Best morning routine with a dog before work

Leaving for work is never fun. If you could just spend all day with your dog, you probably would!

Your dog probably doesn’t like it much either. But there’s good news: there are lots of ways to establishing a great morning routine with your dog before work.

We’ve split this in two sections, one for adult dogs and one for puppies, because their needs are a little bit different. Here’s everything you need to get started.

Best morning routine with an adult dog before work

Coming up with a good daily routine is important for yourself and for your dog. Dogs are routine-based animals, and thrive when they have a schedule.

Knowing what to expect and when to expect it can help ease and prevent any anxiety your dog might feel.

A routine is important for you too because it helps ensure that you and your dog get everything done that you need done.

If you’re working on your routine with your dog, it’s important to understand that adult dogs and puppies need different things.

Before we get into your adult dog routine, make sure you check out these articles on separation anxiety.

• 9 Signs and Symptoms for Separation Anxiety in Dogs
• Do Puppies Grow Out of Separation Anxiety?
• How to Crate Train a Dog with Separation Anxiety

Having a good morning routine with your dog before you leave for work is an effective way of dealing with separation anxiety. Let’s get started!

Here’s a quick overview, before we go into more detail:

1. Get up

As soon as your alarm gets going, it’s time to get up! At this point in your morning, it’s time to go to the bathroom, do your business, and kick-start your own morning routine.

It’s also the right time for you to let your dog out to relieve himself immediately. He’s been holding it all night, after all!

You might be tempted to take him for his morning walk right away, but it’s best to save this for later.

2. Get ready for work

A lot of dogs with separation anxiety start getting nervous as soon as they see their owners’ cues that they’re getting ready for work. They know you’ll be leaving as soon as you’re finished getting ready.

If you want to help prevent separation anxiety, start getting ready for work before you do anything else with your dog. Saving the best parts of your dog’s morning for last will help him associate you leaving for work with fun instead of anxiety!

So make sure you get ready before you do all the fun morning activities with your dog.

3. Have breakfast

Once you’ve finished getting ready for work, it’s time for breakfast. While you’re eating your own meal, you can feed your dog too.

Do you have questions, or issues with your dog’s food? These related articles might have the answers you need:

• Best Dog Food Delivery Service for Fresh Cooked Food
• 7 Tips to Stop a Dog from Begging for Food
• Why Is My Dog Refusing to Eat Dog Food?

4. Take your dog for a nice, long walk

Now that you and your dog are fed and energized and you’re basically ready to head out for work, it’s time for your walk.

It’s really important to go for a walk with your dog in the morning. Walks are great exercise for your dog, and this is super important for preventing anxiety and boredom.

If you need some help and advice for walking your dog, these articles can help:

• How Many Walks Should a Dog Have a Day?
• How to Tell If Your Dog Is Tired of Walking
• 11 Tips to Walk a Reactive Dog

5. Put your dog in a small room (or crate) for the day

Once your dog has relieved himself during his walk and you’ve given him some good exercise, it’s time to get him ready for you to go to work.

Dogs have a den instinct, which means they generally like small, enclosed spaces to hang out in.

If you want to keep your dog safe and out of trouble, providing him a space like this can help.

You can put him in a small room to provide him somewhere quiet to relax. You might also want to consider crate training him. For some advice on this, here’s how to crate train a dog easily in 13 steps.

6. Feed him or give him a chewy

One of the best ways to help ease anxiety is to give your dog something positive to associate with you leaving for work.

Most dogs love having a tasty treat to chew on. Chewing can help keep your dog calm, as it makes his brain release serotonin. So consider putting something tasty in your dog’s crate with him.

You should know, though, that some dogs won’t eat when they’re alone. That was the case with my Baloo—and giving him a chewy actually triggered his separation anxiety. That’s because he knew that was the cue for me to leave. So, I stopped giving him anything and just put him in his bed and left immediately. That’s working like a charm!

7. Close the door and immediately leave for work

Now that your dog is safely tucked away in his crate and he has everything he needs, it’s time to leave for work.

Don’t linger in or around your house, since this could upset your dog. Hearing you moving around while he’s stuck in his crate could stress him out.

This is why it’s so important to get ready for work early. As soon as your dog is in his crate and set for the day, you can grab your bag and head straight out the door.

Best morning routine with a puppy before work

Having a routine set for your adult dog is important. It’s also super important for your puppy.

But, as I mentioned earlier, the above dog’s morning routine before you head out for work needs some adaptation for a puppy.

If you’re wondering what your puppy’s routine should look like, here’s an idea.

1. Get up

Just like you would do with an adult dog, the first thing that you’re going to do with your puppy is get up.

Once your alarm goes off, get yourself out of bed and your puppy out of his crate.

The good news is that your puppy will be pretty eager to start his day. That means that he’ll probably make sure that you get out of bed anyway, so you can start your day too!

