What are the best options for leaving a new puppy at home while I am at work?

Most days I am able to come home for lunch and let our Alaskan Malamute puppy out but on days that I can't, what are some reccomendations? Our puppy is being trained to eliminate in the back yard. If I was to use an indoor playpen and put down puppy pads for elimination when I can't come home for lunch, will this increase the pups desire to eliminate indoors and hinder housebreaking process?

No you should be fine as long as you are not doing all the time the dog will learn that when you are not home to use the pads and when you are home to ask to go out.

that should be fine like you said it not all the time.

Buy a crate and crate him when you cant go home , he won't make in a small enough crate

No, it won't hinder the process. But if I were you, I wouldn't TEACH him to go on the pads. Put him in the kitchen where it is tile, and you can just clean up his accidents right off the floor (will his pen fit in the kitchen?). If you start teaching him to go on the pads, you'll be taking 10 steps backwards with your out-door training. He would get TOTALLY confused by you encouraging him to "go" in the house, he doesn't know the difference between the pads and your living room carpet.If you haven't bought the playpen yet, see if you can get some baby-gates from Walmart, or even a second-hand store, to block off the entrance to the kitchen. It is already "puppy proofed" and is usually the easiest place to clean because its not carpeted :DGood luck!

If you make it seem ok to pee indoors then the puppy will just follow what you show it unless its one of those difficult dogs which is pretty much all of them at first you dont want to put the puupy in a pen outdoors so dont do that try a litter box at first but put dirt in it from outside so it will smell where it should goTRY PUTING HIM IN THE BATHROOM W/IT AND MAKE SURE YOU DONT HAVE ANY RUGS OR STUFF ON THE FLOOR JUST THE BOX

You Feel Guilty When You Go to Work and Leave the Puppy AloneYou cannot give up your job for your puppy. Although the puppy may at times become bored, he does not feel bad. You are the one feeling bad. As long as the dog is confined properly so that he cannot get into trouble, has water, toys, and is being properly housebroken or paper trained, he will be fine. There is no reason to feel guilty. Where to Keep Your Puppy When You're Gone All DayA house with a fenced-in yard is fine (weather permitting), and so is an outdoor dog run. Inside the home, the laundry room, the kitchen, or a spacious hallway are all suitable areas, provided the dog can be confined with a see-through puppy gate. Do not place your dog, no matter what his age, in a room with a closed door. It is important for him to be able to see another part of the house from his area of confinement. A dog crate is useful for periods of confinement of four hours or less, but not for the entire day. That would be harmful and unkind. When You Leave Him Alone, You're Worried He Will Destroy EverythingThis is an important consideration, and the answer is to avoid giving a puppy (or a new dog) the run of the house. A puppy could be destructive until he's two years old (or longer), and you must place him in an area that is puppy-proof. A hallway, bathroom, kitchen, or a fenced-in yard or outdoor dog run (weather permitting) are suitable for this purpose. All you need is an appropriate method for confining the dog such as a see-through puppy gate or a dog crate. When You Come Home, the Entire Yard Is Full of HolesYour dog has a digging problem. Dogs have an instinct to create a den for themselves and consequently dig into soft ground, lawns, snow, sand, or anything they can sink their paws into. There are various methods of "self-correcting" this problem. If the dog returns to the same spot to dig, as is often the case, place a large rock in the hole and cover it up with dirt. You can also fill the hole with a large quantity of aluminum foil, chicken wire, gravel, crushed pebbles, or combinations of these things. You can even place a large, inflated balloon in the hole. Then cover it up with the original dirt. The idea is to make digging that hole as unpleasant as possible. When You Come Home, Your Neighbors Tell You He Wouldn't Stop CryingAsk your neighbors when the dog was crying, under what circumstances he was crying, and where he was at the time. The answers to those questions will help you find the solution to the problem. When You Come Home, You Find Housebreaking Accidents in the HouseDo not get angry at the puppy because he has housebreaking accidents. When a puppy is not yet housebroken, or is only partially housebroken, he should not have the run of the entire house. The dog must be confined to one area with the help of a see-through puppy gate or a dog crate. (Never confine a dog to a crate for more than four hours, two or three for a puppy.) If your puppy is very young, he will not be able to control himself at this time, which means he must be walked more frequently to allow him to eliminate. You must weigh the dog's age against the housebreaking schedule he is on. When You Come Home, You Find Him Sleeping on Your BedThe dog should not have access to your bed. The dog should be confined in a room that has no bed or furniture in it. Wherever you confine the dog, make him comfortable with a dog bed of his own, a blanket, a towel, or even a carpet remnant. When You Come Home and Find That He Did Something Wrong, He Will Not Come to YouThis is always the result when inexperienced dog owners yell at their dogs for misbehaving. Punishing the dog for his misbehavior or even yelling "Bad dog" makes the animal nervous about approaching you. No dog is going to be happy to run to someone who is going to yell at him. We believe you cannot correct a dog unless you catch him in the act. What to Do When You Cannot Be at Home All Day to Take Him OutIf you do not have a fenced-in yard, you will have to hire a dog walker or ask a neighbor, friend, or relative to take the dog out in the middle of the day. Young dogs, especially those being housebroken, must have a midday walk to relieve themselves and get a bit of exercise. The Best Place to Keep Your Puppy When You're Not Home All DayIdeally, the best places are areas that can be made puppy-proof, such as the kitchen, the laundry room, a long hallway, even a bathroom, providing the area is closed off with a see-through puppy gate. If the weather permits, a fenced-in yard or dog run is also suitable. Never keep a dog in a dog crate for more than four hours, two or three for a puppy.

all i can give you is my experience... my new puppy has been pad training since xmas... it's slow going but i think he is learning... the pads are more for 'if you really have to go, go here', take him out a lot and give him lots of praise and rewards for going outside

Hi,My dogs are in a crate when I am at work and they all learnt (after a few accidents in the start) to go outside. Better than a playpen that they could jump out of and do it all through your house. The dogs temperement is not affected by a crate if it is in there from a pup - they learn.

