want a dog - should I?

doubtfir3

I've been thinking for a long time about getting a dog but have kept away from the idea as I'm living in an apartment at the moment.

My house will be ready in Sept and am seriously thinking about getting a dog at that stage, but wanted to get other people's opinions...

I work 5 days a week, and am usually gone from 8am to 7pm. Since I live alone I wanted to get a dog for company and also to get me out of the house in the evenings and of course at weekends.

The question is whether it would be fair to the dog or not... I love dogs but would not like them to be miserable.

My plan would be to take the dog out in the morning, and again at lunch (I will be living about 5min from work) and once again when i get home in the evening and also go for a long walk in the morning/evening. I may also start working 1-2 days from home.

The question is whether or not the dog could have a happy existence in an environment such as this, and also I would appreciate if people could give advice on a breed (generally) who is more likely to be content with this 'arrangement'.

I have grown up with a Cavalier King Charles so know for example that they would not be suitable for me since they love and need human contact so much.

Thanks!

Glowing

I know it might not sound like the obvious choice - but a greyhound I think might suit you. They're very calm, like to sleep a lot and they love routine - but i'd be concerned about leaving a dog if there was a chance of you not getting home at lunch to let him out/feed him etc - thats a long lonely day for him in that case.

Its not the ideal situation, but if you had a neighbour who could be a backup in case of you not getting back, then it might work out okay.

Would you have to keep the dog indoors while you're away? Greyhounds need warmth and wouldn't cope outdoors for long periods.

julesrtc

I personally would not get a dog if i was working those hours. Its fine saying you will get up in morning, and come home at lunch and go for long walk in evenings but thats not going to happen every day. You have a life also so wont be able to do this, therefore they could be stuck on apartment for 12 hours on a go, not good as probably waiting to go to toilet outside.

I actually found a puppy 3 years ago. We both work 9 - 5 mon - fri so werent going to keep him but couldnt get rid of him. We have an enclosed garden so he is out there when we arent home.
My husband walks him every morning(leaves later than me in morning) and my mother calls every day at 1:30 and either brings him for a walk or brings him home. If we go out for a night she takes him, he is worse than a child.
All dogs want human contact and will howl or bark if gets lonely and if in apartment neighbours will complain.
Saying that maybe if u got 2 small dogs or dog and cat, they might keep each other company. We have a cat also and she wants human contact moreso than the dog!!

Hard decision as i love dogs too but couldnt do it without my mother!!

cold_filter

julesrtc wrote:

I personally would not get a dog if i was working those hours. Its fine saying you will get up in morning, and come home at lunch and go for long walk in evenings but thats not going to happen every day. You have a life also so wont be able to do this,

Second this, a dog is a lot of effort you wont realise how much until you yourself are responsible for one. If you come home every day and walk him and feed him and do it in the evenings thats very good. But you wont do this every evening, maybe 2 of those little lapdogs to keep each other company?

Our man in Havana

I would say get 2 dogs as they will be company for each other - small to medium dogs will fine in fact most dogs will sleep a lot when owners are away.

doubtfir3

Thanks for the replies so far.

I will be moving into a house with a secure and enclosed back garden so could also consider using some form of 'cat flap' to allow the dog to get out as needed.

I would almost certainly get two dogs as I have always felt sorry for my CKC who I often thought would have loved a companion. He sleeps a lot when alone and has been very well looked after when I was younger and since is looked after by my parents primarilly and me when I'm home.

I have heard and read that it is not a good idea to get two dogs at the same time but rather leave a month or more between them to get them to bond with you rather than specifically with each other as a 'pack' - is this true?

The best idea for me would probably be to get two smaller dogs (lap dogs) for company for each other and also for me!

Does anyone have suggestions for specific breeds? Thanks Glowing, but I'm not really a fan of greyhounds.. I know there are plenty of retired racers out there who need good homes but I'm more into smaller dogs which I think are more suited to my circumstances.

2funki4wheelz

Hi doubtfir3, I think getting the 2 dogs at the same time will be ideal, they need to bond with you as a leader so one a time or separate doesn't matter as you're in charge!

