Living in an Apartment With a Dog, Floor by Floor
Beyond
The elevator is still on the ninth floor. The puppy has already started circling. Anyone living in an apartment with a dog learns the building fast: when the lobby is quiet, which neighbor steps back from paws, how long it really takes to get from the couch to the grass. None of that makes apartments a bad place for dogs. It makes them a different kind of work.
Is Apartment Living Right for Your Dog?
A yard isn't a requirement. A dog left alone in one tends to patrol the fence, while a dog without one gets walked because there is no other option. Energy usually matters more than size, and this guide to the best dog breeds for apartments covers which dogs settle best in close quarters.
Some dogs do struggle. A dog that has ever tried to bite someone is probably not a good fit for close quarters, and some rescue dogs have ended up rehomed to a house with a yard because they couldn't adjust. If you're unsure about yours, a professional assessment before you sign is worth the time.
Pet Policies to Check Before You Sign
Dog Size, Number and Breed Limits
Even pet-friendly rentals typically set limits. Weight caps of 50 and 25 pounds are the most common, and while an agent probably won't weigh your dog, they will check its vet records. Most buildings cap pets at two, and some, particularly larger company-managed complexes, restrict breeds. A puppy of unknown parentage may outgrow the limit, and a dog out of compliance could have to leave within 24 hours of notice.
Getting the Pet Policy in Writing
Ask for the pet policy in writing. An agent's word that a clause is never enforced doesn't change what you signed.
Leash and Potty Area Rules
Read the parts that shape an ordinary day: leash rules by location, designated potty areas, and places such as a shared laundry room or pool that pets can't use.
Potty Trips From an Upper Floor
A Strict Potty Schedule
In an apartment, potty training is more work. A strict schedule helps, with the leash, harness, treats, bags and your shoes ready by the door so you can take the dog straight out. Puppies often need to go at short notice, which is easy to forget when you're comparing floors.
Elevators, Stairs and Upper Floors
Before you commit to an upper floor, work out how long the elevator takes to arrive and what you'll do if it stops working. With no elevator at all, ask your vet whether your dog will manage the stairs.
Balcony Turf and Puppy Pads
Potty pads aren't generally recommended if the goal is a dog that goes outdoors. Some owners use balcony turf as a step, and it can carry over well to going outside; others keep a balcony "patio potty" only as a backup for emergencies, such as bad weather or the middle of the night.
Either way, use a balcony only if it is completely secure (more on that below), and pick up every time, including in the building's pet relief area. Learn early where your dog is allowed to go.
Exercise Without a Yard
How Much Exercise an Apartment Dog Needs
Most adult dogs do best with two or three outings a day, one of them a longer sniff walk, after which most are happy to lounge.
Sniff Walks for Mental Exercise
Not every minute has to be brisk. Sniffing counts as mental exercise: 20 minutes of nosing around can tire a dog as much as a brisk 40-minute walk. Quiet spots such as empty fields, or even parking lots, are good places for sniffing and decompressing.
Indoor Games for Rainy Days
Indoors, the ideas are simple: hallway walks, puppy push-ups, flirt poles, tug and hide-and-seek, scatter feeding and snuffle mats, rotating three or four toys a week, and a frozen stuffed Kong.
Barking, Thin Walls and Time Alone
Why Dogs Bark in Apartments
Barking is often the top worry for owners in apartments, and it helps to sort it by cause: alert barking at hallway sounds, boredom barking while you're out, demand barking while you're home.
For alert barking, try a white noise machine or fan, move the dog's resting spot away from the front door and any shared walls, and pair hallway sounds with treats. A baby gate that keeps the dog back from the door can help with watchdog barking. Punishment doesn't solve it: the cause stays, and anxiety-driven barking often gets worse.
Leaving Your Dog Home Alone
A dog alone for eight hours with nothing to do will find something, and barking is a common choice. Puzzle feeders, frozen Kongs and a midday walker all help. Separation distress is a different problem, though, and it needs a specific training protocol rather than more toys. Teach the dog to be relaxed alone, and keep day care or a dog walker in mind as alternatives.
Elevators, Hallways and Neighbors
Lobby and Hallway Manners
The goal is a dog that doesn't bark incessantly and is polite with people in the lobby, the elevator or on the stairs. Some neighbors are allergic to dogs or afraid of them, so it's always best to ask before your dog approaches someone, and to respect a no. Keep the leash short in hallways; if your dog reacts to other dogs, step into an alcove while the other dog passes.
Elevator Training, Step by Step
The elevator deserves its own training. Start with stepping in and out without riding, then short rides, then rides with other people and dogs, rewarding with a little of the daily kibble one calm step at a time.
A dog that growls, barks or lunges at others in the elevator may not be right for apartment living. For a reactive dog, the stairs are a workaround, because you can get out if you need to.
Crate Training for Maintenance Visits
Crate training is close to essential, because maintenance workers often need to enter the unit. Tell your neighbors about the dog as soon as you have permission for one, and keep the conversation going.
Setting Up a Small Space
A Dog Bed and Den of Its Own
Give the dog a place of its own, with a bed, toys, food and water. Many crate-trained dogs treat the crate as a safe space. Secured trash bins and washable rugs make the rest of the apartment easier to live with.
Dog-Proofing Hazards at Floor Level
Keep chocolate, xylitol and dried fruit out of reach, along with plastic bags, hair ties and socks.
High windows and balconies need thought: keep windows shut unless they lock slightly open, and it may be better to block a balcony that isn't completely secure.
Moving Into a Building With Your Dog
Before Moving Day
Expect the landlord to ask for vet records and possibly the dog's behavioral history, and answer honestly. If your dog will be riding elevators or passing other dogs in hallways for the first time, talk to a trainer ahead of the move.
Keeping Your Dog Safe on Moving Day
On moving day, doors stay propped open while furniture goes in and out. The safest plan is to keep the dog away for the day, with a boarding facility or a trusted friend, so it arrives once the furniture is in place and the doors are closed. If that isn't possible, give it one closed room with water and familiar bedding. The dog rides in your car, not the truck, and so does a box of its essentials: food for a few days, medications, bowls, a favorite toy, waste bags and a leash.
Green Moving, an Irvine-based moving company serving Los Angeles and Orange County, lists pets in its FAQ among the things it cannot transport, and its guide to moving with pets in Los Angeles recommends boarding the dog or leaving it with a friend for the day, with one closed room as the fallback.
Its Burbank page notes that apartment and condo moves come with building rules, such as fixed moving hours or an elevator or loading dock that has to be reserved, and asks customers to send them in with the date. If you're comparing Burbank moving companies, get your building's rules first, then plan the dog's walks around the hours the elevator is booked for the move.
Settling Your Dog Into the New Apartment
At the new place, a leashed walk before unloading begins lets the dog sniff around and get its bearings. Set up a home-base room with water, the bed and familiar things from the essentials box, and keep its door closed until the movers are done.
In the first week, walk the new neighborhood every day, find the building's relief area, and keep feeding, walking and bedtime on the old schedule. Some regression in house-training is normal and temporary.
After that, the habits travel with you: the walk schedule, the bed away from the door, the short leash in the hallway.
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