I would use the pads. It's better than the pup going anywhere it wants. I see your point though. I don't think a human playpen will work for long for a pup esp. a Malamute! I would keep it in a sectioned off area of your basement, laundry room, or kitchen (any hard floor room) and put a doggy crate with an open door in there. Remember, lots of toys! You could also consider having a dog sitter come at lunch or maybe even taking it to doggy daycare. If you work long hours, you may want to consider getting another dog to keep it company while it is still young and accepting. We had 1 Sheltie pup and we got another to keep her company when we are busy and they are best buddies. GOOD LUCK! AND DON'T FORGET TO TAKE IT TO PUPPY KINDERGARTEN AT YOUR LOCAL DOG TRAINING CLUB! It is an excellent idea especially for a dog that'll be large and harder to control if it develops bad habits like biting or jumping. A well trained pup will become the best dog you've ever had. It is so worth it. And they can help you with all housebreaking concerns.

you need to crate train your puppy, most dogs will not mess in their own area, it is very good for house training. My current pup is crate trained, he hasn't had an accident during the day since he was 4 months old- he willingly goes in the crate every morning, I load up a kong, fill his water bucket and leave some cookies. A crate is essential, it protects your pup from getting into harmful things, gives them their own space (just leave the door open when not in use) and if ever there is an injury and he needs rest, the crate will do this. I always have crates up and open in my house.

EDIT: Actually I'm a big advocate of crate training for housebreaking. BUT the idea behind it is a pup doesn't like to 'mess' where he sleeps. It's really unfair, in my opinion, to leave a pup (or an adult for that matter ) in a crate ALL day , sometimes 8 hrs or more, with no option to relieve itself, exercise, etc.. Accidents are almost a sure thing. If you can't be there to let a pup out when it needs to go, please give it another option like a pen or kennel. I DON'T recommend just gating off a room - a bored pup will chew baseboards, walls, ANYTHING it can get hold of!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~A lot has to do with the age of your pup. A young pup can't make it through the whole day withough 'going', so you of course should provide a pad, newspaper, etc., for that purpose. If housebreaking is otherwise going well, then using a pad only when you aren't home shouldn't hinder it too much. If you're sure you can come home at lunch, DON'T put a pad down. In short, only encourage use of the pads when you're going to be gone longer than she should be able to 'hold it'.As she gets a little older you should be able to eliminate the pads completely. Just keep her on a good routine of feeding, pottying, and limited water supply when you're gone to lessen the chance of accidents.

Crating him for now will be fine - but this is a very big powerful and active dog you're talking about! Unless you are home early, or can go to a park and really wear him out in the middle of the day, you need to make arrangement with a reputable petsitter to take him out for a run each day. There was someone on here not long ago with a dog that ended up with bloody paws, and has already bitten a few people - too much confinement for big sled dogs is not an appropriate life, and won't end well. Don't teach him to do his business in the house, but crate and wear him out - and make some serious plans for his activites soon, or housebreaking won't be your biggest problem.

Yep, crating is the best way I agree! I have done so with many dogs and it always works. Also to help ease the going outside, take him out on lead and stay with him until he does his deal and then come inside for a bit (even if you intend to let him play outside) he will learn that when you mean go potty that is what he is there for and not for running around crazy and playing the whole time. Puppies loose focus quickly. Also I would not put a pee pad in the crate, it just teaches them it's o.k. to go in the crate as long as it's on this pad thing. Usually they just chew them up anyway! Put a soft bed in it for him and some toys that way he will associate that with a bed not a potty!! It will be fine, just be patient!! Do the crate, I have done the indoor play yard thing and it is just to much room for them to make one corner of it their bathroom!! Hope we helped! =0)

Maybe a trusted neighbor friend or relative can call round for you.Also a training cage can be obtained to keep your puppy in . The cages might sound harsh but they definitely work on keeping your bundle of joy out of mischief and will eventually see the cage as a den and retreat .As for house training i personally would bother with puppy pads . All you can do is keep getting the little blighter outside when he-she starts to look serious and just clean up the mess .Dont worry he-she will soon get the message ( GOOD LUCK)

You should always crate your puppy when you are not at home. This is a den for them. He will learn this is his bedroom like you have your room. They will not soil the "den" that is theirs. My dogs and dogs that I train are crate trained and they are fine to be in the crate for an 8 hour period. Just make sure to take him to eliminate right before you leave for work. Put the crate in a living room or kitchen where they can see the TV.

Buy a crate. I've also heard that dogs don't like to poop where they sleep (make sure crate is small enough so they can't move around) and they will hold it in until you let them out.. unless... they have diarrhea like my puppy did. No.... don't buy an indoor playpen. We had that, and while at work all day we would come home having to clean up poo and pee... so NO... just get a crate. He will probably scream and cry all day while you are gone, but they will get used to it.