I'd get some rescue puppies/v.young dogs, you should be able to judge their size and cross-breeds should be nice and hardy for the time they'll be alone. So called-lap dog breeds tend to need a lot of their owner's company and mightn't be ideal.

fits

I'm not sure if getting two dogs at the same time is a good idea. Unless they're already a bonded pair. I'm also not sure which breed would be best for you considering the length of time you'll be away... (you've discounted the easiest/most suitable breed imo)
Perhaps two older paired dogs? Like Rex and Suki on here http://www.cottagerescue.ie/page8.html

doubtfir3

fits wrote:

I'm not sure if getting two dogs at the same time is a good idea. Unless they're already a bonded pair. I'm also not sure which breed would be best for you considering the length of time you'll be away... (you've discounted the easiest/most suitable breed imo)
Perhaps two older paired dogs? Like Rex and Suki on here http://www.cottagerescue.ie/page8.html

Thanks fits,

I really like those dogs - they certainly look like a playful bunch!

I would tend to agree that I will need to get a pair, but will probably go with a bonded pair as you suggested. I like the idea of two dogs already being used to each other as it will reduce the likelihood of fighting or unhealthy competitiveness.

I'll be getting ready to move hopefully in September or perhaps October and will look at dogs then, but in the mean-time if Rex and Suzi are still available I'll certainly consider them!

Thanks for all the feedback everyone, I'm happy to hear that people are satisfied that I won't be unfair to the dogs by having them 'home alone' for a significant part of the day.

Enda
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Mawg

I think if you're living alone, it mightn't be the best idea to get a dog. Say if you wanted to go away for the weekend, or even on holidays, or just for a night, you'd have noone immediately availible to mind the dog. Unless you have a neighbour or friend who's willing to take the dog when the occasion arises for you to be away from home, I'd think twice about getting a dog. (I know kennels are available, but you generally have to book them a long time in advance, so it'd rule out any spontanios weekend road trips, or the like)

Assuming that you do have somewhere to leave them, another solution to a lonely mutt is to get two dogs instead of one, they'll keep each other company until you get home. If you're used to small breeds then two small dogs might be the answer. They won't take up as much space or eat as much as two big dogs.

As a matter of interest, what size will your garden be on your new house?

peasant

doubtfir3 wrote:

I'm happy to hear that people are satisfied that I won't be unfair to the dogs by having them 'home alone' for a significant part of the day.

Well ...not everyone is "satisfied".
But rather than typing an endless post (again), please find my opinion on the matter in THIS thread

doubtfir3

peasant wrote:

Well ...not everyone is "satisfied".

They did broadly seem to be until you gave your opinion.

Thank you though for the link. As with the OP in that thread, I have given careful consideration to many of the points mentioned, and have a few more to consider now.

I truly would love a dog/dogs, and feel that I would offer them a great lifestyle and loving home. I plan to change my working habits beginning to work from home a lot more in the coming 12 months.

Having said that, it may be worth putting the plan off for the moment - at least until I can confirm what will happen with my own working arrangements.

Thank you all for your feedback and suggestions - I'll consider it over the next few months.

Regards

Enda
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peasant

doubtfir3 wrote:

Having said that, it may be worth putting the plan off for the moment - at least until I can confirm what will happen with my own working arrangements.

That sounds like a very good idea.

So many dogs (and other pets) are aquired on a spur of the moment thing only to be disposed of again a few weeks/months later.

One less chance of that happening

DublinWriter

OP - you'll also have to consider issues regarding barking when you're not around out of consideration to your neighbours.

Basically, when you say dog, think toddler. Would you be happy to leave a toddler unattended for the times in which you state that you'll be away?

Personally I wouldn't be happy having a dog around unless there was someone around constantly in the daytime.

However, given our Celtic-Tiger both-parents-working kids-in-a-creche lifestyle, I think it may be a wee bit cruel in your part to expect an animal as emotionally dependant as a dog to fit around your work life.

