Is it Fair to Leave a Dog Alone All Day?

I guess I'm a bad "mom" haha. I wouldn't trust a stranger to come into my home to walk my dog, I don't have a friend/family member who can take time to walk my dog during the day and I don't have time unfortunately on my lunch break to come home to walk my dog. He is home in his kennel for 8 hrs a day while I'm at work. I do my best, which is get up early to make sure he has food if he's hungry. we go for a 30 min walk and we play ball in the morning before work. He's a small dog (shih-tzu cross), he's in a bigger kennel with room to stretch out, he has lots of toys and chew things and water. When I come home we go for another 30 min walk, he gets fed and we play periodically throughout the evening before bed. I often feel guilty for leaving him for so long but as far as I can tell he's a happy puppy and could do a lot worse than me haha.

I try to get home each day and walk my dog, Riley, at lunch. As an attorney, this doesn't always happen, so if it is right after work, I make sure to give her an extra long walk and extra attention. And I reward the puppy pads so she knows that if I don't get home at lunch, she won't get in trouble;). The system seems to work for us.

Dogs don't have the same sense of time as we do. Dogs know when you're gone, but can't tell the difference between five minutes and five hours. It's all about training. No "friendly neighbor" or "dog sitter" is needed otherwise.........