However, trying to tell someone else how to raise a pet is almost always futile.

True.

Perhaps the landlord could be asked to get involved? I keep my dog in the house (or crated) for the length of my workday. But I do it because I know she has the training to handle that, and the bladder capacity--and I make sure that she does all her business before I leave in the morning.

If she makes a mistake, it's my fault: there's no point in scolding her hours afterwards. All she learns is to be afraid of being scolded when I come home.

Perhaps you could get a card for a dog-walker and slip it under your neighbor's door? Oh, wait, he works nights. Maybe one of the kids in the area could be hired to walk the dog in the evenings?

we kind of need one. my attendants used to be dog-walkers too(with varying degrees of equinamity) It's gonna make me cry, though, if Betsy's dogwalker is more screened than mine, although I suspect she would be.

It sounds like the dog isn't getting enough attention, or enough positive attention, tommy. I hate hearing that. What Consuela said about scolding it hours afterward is so true -- it won't have any idea why it's being scolded by then.

Mona is alone from 10am until 7pm. I feel pretty awful about it. We've had a couple of accidents if we're delayed getting home, and she seems to feel a sense of shame that makes me feel even worse. When we got her, I thought, well, she's going to be in a loving home, eat ridiculously overpriced dog food, and receive otherwise excellent care. But then i sometimes am feeling horrible guilt about how lonely she must feel during the day.

OMG, please don't send me URGENT emails in the middle of my back to back phone hell day. I'm clutching these returned 20 minutes to my breast like they're mannah from heaven. I'm reading meeting minutes of meetings I just attended two hours ago. Please don't make me have to get back into high gear. That was Monday->Wednesday.

Okay, fine. Off to get more shit done before 12.

Perhaps the landlord could be asked to get involved?

Yeah, that's something for me to consider. My lease doesn't allow dogs, but the landlord must make exceptions, as a number of people have dogs in the building.

The previous tenant in that apartment had an old dog that had health issues causing it to poop and pee indoors sometimes. When the tenant left the building maintenance guy had to do a ton of cleaning to get all the poop and pee out of the wood floors, etc. If I told the landlord it's happening again, he might not be too happy. But I'm not sure I want to escalate things to that point right now.

edit for clarity

But then i sometimes am feeling horrible guilt about how lonely she must feel during the day.

Eh, I do think dogs are really adaptable. If she has accidents, try to cut back on her water intake in the mornings, and make sure she poops before you leave. Or you could crate her, if she's trained to the crate--she will try much harder not to mess in her crate than in the rest of the house.

I do admit that I would like to hire a dog-walker for TNG, but it's not cheap.

Mona is alone from 10am until 7pm. I feel pretty awful about it. We've had a couple of accidents if we're delayed getting home, and she seems to feel a sense of shame that makes me feel even worse. When we got her, I thought, well, she's going to be in a loving home, eat ridiculously overpriced dog food, and receive otherwise excellent care. But then i sometimes am feeling horrible guilt about how lonely she must feel during the day.

I am having anxieties about potentially getting a puppy and this very thing. I would probably have to figure out how to get home midday while he/she was still very little. (I do have a lot of vacay time.) But after that? Can I crate if I have to? How long is too long in a crate?

Also, if Ouise is reading, can she please check her invites on Facebook???

But after that? Can I crate if I have to? How long is too long in a crate?

I strongly encourage anyone with a dog to crate-train them as early as possible. Even if you don't ever plan to crate them during the day, it's really useful to be able to crate a dog--for travel, for visitors, for housecleaning, and so forth.

Anyway, "too long" depends on the size of the crate and the dog, and how good the dog's bladder is. But remember that a dog in the house still has the same size bladder. And most of the time, a dog loose in the house is doing the same thing a dog in a crate is: lying around sleeping.

I do think a dog that gets crated regularly probably needs some extra exercise, though.