Hello,
I am going rafting next Sunday morning by the Sequoia Park. The rafting takes place from 9h00 until 13h30, and our Basenji puppy (4 months and a half) will have to be crated at the hotel while we're gone : ( We will leave Saturday morning and spend the whole week-end there, coming back Sunday night or Monday afternoon so the only time our pup will be alone will be when we are rafting.
I was planning on walking him in the early morning so he sleeps when we are away. He is crate-trained and doesn't mind staying in it, but the thing is: I have never left him for such a long time in it….except at night of course.
What do you experienced people think? Should I not go rafting and stay with my pup? Or you think it should be okay for him to stay crated 4hours and a half?
The other solution is to leave him with my friend in town but it would have been so fun to go hiking with him...
Let me know, I need advice...
Cathy
Cathy,
I understand your concern. Every Basenji owner approaches this issue at some point in there life.
Puppies don't have a big bladder and can't hold it for too long. I am still trying to figure out how a puppy can hold it throughout the night (7hrs) but while awake can't hold it for 3. :p
Kiya is 5 1/2 mts old and she can be left in her pen for no more than 5 hrs tops. Not a second longer or else we will come home to a surprise :eek:
There have been times where one of us couldn't make it home in 5 hrs due to work/school issues and had to clean up a mess…She was ok though...she just needed a good cleaning and a lot of special attention from us because we felt awful for not being able to get to her in time.
I think (and again, this is my opinion) that 4 1/2 hrs will be ok.
You said that you will be staying in a hotel...have you considered the noises your pup will be making??? Kiya gets vocal at times and man oah man...she makes sure the whole world can hear her.
Take him for a long walk/run and that will help a ton. He will sleep most of the time while crated.
Ok, thank you so much! He seem to be ok holding it for 5 hours but I just felt awful to keep him crated for such a long time…I take him with me to work everyday so he is never really alone, except in the evenings if I go out. I will make sure to wear him out before we go rafting!!!
Another thought for you - bring a radio. That way you could turn it on and drown-out outside noises. Your pup will be in a place unfamiliar to him and may be scared by outside noise. We stayed in a hotel once with our previous dog who was always loyal and patient to wait for us. When we returned to our room just 3 - 4 hours later, the management let us know how unacceptable it was for us to leave him. He was barking up a storm while we were gone. :o So, you might want to let the hotel mgmt know that if your pup does make noise, he is crated so they don't worry about destruction.
Just my experience - on a 1 week long vacation 2 years ago when Duke was 8 months old. We went camping - perfect place for kids & dogs. But we found ourselves kind of trapped by him. We could not leave him at the campsite alone - so restaurants and sight-seeing were out. The most we could do was hike. On one day - desperate to see the sights, we took him to a local kennel for the day. Luckily, we brought Duke's veterinary immunization record with us. Because they do need to ensure all their tennants are up to date.
You may want to warn the hotel that if they hear screaming like a child is being beaten that it is only your dog.
I agree about talking to the people at the desk. Just let them know you are a phone call away (hopefully you will be reachable by cell). SOME hotels have a policy of no dogs left alone in room…period...regardless if they are in a crate. So you might want to check into that before you travel.
A few years ago we stayed in a hotel that was threatening to confiscate dogs that were left in crates in the room; and was calling animal control if the dogs were making any noise. Ugh...
But, yeah, he will probably cry because it is a new place, and he is a baby. Definitely leave the TV on if he is used to that sound. And definitely make him REALLY tired before you leave. Good luck! Have fun 
mia is 5 months old today.. and i have classes from 8am-145pm without a break long enough to come home. plus an hour total of travel time. shes fine in her crate for 7 hours. and shes done that since we first got her when she was 8 weeks old. granted its only 2x a week. we've started leaving her out if we go to dinner or something like that.. and she doesnt potty in the house then either. she can hold it for quite awhile. but i guess every dog is different
