golden retriever puppy

Question
We are thinking about getting a golden retriever puppy in the christmas holidays (2 weeks)
We can be home with it all to day housetrain it then, but we will also begin to leave it for small periods of time, gradually increasing them
after that we have to go back to work
we work 8:20-12:00, then we can come home for a lunch break, then we go back from 1:00-4:05
In the lunch break we can play, feed and walk the puppy (when its old enough)
On one day a week I have a day off (and I'm off at weekends)
We can get a crate and it will be allowed the run of our kitchen
before I go  each morning and as soon as I get back I can take it for a long walk/ play etc
Is this alright? can we leave the puppy this long without it getting really anxious or destructive? (we can leave toys with it too)
We could also hire a dog walker mid-morning
I'd really love a golden puppy, and will work so hard to make it the best dog
Thank you for you help
Charlie

Answer
I think that should work very well as long as you really can focus on the puppy and not let regular Christmas activities distract you.  It is very important to have somebody whose job it is to watch the puppy anytime it is out of the crate.  You need to watch it every moment, alert for signs it needs to go out.  Even when it is sleeping, you need to catch it when it wakes up and take it out.  

Be sure and get one that is only 7-8 weeks old.  No puppy should ever leave its mother and litter before 6 weeks.  They are a little more work at that age, but much quicker to accept their new life.  If a breeder insists on 12 weeks, go elsewhere.  That means they are ignorant of the studies showing puppies are slower to accept new experiences after 12 weeks, or have selfish reasons to disregard them.  

We have had to leave new, young puppies 4-5 hours at a time from the beginning many times.  It has always worked well for us, with no more than a few accidents in the crate.  What you are saying will be much better than what has worked well for us with many puppies.  Crate the puppy anytime nobody can watch it.  

It is best to take the puppy outside right form the first.  Just avoid areas frequented by dogs with unknown health.  The period between 6-12 weeks is a dangerous time.  One sniff where a sick dog relieved itself in the last 6 months can bring on parvo or another life threatening disease.  Fail to expose it to strangers, including men, women, children, noise, etc. and you could end up with a misfit you can't take out in public.  They also need continuing contact with other dogs, but it must be limited to ones you know are getting good care.