Are you Single + working + have dog... Advice wanted

Get two dogs instead?

Or perhaps employ a dog walker for lunch times... (will probably cost you £50 a week though).
 
Although I have a partner she is away on business lots and we have two dogs. I work an hour from home so coming home at lunchtime isn't an option.

However we have an acre of land and a dog flap so just leave one dog to it. The other rescue dog has separation issues and can't be left alone - she runs away and I used to collect her from the local garage every day where she sits under the desk and just says hello to everybody who comes into the petrol station.

Luckily for me I changed jobs around then and my new work place allows me to take my dog to work and she has a bed in the corner of my office.

Good for me as well as means I go for a long walk at lunchtime and stops me been lazy
 
Greebo said:
Although I have a partner she is away on business lots and we have two dogs. I work an hour from home so coming home at lunchtime isn't an option.

However we have an acre of land and a dog flap so just leave one dog to it. The other rescue dog has separation issues and can't be left alone - she runs away and I used to collect her from the local garage every day where she sits under the desk and just says hello to everybody who comes into the petrol station.

Luckily for me I changed jobs around then and my new work place allows me to take my dog to work and she has a bed in the corner of my office.

Good for me as well as means I go for a long walk at lunchtime and stops me been lazy
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That is awesome!
 
The obvious silly answer is get a Cat. :D

However, it is also a reasonably sensible answer too. (There is a reason why Cats have supplanted Dogs as the favourite pet and the problems of full time working families is a big part of it)

Having said that, If you really want a Dog but can tolerate Cats (which I appreciate not everybody can)

Get a Cat first, then after a year or so get the puppy of your choice. The Cat will let the Puppy know who is boss and ever afterwards they will be great friends (Which means that you will have less to worry about with leaving the dog alone all day)
 
I have a dog, single and work.

Alsation, lazy so and so, and humps anything what moves!
Have to warn people NOT to bend over, think of a fly on poo, yeah it is just like that. All the time. :p

Not a cat lover :(
 
We both work and we have a Rottweiler. He gets walked before work and again after work. He's alone all day, and for 95% of the time he lounges about sleeping - I've recorded him to check. If he does do anything it's chew on a bone for half an hour or something.

Rottweilers also get worn out by an energetic run off the lead which he gets twice a day usually so that helps.

I also have a Bengal cat, which for a cat behaves in quite a dog like manner. Worth considering?
 
I personally would get 2 dogs if you are out a lot. My wife is at home all day so our one dog has company throughout the day - even though for the most part all she wants to do is get comfy and snooze all day, she likes doing it snuggled near the wife so having the company matters.

When she goes to see her parents for 3 weeks in the year the dog is left alone for long periods of time everyday, to the untrained eye she seems same as normal upon my return, but she is definitely even more subdued than usual - as if trying to be extra quiet and 'not a bother' as if she fears the reason for me leaving all day is her fault.

Course, part of that will be the fact the dog is used to having someone around all day. Dogs like a routine and if they are used to the fact you are gone each day it won't likely be a problem.
I would still get 2 though, 2 smallish dogs to deal with - once you commit yourself to the inconvenience of dog ownership (walking in all weathers, worrying about where they go if you are away for a while etc.) the difference between one and 2 dogs is pretty negligible and the benefit of having dogs to keep each other company is well worth it.
 
Be warned though, if trying to adopt from the RSPCA, My friend went to adopt a dog and was declined, because they work full tiem monday to friday, and they felt it wasn't fair on the dog.

I'm thinking about getting my own dog, as my current housemate work's from home and I don't see us moving anytime soon - I hope. So It would be nice and I'd be able to get out and walk more
 
The dog will be lonely when we out for working.
They need us. If we you do not have enough to communicate or play with him/her, maybe it is not fair to him/her.
 
I have 2 dashchunds and I leave them both in the garden during the day. It seems to be the norm for this part of the world. I certainly wouldn't be too happy leaving them indoors during the day. They spend much of their time chasing lizards and other critters around the place. They have the carport for shade and plenty of water.

