I have a somewhat similar situation. Jax is about 4 1/2 months old and does fine alone at night when he is confined in the kitchen to sleep but other than that, he HATES to be alone. He has only been left alone twice (confined in the kitchen area) for a couple hours and he went absolutely crazy...he hated it! He barked and whined, moved the pen all around the kitchen, tore up the pee pad into little pieces. We got him in June so the kids were home from school on summer break but they go back to school next week and I am worried about leaving Jax alone. I am planning on sending him to doggie daycare but it's expensive so I can only do once, maybe twice a week. Does anyone have any suggestions or tips on leaving puppies home alone? Do they get better at staying alone as they get older?