Is it ok to leave these dogs this way?

Can one or two of you spend some extra time each on the walk and include some play and rough-housing? The arrangement would sound extremely cruel even for one day. is it too late to board them? Five days along and closeted is really a horrible idea.

Is it close enough to walk over? Can you or the kids add an extra visit daily. I do shudder.

They do have the comfort of each other. It’s much harder on animals if they have to live alone in circumstances like this. Extra play time (or snuggles), and maybe two of those toys you fill with treats that you give them as you leave sounds like a good idea.

Are they being confined to the bathroom because she’s afraid they’ll mess in the rest of the apt ?

But if they are kenneled, won’t they be in a smaller space yet? I guess it depends upon the facility.

It’s not ideal, but some dogs have a rough time with kennelling. It often means being confined in a smaller space, with lots of other dogs around, but not necessarily in contact. It can be very stressful. At least these two are in their own home.

That said, they would be much happier with more interaction, so they’ll appreciate any extra time you can offer them. Five days is a long time to be away from your pack.

In an apartment it’s entirely possible that they are in the bathroom to contain their noise as well as everything else. They won’t keep running to the front door to bark at every sound in the hall.
Do you know if the owners routinely leave them in the bathroom when they are gone? If so, then they are used to it.

Being kenneled is much worse, plus dangerous. There are diseases and other unsavory things that can linger in kennels, and they would be away from their own surroundings.

Being in a bathroom is actually very comforting, especially if they have some blankets in the tub or a corner of the room.

To me I think it really depends on the dog(s). My dogs would not do good in the bathroom situation, not just their size but they have certain places where they sleep, so it would probably cause them anxiety. If they mess then its no big deal I have all the right stuff to clean it up and usually they don’t. As long as they get an hour walk in the morning they can stay home all day and they have. I know their schedule and when it comes to feeding, bathroom, walking I’m pretty strict about it all so I know what to expect.

I don’t personally recommend dogs being left in bathrooms but its individual preference. We had a small dog when I was a kid who while in the bathroom chewed the bottom of the door. So we put a gate a low and behold she was waiting at the door. So we put another gate on top of the first one and the top gate had a hole chewed through it and she was again waiting at the door. I think the dog was a reincarnation of Houdini in a Shih Tzu’s body :/

The safest place for any dog when owners are away is a good, well run kennel. The dog will be attended at least 14 hours of the day and probably checked at night as well. If the dog becomes ill, it will be taken to the vet within a reasonable period of time. The space might be small but the company of other dogs and humans checking is reassuring to most well adjusted dogs. @YARNLADY – the same could be said of taking the dog to the vet, it will be surrounded by sick dogs, or the grooming salon or obedience classes, etc. Or a human going to a movie theater. There are no more germs in a clean kennel than you dog will meet walking down the street.

If I understood your question, you are only going to be seeing these dogs once a day? In a kennel they would be checked many times a day. Individual exercise can usually be arranged. There is no question in my mind. The only time I would hesitate to put my dogs in a kennel is if they are very old or sickly or if the kennel is not set up in such a manner that each dog has an indoor outdoor run, and the kennel must be heated in cold weather.

If you are completely opposed to putting your dog in a kennel, hire a senior citizen to move into your house while you are gone. That way the dog will be in its own element, have company and your house will be occupied as well.

With regard to your specific question, I would sure try to spend more time with the dogs than 20 minutes once a day. That is solitary confinement and really not much fun for the dogs.

^^GA. Twice a day.

@rooeytoo I was hoping you would answer this question so thanks for taking the time to do so. We are actually going to be stopping by twice a day. We were instructed to let them out to the area where they toilet and leave them alone for twenty minutes. We went for the first time this evening and did what we were told to do and we hung out with them for a while and the boys put them on leashes and walked them around a bit.

@SuperMouse – dogs are such social creatures, I feel sorry for them being so alone! I hate seeing dogs who live in the back yard, always makes me sad. I wonder why people get them if they don’t want them to be family members.

But I am a bit of a dog nut!

The ones you are sitting for will survive and be thrilled to see their owners when they return. It is nice that you will be stopping by 2x a day, that is twice as good as once!