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Can Shih Tzu Be Left Alone? Can you train it to be alone? A full guide 2022

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Can Shih Tzu Be Left Alone?

You can leave Shih Tzu alone for a short period but not for too long. Shih Tzu is a socially friendly family that loves being around people. Similarly, you also want to spend much of your time with your little friend, who also wants the same.

Leaving them alone for too long won’t be good practice. If left unattended, they feel like they are out-circled and ignored. And, If Shih Tzu is left alone for a long time, they can face severe mental and physical health problems.

If you give your Shih Tzu proper training, make their home space comfortable, and keep them distracted and engaged, you can surely leave your Shih Tzu home for a few hours and do your chores. With adequate bonding and training, you can leave your Shih Tzu for 4-8 hours a day without an attendant.

Want to know how you can train and leave your Shih Tzu at home for hours? So, please stick with us till the end of today. We will be discussing how long can a Shih Tzu be left alone. What effects are caused when Shih Tzu are left alone, and what differences can practical training bring?

Can Shih Tzu Be Left Alone?

No, Shih Tzu is a highly social and friendly dog. They love being around people. When left alone for an extended period, They can develop separation anxiety and other behavioral issues.

To overcome this, you can take your Shih Tzu to work with yourself or stay at home for a day, but this is not the permanent solution. You do have to teach and train your Shih Tzu to live alone. You must train him in a way that he behaves appropriately and adequately while left alone.

If you leave your dog home alone without giving him proper training, it might be possible that he gets stressed, becomes anxious, or, at his worst, can also cause destruction. It’s always necessary to teach and train your Shih Tzu.

How Long Can A Shih Tzu Be Left Alone?

How Long Can A Shih Tzu Be Left Alone?
How Long Can A Shih Tzu Be Left Alone?

If your Shih Tzu is trained and much more sensible, leaving him alone at home won’t be a big deal for him. Unless you leave the house for around 2-6 hours, excess above that can leave him anxious and stressed.

So, there is always a safer limit for leaving a Shih Tzu alone afterward. It’s necessary to accompany him for better bonding and relationship.

How long a Shih Tzu can be left alone depends on his age. Below, we discussed Shih Tzu’s positive balance of time for their respective ages to give it a read.

Puppy Shih Tzu (Below 1 Year of Age)

A puppy Shih Tzu who has age under and equal to one year shouldn’t be left home alone for more than 2 hours convectively. Above this time can cause issues of elimination and appetite. They can also develop separation anxiety and hate for their owner.

Adult Shih Tzu (1-8 Years of Age)

Adult Shih Tzu is more energetic and needs less supervision than those pups. So, on average, an adult Shih Tzu shouldn’t be left alone for more than 4-6 hours a day. It will have adverse effects on the behavior of Shih Tzu.

Elderly/Senior Shih Tzu (8+ Years of Age)

Some people believe that older Shih Tzu can be easily left at home as they are mature and have low energy levels, so they will enjoy getting rest. These are all myths; likewise, puppy Shih Tzu and the elderly Shih Tzu deserve extensive care and support.

They want more and more attention and time from their owner. For the sake of simplicity, you shouldn’t leave home alone an elder Shih Tzu for more than 2-5 hours a day.

Female Pregnant Shih Tzu (Especially those in End Birth Stages)

You should never leave Female Shih Tzu, especially pregnant Shih Tzu alone without an attendant. Leaving them home alone can put both the Shih Tzu and the upcoming little friend’s life in danger.

So, try to be responsible and responsive for female pregnant Shih Tzu. If you have some important tasks to do and leaving home is the last option, take your Shih Tzu to a friend’s house or hire a friend as an attendant until you return.

Can a Shih Tzu be Left Alone For A Whole Day?

Can a Shih Tzu be Left Alone For A Whole Day

Leaving your dog home alone for a whole day would mean depriving your pet of your attention, love, and sympathy, which is an unacceptable practice.

Dogs, especially like Shih Tzu, are social animals, are very friendly, and enjoy being around people they love to play and interact with.

So, if you have decided to leave your Shih Tzu home alone for a whole day, you are doing a cruel practice. It is unacceptable and not recommended to leave your Shih Tzu home alone for an entire day.

Doing so will have many adverse effects on your Shih Tzu’s health. He might develop separation anxiety and degradation in his mental and physical health. They can end up being stressed and destructive.

Effects of Leaving Your Shih Tzu Home Alone for Too Long?

Dogs are social animals. They love to interact, communicate, and play with others around. If their need are not complete, they will become destructive and might cause harm to the household and even themselves.

Several effects arise if you leave your Shih Tzu home alone for too long. A few of the most important and most concerned are below.

Extreme Barking, Crying, and Unnecessary Howling Issues:

Separation anxiety and loneliness can mentally disturb your Shih Tzu. As a result, he would try to express this frustration by barking out louder, crying, and howling all day. As you would be at the office or work, you won’t notice it, but your neighbors will complain to you about it.

Bathroom and Elimination Problems:

Usually, pups go for nature’s call under the supervision of their owners, and at that time, the elimination is done without any stress. But when you leave your pup home alone, he would defiantly house break.