2. Take your puppy out to pee

Puppies have pretty small bladders, so the very first thing you’re going to want to do is get him outside.

You don’t want your little guy to have an accident before you even start your routine properly. So make sure that you’re taking him for his pee right away.

3. Get ready for work

Once your puppy has peed, it’s time for you to start getting ready for work.

This part of your pre-work morning routine for your puppy works just like it does for an adult dog. When you get ready for work before you do everything else, this will make the process much easier on your puppy.

Saving the fun parts for last will help prevent separation anxiety in your puppy!

4. Have breakfast

After you’ve gotten ready for work, you can feed yourself and your puppy.

Remember, your puppy’s diet is an important part of his health. If you want to make sure that your puppy develops properly, you’ll want to feed him right.

Always check the ingredients on your puppy’s food and make sure that he’s getting the nutrients he needs. Feeding him fresh-cooked dog food is also a fantastic option to ensure that your puppy eats right.

5. Take your puppy for a walk and make sure he pees again

Immediately after you’ve finished your breakfast, you’ll want to take your puppy outside. A puppy’s body processes food pretty quickly, so he’s going to need to do his business soon after eating.

This is a good opportunity to take your puppy for a walk. So how long can a pup walk?

Puppies should be walked around 5 minutes per month of age. So if you have a 3-month old puppy, you’d walk him for around 15 minutes.

During your walk, make sure that your puppy pees again so you don’t have to worry about any accidents later!

6. Put your puppy in a crate

Walking your puppy will help to tire him out and keep him relaxed during the day while you’re gone.

Once you’re back inside from your walk, it’s about time to get your puppy settled in his crate.

Crate training is a really great way to keep your puppy safe while you’re gone. Check out these related articles for some more info on the process with your puppy:

• What’s a Good Crate Training Schedule for a Puppy?
• When to Stop Crate Training a Puppy
• Help, My Puppy Hates His Crate!

7. Feed him or give him a chewy in the crate

One of the most important things you can do for your puppy is teach him to love his crate. You can do this by helping him associate his crate with positive things.

Giving him something tasty to munch or chew on while he’s in his crate will do this. It will also help to keep him relaxed while you’re away.

8. Close the door and immediately leave for work

Just like adult dogs, puppies might start getting anxious if they can still hear you moving around the house once they’re in their crates.

This is why you’re going to want to leave for work as soon as your puppy is settled in his crate.

Grab the things you’ve already prepared and head out the door right away!

9. Have someone take him out after a couple of hours

Puppies have very small bladders, so your puppy will probably need to do his business a few times while you’re away at work.

You can hire a dog walker to come take him outside for a couple of walks during the day. This will also help your puppy socialise, which is really important at this age.

Pre-work morning routine with a dog FAQ

Now that you have a clear idea of what your dog’s or puppy’s pre-work morning routine should look like, you might still have some additional questions.

Here are some answers!

What should I do with my dog first thing in the morning?

If you’re getting ready for work, there are a few things that you’re going to want to do for your dog.

But the very first thing you should be doing with your dog is taking him outside.

When you wake up in the morning, you usually go to the bathroom first. Your dog needs to do the same!

So make sure that you’re letting your dog out first thing in the morning. Once you’ve done that, you can move on to the rest of your routine.

How to tire out a dog before work?

Tiring out your dog before work will help him stay relaxed while you’re gone. You might have heard the saying “a tired dog is a happy dog” before. This saying means that a dog getting a healthy amount of exercise will be calm and well-behaved.

But it can be pretty hard to tire out a dog effectively before you go to work. There’s so much you need to do to prepare, both for yourself and your dog!

Luckily, there are plenty of great ways to tire out your dog before you head out. Walking is one way you can help your dog relax before you leave for work.

But if you’re short on time, there are some other things you can do. Try these 11 tips to tire out a dog (quickly). Note that mental exercise often tires out dogs more quickly than physical activity!

Mental stimulation can also be a wonderful training tool if used correctly. Check out Braintrainingfordogs to learn how to train your dog to be the best dog he can be by using mental stimulation! Or have a look at Dogpackr’s review first to see if it’s a fit for you and your dog!

What’s the best dog night routine?

Just like your dog will thrive on a pre-work routine in the morning, they’ll love having a solid nighttime routine.

Try to exercise him earlier in the day so he doesn’t have too much pent-up energy when it’s time to lie down for bed. Let him outside to do his business right before you go to bed so he won’t need to go during the night.

Some quality snuggling time is always a great way to wind down at the end of the day. When it’s time to sleep, make sure you’re providing your puppy with a comfy place to lie down.

Conclusion

Your job is important. It’s what allows you to feed and house yourself and your dog! Unfortunately, your dog might not understand that.

You can help make the process of leaving for work easier on your dog by following the above tips.