[Static'sMum]

Hi Brad,

I too live in Perth and have an 17 month old male Rottweiler, Static.
When we first got him, we took time off work (three weeks in total between my partner and myself). As he was quite small and slept most of the time, we kept him in the bathroom when we weren't home (we don't crate him at all - i know this upsets some people).
My partner is at work from 0615 until 1630 every day. My shifts vary from 0630 - 1730, and 1215 - 2200. When we are at home, he is generally inside (unless we are eating, as although he is well behaved, he cannot control his drooling AT ALL!)
When we are at work, he is outside in the yard. Our yard is not very large (we have a stand alone duplex) -he has a small grassed area which he uses for his toileting, and we have garden beds and paving. He has a kennel with a large cushioned bed in it if it gets cold, he has a hammock bed to lie on if he is warm - and both are under our new patio so he can't get wet if it rains.
I know people have said that NO puppy should be left outside alone as they can get into a lot of trouble, but we had no problems. We made sure that there was nothing hazardous around for him to eat. We bought him many toys ranging from squeaky balls/boots, tyre, rubber ring, dental kong, regular kong, and cause it was hot, we used to freeze big ice blocks for him to lick - beef/chicken stock flavoured was a huge hit!
I know that there are more hazards outside than inside in a crate, but until i had seen this site, I had never heard of crating animals. Static got through puppyhood fine. Our garden was demolished, but thats life.
We live across the road from a park, so he gets plenty of exercise ( he enjoys playing fetch)
When he was a pup, we scheduled our shifts so that he was fed four times a day up until four months, then three times, and now he has breakfast at around 0600 and dinner at around 1900.

Ultimately all the decisions are up to you. I know you said that you weren't sure if a puppy was right for you - but honestly you find the time. you make the effort.
I originally wanted to get two puppies from the same litter when we got Static - THANK GOD I DIDN'T! Two puppies would have killed us.
But the cleaning up poop and pee, the original issues with biting and barking, the hair in the house, the drool everywhere, the farting (canned food doesnt agree with our boy) it was all worth it, and for Static I would do anything.

Good luck with whatever choice you make!