Mostly Puppies and older Shih Tzu can’t hold much bladder, but an adult will have longer than them, and if you arrive home within 3-5 hours, then the first thing to do is to take them for elimination. Leaving your Shih Tzu for too long at home will surprise you with a mess, and you must clean it up.

Feed Needs and Appetite Problems:

Small Shih Tzu and adult ones have a high energy level, so it can make them hungry when you aren’t at home for too long.

If they don’t find anything to eat within their vicinity, they will crash into your fridge and kitchen, so make sure to feed them before leaving and after r entering the room.

Well, we will discuss these processes in detail in the training section and share some secret hacks with you, so stay tuned.

Door and Wall Scratching:

If you leave your dog locked in a room or a small apartment for too long, they will interpret that they are getting punished, so that’s why they are closed.

So, to escape this prison cell, they will make each attempt. Like they will start scratching the door and walls to escape. Scratching the door and walls can also happen to release frustration.

Chewing Household and Damaging the Furniture:

The last and most unliked effect is harming the furniture and chewing and slubbing each household they reach. It also happens by leaving your Shih Tzu home alone for too long.

How To Train Your Shih Tzu to Be Left Alone?

How To Train Your Shih Tzu to Be Left Alone?

There is always a go-through to each problem, so if you observe excessive issues and effects whenever you leave your Shih Tzu home, you can move forward and keep reading. Proper practical training for living at home alone can be the perfect solution.

We are sharing some training strategies you can adopt to make your Shih Tzu familiar with living happily alone at home.

By following these strategies and practicing this training, we are sure that you can quickly leave your Shih Tzu at home and carry out your tasks easily and securely.

Note here these will only help in leaving your Shih Tzu home alone for around 4-8 hours, which would have harmful effects on the health of your Shih Tzu.

So, with no further due, let’s start with the tips.

Practicing Him That He is an Indoor Dog;

The most effective strategy you can follow to keep your Shih Tzu home alone for a long is to let him understand that he is a compact indoor lapdog. Whose sole purpose is to stay inside the home mainly. This approach will let him stick to the indoors.

You can practice this by taking your Shih Tzu outdoors for a few moments on a rainy day; eventually, we will try to move in.

Making Up There Space:

Once you successfully restrict your Shih Tzu indoors, the next step is to make him feel comfortable inside by providing him with all his wants and his needs accessible to him.

Designate a particular area of your home, especially for your Shih Tzu. His indoor room should carry the following things:

Food: A food spot should be present where he can quickly get his meal and drinks. You must make sure not to feed him with excessive treats, but a balanced diet is best.

A Designated Elimination Area: You can set up an Indoor elimination area by placing newspaper in a corner or buying a specific poop litter for your dog. It should be in one corner such that its odor won’t surround the whole room.

A Comfortable, Comfy Sleep Zone: Placing a small dog blanket on a comfy couch will help them feel secure and safe. They can spend most of their time doing rest getting up, all energetic to greet their owner.

Placing Toys and adding other Amenities; You can lavish and transform the look of your Shih Tzu personal space by adding colors to the walls and ceiling. You can place some toys with the play that your dog can spend most of his valuable time with.

Experimenting To See Through a Window:

Remove all the outdoor stimuli from your dog’s space. There shouldn’t be any window or door panel to let him visualize the outworld as it will provoke and trigger his barking response.

Essential Checks To Consider Before Leaving Home:

Always try to spend as much time as you can when you are at home. Before leaving, take your dog for a gentle walk and then take him to the waiting space you made in the above step.

Now don’t leave him directly and not tell him goodbye. Distract him by feeding him a treat or giving him a toy to play with. After you distract him, you could silently leave the house.

Also, ensure that you have filled the food compartment with excessive feed that can last till you return home.

Essential Checks To Consider After Entering Home:

Arrive back towards him peacefully with calmly. Don’t be overwhelmed or over-excited, as it will provoke the dogs’ sentiments, and they will start realizing that the owner came home after too long.

After arriving, refill the food, clean the elimination zone and take your dog for a short walk afterward; try to spend the rest of your day with him.

Praising Him With a Treat and A Gift

A positive reinforcement overruled by praise and reward will encourage your dog to adopt the new training. So don’t be much meager. Always treat it for its excellent behavior and obedience.

Final Words

Shih Tzu is a very social and adoptive dog breed. You can leave them alone at home for a few hours easily, but the excess will require practical training and some prearrangements like setting up a comfortable space for them and keeping them engaged the whole time.

Well, this doesn’t mean that with these training tactics, you can leave your Shih Tzu home alone for the entire day. Leaving Shih Tzu home alone for the whole day can make him destructive and affect his mental and physical health, eventually decreasing his life span.

Well, that was all from our side. Can a Shih Tzu be left alone? If you have any queries, you can reach out to us. We would love to hear from you.

Joel

I am the owner of Shihtzuadvice.com and the proud parent of two black and one gold Shih Tzu's. I belive that the Shih Tzu is the best all-around dog for anyone and want to share with you as much valuable knowledge as possible about this great breed!

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