Dogs are great and lovely, but given the amount of time you say you could spend with one, you might be best off getting either a cat or fish (but not both at the same time!).

sn00ps

I too agonized over this very question some 13 years ago! Having grown up around dogs all my life and having a normal suburban upbringing with both parents working I suddenly found myself thinking all the things you have been thinking. Is it selfish? Would the dog be a psycho? Would I feel guilty?

I was living in the UK at the time and breeders there are very particular about who they sell to so I was terrified about getting a dog in case I was accused of being cruel etc.

I too was working a normal job, close to home, and popping back at lunch time.

So, after nearly 3 years of agonising I found a no nonsense breeder who spelt it out for me in black and white.

I was looking to get a dog .. not have a baby .. not adopt a human being .. a dog! The dog would rely on me completely to teach it what was the norm and they would adapt to whatever my lifestyle was. As long as I showered it with love and attention, fed, watered and exercised him, I was crazy not to go ahead.

That very weekend I traveled some 100 miles to visit this woman and found my best canine friend Charlie, a 8 week old Golden Cocker Spaniel.

You may ask yourself did it all work out?

Oh yeah, this dog was with me for the next 10 years, through moving home to Ireland, three house moves, introducing a man into the house .. and all the other changes life throws at you .. he was amazing .. and she was right .. he adapted!

You can understand, that I say was as this amazing pooch departed this world a couple of months ago due to ill health.

I still miss him .. but next month we are traveling back to that wonderful breeder to get his cousin .. and start the fun all over again!

The only word of warning I would give you is realise that the first 6 months are going to be a nightmare! It is like having a baby. You need to be up during the night to let them out .. they can't hold on! They will pee everywhere, chew everything .. but believe me .. it is so worth it to come home after a lousy day at work to have that pooch lick you to death and remind you that you are the best thing in their life!!

Good luck with your choice. I think you are the only one who knows if its right for you ..

(sorry for the very long post but HTH)

peasant

sn00ps wrote:

.... I found a no nonsense breeder ...

Since when did selling a dog and making money NOT make sense to a breeder ?

It's just that there are SOME breeders out there that actually place the welfare of their dogs above making money, just not enough.


I don't doubt for a minute, that you had a great life with your dog ...because your dog was always there for you.

But what about the other way round?

corkimp

Unfortunately there are breeders out there who sell on the dogs not caring who is taking them once they get the money in their hands. But when you are going to look at a dog, make sure to see them in their home enviroment with mom and if possible, dad too. I asked my pups breeder everything from shots, registration, health, food being fed, where they slept, etc so brought across I had a good knowledge of dogs. She didn't try push the pup on me. On the phone she asked was it a male or female we wanted and when I said female, she had the 4 female pups of the litter out from the others for us to see. The boys were whining though in the back lol! I saw them interact, they came up to have a nose at us and we're loving the attention but more interested in playing with each other in the grass! It's helpful when the breeder understands that you'll loo after the pup and not give it up - explaining all the cons as well as the pros.
She is alone a good bit (when I was working - not at the moment) but she was played with, fed and watered - fresh water left out with small amount of food) and when we arrived home, she'd be at the gate waiting for us to greet her and run round to the back door wagging her tail barking til we go out. She has dug up the garden - but what dog doesn't! When I'm home, I go out play with her, walk her, bring her inside and let her lie on the rug next to me inside. She's the best thing in our lives - we probably won't have kids in the near future - if even! so she is our baby more or less now

sn00ps

Perhaps I should have been more specific.

My breeder was UK KC registered. I did see his mum .. and dad . she is a very well respected breeder in the UK and is well known for breeding Cockers in the area. I am an animal lover, hence my research into breed, temperment etc before choosing my Charlie.

And, yes, peasant, I was there for my baby .. through his 6 years of heart illness, the sitting up late while he was passing out ... the holding him when he didn't understand what was going on around him and finally when he was pst in my arms with his head soaked from my tears.

Please try and be sensitive when posting off the cuff comments. You have made a lot of asumptions in my post that weren't there ..

peasant

Snoops,

I understand that the subject is still raw with you, but that doesn't change the cold, hard facts. Just because you were happy when with your Charlie doesn't mean that the was happy all the time. Of course he would be delighted to see you and interact with you, but neither of us can say for sure that he also was happy and content when he was alone for long hours.

