to be nervous about a dog coming to stay....

[Tootsieglitterballs]

Seriously - AIBU?

we have a dog coming to stay.

I'm not a dog person. I have a cat. I've never stayed in a house with a dog, let alone had one in my home!

It's coming to stay for a week, all very unexpected and last minute. It belongs to a relative. We couldn't say no.

I'm nervous, have no idea what to expect, I'm worried about stupid things like DS toys, I'm worried about the cat, about it whining all night.

[wigglebum84]

Are you looking after it or is its owner coming too?

[Whatdoidohelp]

Why can't it go into kennels?

[blackcatwhitewhiskers]

I give it two days before OP loses her heart

[Sparklingbrook]

I would be worried too. I would worry the cat might leave home.

Is there no alternative?

[MidnightVelvetthe5th]

It doesn't sound ideal for you, the dog or the cat tbh, have you considered kennels? How old is your ds, is he past the tail pulling stage?

[MiddleAgeMiddleEngland]

I would say that dogs are not allowed in my house. I really dislike the idea of them indoors.

Can it sleep in a warm shed or conservatory or something?

[Ihatefootball]

What do you mean you can't say no. You can indeed. You just haven't. I wouldn't and haven't allowed a dog to stay in my house. Just say no!

[Floralnomad]

Well I have a dog but I wouldn't have a dog to stay ,especially if I had a cat .

[MidnightVelvetthe5th]

Maybe the owner is going into hospital or something...

Do you know the dog well op? Is it well trained?

[Glassofwineneeded]

I allowed a dog to come with its owners to our bbq. It was awful - kept barking at the guinea pigs, and my poor cat took cover inside, under my bed!
I was too much of a soft touch to say no. But I would in future. It's your home, and you want your pets to feel safe there. I am sure there is someone else who could dog sit while your family stay with you.

[morningtoncrescent62]

Say no and blame it on the cat, OP. Just say your cat isn't used to dogs so your home isn't appropriate for doggy visitors.

[Sparklingbrook]

If there really was no alternative I would put Sparklingcat in the cattery for the week.

I would look after the dog but i wouldn't like it.

[WhoTheFuckIsSimon]

Your cat will probably refuse to come inside.

My cats left home for weeks when I first got a dog! They would only come in at night when then dog was upstairs.

[littleleftie]

Well I am a big dog lover, but if I was visiting someone who didn't want a dog in their home I would totally accept it.

Or do you mean the dog is coming without a person?

Why can't it go to kennels?

[RedOnHerHedd]

We have a house cat and we look after my cousins very very large dog for weeks at a time when they go on holiday.
I put a baby gate on the bottom of the stairs and the dog stays downstairs and the cat has all of the upstairs. We move the litter tray to upstairs and the dog sleeps in the utility room overnight. It works fine for us.

It's the dog smell that gets me more than anything else. My cat doesn't smell at all, so that's the only thing I dislike. But it's quite fun.

And they come and look after our cat when we go on holiday (even though my cousin and uncle are allergic to cats).

[lilypadpod]

This happened to me once, a relative insisted on bringing their boarder collie for a weekend. It was so smelly it made the whole house reek, left hair everywhere and chewed up my leather jacket It also weed on the living room carpet and growled at me when I tried to shoo it into the conservatory.
Never again!

Don't do it OP, if you're not comfortable tell the relative to put it in kennels. My home is a dog-free zone nowadays and I certainly don't want dogs slobbering over my son's toys!

[cosytoaster]

What breed of dog is it, how old and is it used to cats?

[CrushedNinjas]

Why can't it go into a boarding kennel just for the week?

I wouldn't agree to allowing a dog to stay in my house as I have cats and other pets that would be disturbed by the presence of a dog.

[Nandocushion]

Why would you agree to this when you have a cat? Poor cat.

[Tootsieglitterballs]

Thanks for your replies - glad to hear I'm not the only one who wouldn't normally allow it!

We do know the dog - he belongs to MIL, but she never brings him when she visits, and we tend to alternate who visits who as she's a couple of hours away.

Long story short - MIL is away visiting SIL abroad - dog was being looked after by someone else, but due an allergy they didn't realise their child had, we have been asked to sort it out.

We have no idea where his records are so I've been led to believe without them we can't put him into kennels - if it doesn't work out tonight, we will have to contact MIL.

He has arrived. Cat has been fine so far. She's a house cat, so if she gets upset, she will go under the bed for a while - that's what she did when we brought baby home a year ago.

[Tootsieglitterballs]

Sorry - forgot to add - dog does live with a cat and has done since they were both got 15 years ago.

[coffeeinaredmug]

I suspect a 15 year old dog will be little trouble.

[RitaVinTease]

If the dog has lived with a cat it will probably be fine.
I obedience train my dogs and we get invited twice (and not just to apologise the second time!)

[Meggymoodle]

We looked after a very old dog and we all wept when she had to leave us. It's totally different to having a puppy. He'll probably just sleep for the most part and will only need fairly short walks.

Good luck!

[Tootsieglitterballs]

So far so good

Cat has stayed out of the way, but come for lots of cuddles whilst dog was out (she doesn't hate me - yet!)

He's super energetic-goodness knows what a puppy would have been like.

Hasn't gone near DS toys yet

Very nervous about the night time still - wish me luck .