They probably only get taken to the beach for a walk once or twice a week
 
My old neighbours dog used to be left alone during the day - used to just sit by the windows barking.

Don't think its fair on the majority of dogs to leave them during the day.
 
Seems to be very much dog dependent as I thought.

Main problem would be getting it past the rescue centre and also finding the right dog.
I obviously don't want to have a dog that isn't happy.
Home is very lonely for me so kind of just want to find a way to make it work
 
I'm now single al4x said:
Seems to be very much dog dependent as I thought.

Main problem would be getting it past the rescue centre and also finding the right dog.
I obviously don't want to have a dog that isn't happy.
Home is very lonely for me so kind of just want to find a way to make it work
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As I think somebody else said, I have a couple of cats and one is a cross Bengal, it's amazing how much of a companion he is, he waits for me to get in every night and sits in a bay windows at the front of the house. He follows me around and even has his own little chair next to mine.

He is strangely dog like, so much so I have even been teaching him tricks. Certain breeds of cats are worth considering imo, it has to be said though I have a girl of the same breed, my chaps sister, and she is nothing like the boy.
 
asteldian said:
When she goes to see her parents for 3 weeks in the year the dog is left alone for long periods of time everyday, to the untrained eye she seems same as normal upon my return, but she is definitely even more subdued than usual - as if trying to be extra quiet and 'not a bother' as if she fears the reason for me leaving all day is her fault.

Course, part of that will be the fact the dog is used to having someone around all day. Dogs like a routine and if they are used to the fact you are gone each day it won't likely be a problem.
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Very much this - routine - which is why you should not get a rescue dog if you can't be there all the time, the poor thing has been abandoned once already!

Getting a puppy will mean you need to be there more in the first months (use up all your holiday to spread out your home time) but they'll not know any other way of life, they won't find it a worry that you go out in the day because they know nothing else and have no concept that you may not come back.
 

Although I absolutely agree a dog should not be left alone for extended periods, I cannot imagine anyone is surprised by this video. I mean, what else would a dog be doing besides waiting for its owner? Studying? Watching television? House chores?
 
I used to be self employed and working from home, so got a dog - but then ended up moving to the city and having a full time job, same as wife - and the dog was left at home all day, we set up a web cam and he was absolutely fine all day, just snoozing upside down on the couch most of the time!

but we found a website called "borrow my doggy" where you can list your dog and folk locally can offer to take them for walks and stuff - it worked out great, folk would come and take the dog in the morning and we'd pick him up at night and it costs nothing (well, you pay to register on the website) but much cheaper than a dog walker!
 
Dave M said:
My brother has a border collie, works early/late shifts and (very rarely) nights being out of the house for about 8.5 hours. I'm sure his dog enjoys it more when he's home all day but seems well adjusted and happy enough.

He doesn't come home at lunch, but fits in 3 walks a day and longer walks up into the hills on his days off. He locks him in his cage while at work or when he goes bed, from what I've seen he'll wander into his cage when bored even when people are around - a lot like that dog in the video had a space in the closet where he went to once he realised the humans had gone for a while. I imagine he sees his cage as 'his' space.
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Border Collies are one of the worst dogs to leave on their own apparently as they need constant stimulation and companionship due to their intelligence.

Your brother is lucky he has got his dog into this routine without his house being destroyed! I would imagine the three walks a day does help though because dogs will often sleep/rest during quiet times and then burn all their energy when they're out.
 
Dogs should not be left on their own all day - end of. Don't get a dog if you can't give it the stimulation and attention it needs.
 
we have a walker she charges £8 for 1 hour at around 1pm.

my SO works from home 2 days a week so it's a small price to pay to keep the dog stimulated and happy. Considering the alternatives ha.

I do have a boxer /lab cross though, don't get a boxer cross if you don't like long walks and playing with them a lot. She can go for hours totally rewarding though.
 
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