Given that uncertainty, I don't think that you can reasonably recommend that everybody who is in the same situation should go and get a dog, just because you loved your Charlie and he seemd happy whenever you were around.

Dogs are hard-wired for living in a group. Preferably a group of other dogs, but they will make do with human company. Leaving them without company for long periods every (working) day is not good for them. Some dogs can cope with this fairly well, others can't cope at all ...but no dog (given the ability to do so) would choose to spend long hours alone.

As for your "reputable" breeder: she was paying you lip service in order to make a sale. The fact that she sold you a dog that had a (most likely heredetary) heart desease doesn't make her any more "reputable".

We humans (and I explicitely include myself) like to look at things very much from our own perspective and even when we think we're neutral and objective, we still all too often use our human standards and ways of thinking to judge things.

A dog lives very much in the here and now. It can not think ahead and it can not rationalise things. It will feel loved when you are there loving it and it will feel abandoned when you're not.
It is not capable of understanding that you are only gone because you have to, so that you can afford to fill its bowl in the evening and to love it some more ...it'll just know that you left.
Over time it may get used to the routine that you come back every evening, but it may still spend large parts of the day worrying if you really are.

And then there is the other issue that something may happen to the dog while nobody is there to look after it.

No matter how many self proclaimed "animal lovers" or "reputable breeders" state that dogs have no problem staying alone for long hours and that their dog never hand any issues with it, it is my firm belief that if you could ask the dog, it would tell you otherwise.

As quite a few people (not just you, snoops) keep asking for "sensitivety" for their personal feelings when it comes to keeping dogs, I think it is only fair that someone posts every now and then and asks for sensitivety for the dogs and from the dogs' point of view.

palaver

I, too, advice against having a dog when you have to leave him alone all day or even almost all day and live on your own.

I'm fortunate enough to work from home, live in the middle of nowhere (well, almost) and have a huge enough garden. After my cat died I decided to get a dog, but only after discovering that the dogs of neighbours love to make themselves at home around my house or in my house. They felt lonely during the day or even at night :rolleyes: , and I was simply there just to play with them, cuddle them and simply be good company. It tought me a lesson about dogs: They absolutely need attention, always! But the visiting dogs eventually went home, so there was no responsibility. Like aunties, not moms .

Now with my doggie from the pound, who is the sweetest thing after a long time of patience and sometimes despair, I'm quite busy to keep her happy. Recently she found herself a boyfriend along the road we walk every day. He walks with us, comes back home for a proper chase on the lawn and now even waits in front of the door in the morning until we get up and out. And my dog is far more happy to have his company than mine, and the freedom to frolick with the little fella. Who is apparantly bored to death to be left alone all day.
Dogs need doggie company, too. Probably more than human company.

If you really want a pet, with your lifestyle, get a cat. Really. They look after themselves, and are happy to have you around a few moments a day - as long as you feed them. And they are as cute as any dog.

By the way: My late cat used to go walking with me. Not too far though ...:D

2funki4wheelz

I wouldn't recommend one dog on its own either.

We have 3 dogs and its true about dog company, I've often seen them playing their own games out the back if we're in the house and they don't know we're watching them, sometimes they do it front of us too, we're clearly not the be all and end all for them.
They have their routine, and no, we don't overcompensate with hyper-love when we're around at weekends.

We never even considered having one dog on its own as we are away during the working day and it's not ideal but life's not ideal, we'll be nearly dead by the time we can afford to spend all day at home. We're very lucky having neighbours around that are home all day that can help out if its needed.

peasant I understand your comments, they're textbook dog care, now that we understand dog behaviour and needs much better. The comment about the 'probably hereditary' heart illness is a bit of a low blow though, illnesses are a pot luck, there's certainly increased chances of certain ones with pedigrees but if said illness doesn't display til later in life the breeder may not have seen it present in mother/father if they were quite young. That's one reason I'm no fan of pedigrees.

