How do I use camera footage to plan alone time training?

Watch footage from a slightly longer absence than the dog has clearly mastered, and note the exact point where calm behavior shifts into pacing, vocalizing, or other stress signs. This threshold, not a preset schedule, should drive how quickly you extend duration going forward.

If distress consistently starts around 20 minutes, set the next several sessions at 15 minutes, well under that threshold, and only push toward 20 and beyond once multiple sessions at 15 minutes show genuinely calm, settled behavior throughout.

Keep a simple log noting the date, duration, and what the footage showed, since patterns become much clearer over 2 to 3 weeks of entries than they do from comparing just two or three isolated sessions.

A single unusually calm session at a new, longer duration can be tempting to treat as proof the dog is ready to move on, but footage based planning works best when a new length is confirmed across at least 2 or 3 separate sessions on different days, since one off good days happen for reasons unrelated to genuine readiness, such as the dog simply being more tired than usual that particular morning. A log that includes a note on recent exercise, weather, or anything unusual about the day helps you spot these confounding factors rather than mistaking a lucky day for a genuine milestone.