I have a full time job, and I have
dogs. I'm starting to feel like I will be hauled out and shot at dawn
any day now. According to many people who have never met my dogs, my
dogs are neglected, under-stimulated, under-exercised, unloved and
miserable, and I am selfish for keeping them. I have lost count of the
number of times a variation on this has been said to me by a visitor to
the centre, on the phone, or even during a homecheck, usually just a
few minutes after asking in passing if I have any dogs of my own - who
are home alone at that very moment!
I would say my dogs are content, fit, active, fed a good diet, walked, played with, trained, groomed, cared for, and better off than many dogs. Yes of course I would love to spend all day with them, but my employment has paid for their care and provided a roof over their heads since I first got Toby!
Ironically enough I am hearing more and more about rescues who will not rehome to people who work, not just full time, but anything over a couple of hours per day. As I work for a rescue, and many of my colleagues also have dogs, I am continually defending rescues who home to full time workers, and trying to convince full time workers it is possible to rehome a dog, after they have been turned down elsewhere.
I have homed many dogs to people who work - it would be incredibly hypocritical of me to refuse to do so, when my own dogs have all been rescues. It is not the right setup for all dogs, but I have homed dogs to be left all day, if the dog is suitable and the people are prepared to put some effort into getting the dog happy to be left. Many dogs are quite content to spend some time alone - I go home for lunch, but my dogs sometimes give the impression that they get up to greet me just to be polite. They are certainly not pacing, howling, trying to chew their way out, or desperate to relieve themselves.
Do I sound defensive? Probably I do, I go to great lengths for my dogs, our days are planned around them, when I am not working I am with them, we bought a van to take them places in comfort and safety, we spend a lot of money on their care, half my bookshelf is devoted to understanding them better, our holidays include them, even our wedding and honeymoon had to be suitable for the dogs. For anyone to question my commitment to doing my best for them, yes that hurts a bit.
There are thousands of dogs owned by people who work full time, and most of those are happy, well adjusted, healthy, fit and loved, and in fact I see many of them each week at training classes, and in the summer at agility shows. Those dogs don't have a bad life at all, there are far worse fates for a dog than being home alone for a few hours while your owner earns the money to feed you.
I would say my dogs are content, fit, active, fed a good diet, walked, played with, trained, groomed, cared for, and better off than many dogs. Yes of course I would love to spend all day with them, but my employment has paid for their care and provided a roof over their heads since I first got Toby!
Ironically enough I am hearing more and more about rescues who will not rehome to people who work, not just full time, but anything over a couple of hours per day. As I work for a rescue, and many of my colleagues also have dogs, I am continually defending rescues who home to full time workers, and trying to convince full time workers it is possible to rehome a dog, after they have been turned down elsewhere.
I have homed many dogs to people who work - it would be incredibly hypocritical of me to refuse to do so, when my own dogs have all been rescues. It is not the right setup for all dogs, but I have homed dogs to be left all day, if the dog is suitable and the people are prepared to put some effort into getting the dog happy to be left. Many dogs are quite content to spend some time alone - I go home for lunch, but my dogs sometimes give the impression that they get up to greet me just to be polite. They are certainly not pacing, howling, trying to chew their way out, or desperate to relieve themselves.
Do I sound defensive? Probably I do, I go to great lengths for my dogs, our days are planned around them, when I am not working I am with them, we bought a van to take them places in comfort and safety, we spend a lot of money on their care, half my bookshelf is devoted to understanding them better, our holidays include them, even our wedding and honeymoon had to be suitable for the dogs. For anyone to question my commitment to doing my best for them, yes that hurts a bit.
There are thousands of dogs owned by people who work full time, and most of those are happy, well adjusted, healthy, fit and loved, and in fact I see many of them each week at training classes, and in the summer at agility shows. Those dogs don't have a bad life at all, there are far worse fates for a dog than being home alone for a few hours while your owner earns the money to feed you.
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