And since Sn00p's Charlie is now dead, I don't see how speculation about how lonely/upset he may have been throughout his life is educational. Maybe it's more relevant about getting another single dog.

Demonique

fits wrote:

I'm not sure if getting two dogs at the same time is a good idea. Unless they're already a bonded pair.

Or two pups from the same litter?

fits

Demonique wrote:

Or two pups from the same litter?

Nope bad idea... One needs to be at home to raise pups.

Demonique

The animal that sounds like it would suit your situation best is a snake. They're perfectly happy been left on their own for hours on end and an adult cornsnake only needs to be fed once a week and only poos 1-2 times a week.

doubtfir3

Hi all, thanks so much for your responses. They are appreciated.

I had already got fish DublinWriter who are, I'm happy to say thriving for the last two years now in both tropical and coldwater tanks. Maybe I'll make an investment into a bigger/better tropical setup.

Demonique wrote:

The animal that sounds like it would suit your situation best is a snake. They're perfectly happy been left on their own for hours on end and an adult cornsnake only needs to be fed once a week and only poos 1-2 times a week.

I wish I could agree on that Demonique - but I'm MORBIDLY afraid of snakes.. I have a huge fear of them! Although, interestingly enough I've wanted for years to overcome this!

Thanks all again for your replies. I suppose I'll wait for the moment, and think wistfully of the dog I'll get in the future... Nintendogs only for the moment

Enda
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sn00ps

Perhaps I should have been clearer, I work from home most days. Have my mum close by for when we're not around.

When I first got Charlie I was working very close to home as the person who started this thread said they would be.

When I started off I took time off work to settle him in. Once he was starting to settle into a routine I started back to work half days gradually building it back up to working full time travelling home for lunch etc.

Obviously a dog is with you during many life changes and it is not always possible to predict where these changes will leave you with respect to your pal. But I can assure all my baby was first and foremost in my mind at all times! Especially when it came to moving a man in to the house .. that was fun :0)

I suppose the point I was trying to make in my original post (which obviously came out completely wrong!) was that it is possible to have a dog and work fulltime if you are prepared to put the work in and have a lot of help. I still believe this strongly. I compare this to the argument used by working versus stay at home mums. I don't expect everyone to agree with me. But it's a valid point of view.

I can say that this post has actually been very useful to us in that we have been considering getting the sister puppy too. The research I have read up until now has pointed us away from this choice due to potential difficulties with pack order and issues with training.

I'm still not too sure. Peasant I would be interested in your experiences and any potential pros and cons? We have the space and time and love ...


thanks .. and sorry for rambling

fits

Maybe you should start a new thread there snoops...

peasant

snoops

I have no real experience with raising sibling pups.

Our first dog was 18 months and quite a handful when we got him. Two years later we got another pup (12 weeks old) and he actually helped raise her ...show her the ropes kind of thing.

Yet another two years later we got our last addition, at that stage 4- 5 months old.

I'm happy to say that (except for short spats near the feeding bowl or around bones) we never had any hirarchy issues whatsoever and the dogs get along quite happily even though they are hugely different in character (or maybe because of that?)

What I DO know is that raising a pup is a large amount of work for the first few months and I wouldn't necessarily want to double that workload if I dindn't have to.

Personally I suspect (but don't know) that the "sibling rivalry theory" is rubbish and it all just depends on how well you manage to keep a lid on it (like you have to with any group of dogs) ...after all, how other than as siblings do dogs grow up when there are no humans around ...they don't all kill each other either, do they?

Still ...I wouldn't want two pups at the same time ...siblings or not.
Because if there's one thing that dogs pick up quicker than anything else, then it's the bad habits of another dog.
Raising and trainig two at the same time could turn out to be a very tiring experience, certainly a full-time job.

DublinWriter

2funki4wheelz wrote:

I wouldn't recommend one dog on its own either.

True. When my mum died last month, I was left to look after her dog and cat.

I'm normally away for 8 hours a day because of work and I can't leave the two together as the cat (Felix look-alike) isn't house trained but the dog (mischevious JackRussell) is.

It's a real shame as the two of them get on like a house on fire and were always used to keeping each other company.