonderful dog !

Jemma is 15 weeks and I leave her up to 2 hours alone. I just gate the second floor and she has the whole first floor to her self. She is usally a sleep

 

[Lisa]

Marishav - that's incredible. I'd be happy if I could get Catan to leave things that are not edible alone.

 

[Ruby]

Marishavh - that's hilarious!!! I can just imagine the turmoil he was going through!!!

Unfortunately our 8 month V Ruby is more like some of the others on here and is a little terror!! I would love it if she could have the run of the house but we are renting at the moment and I just can't risk it! She has to be monitored the whole time she is in the garden as she starts digging as soon as your back is turned!!!

 

[scooby]

I have started to trust scooby and am now leaving him out of his cage for short periods at a time its always after a good run and the longest so far has been for about 2 hrs and he's been great so hope it caries on

 

[Vincent]

Vinnie learnt to break out of a locked crate when he was pretty young, so we had to put a stair gate up and keep him in the kitchen, he then could jump that so i built a height extension for it and he just hit it and bit it, there was wood everywhere every day and he was swallowing alot. then he broke the extension. once he done this he could do it again and again. so we had no choice but to give him the house. he is 71/2 months old and has had the house since 2 weeks before Xmas and touch wood the house is fine. he just sleeps the whole time. the longest he has been in the house was 6 hours but he only normally has 4.

 

[annette]

I could not leave Sam out on his own ... he has a big thieving problem , phones , socks, toilet roll .. in fact anything he can get his teeth on. Hopefully he will grow out of if