AIBU To Take 2 days Annual Leave for dog getting neutered

But annual leave is there as part of your contract - it's not for your manager to determine whether or not your reason for taking it is 'good enough'. Fancying a couple of days binge-watching Netflix and eating chocolate is 'good enough'.

It isn't a ridiculous use of AL you have a life outside of work and you have a pet who us having an operation and needs looked after, isn't AL yours to take as and when you need. I don't know what that poster was talking about.

Exactly. It wouldn’t matter if she was taking a week off to scratch her bum!

But people only have a finite amount of AL and the OP doesn't seem to be suggesting they're going to take extra leave for this, just that they'll use some of their AL allowance to look after their dog. What difference does it make if staff use their allowance to go on holiday, paint the house, look after pets, sit on the sofa watching trashy TV? As long as it meets the usual criteria for AL being approved (not leaving the place short-staffed etc) then I don't see why it's anything to do with the employer.

If anything, it's better that the OP takes the time off to focus on looking after her pet instead of doing a half-arsed job and/or trying to leave early because they're distracted.

Annual leave is for whatever you want it for.

I’m a manager and I never ask my team what they’re taking time off for. It often comes up in conversation though, but I honestly am not bothered what they are doing! I might ask if they’re going somewhere nice if they take a week or more but that’s all.

I would also take leave to look after my dog.

I suppose the manager might want to know about why because it is quite short notice. If the shifts were going be hard to cover lots of other people were off already then they might take the reason for the annual leave into consideration as to whether to grant it or not.. but generally annual leave is for whatever you like and if it’s not difficult to cover your work, then the manager shouldn’t be concerned about why. Probably, from a business point of view, they shouldn’t be interested in why anyway and should just not grant it if the shifts are going be difficult to cover no matter what reason you want to have the leave but that feels a bit mean to me.

You’re entitled to paid leave and can take it for whatever reason you like. I don’t understand why you are asking the question tbh.

If your colleague takes issue with you taking time off for this they are just weird.

Why would a manager need to know the reason for annual leave?

Tell her you just fancy it. Your AL is yours to do as you please. Why on earth are you getting yourself ties in knots about someone you work withs opinion

Not unreasonable, it's important for the dog and they need looking after.

But how would the manager know? I approve holidays of my team without giving them the third degree about why.

No one has ever asked me why I’m taking leave, unless it naturally comes up in conversation. You don’t need to justify yourself to your manager or colleague, and anyone who makes judgements, particularly managers, are a bit of a liability and require training. Are there any other issues in your workplace?

Do you ask your line reports why they are taking the annual leave they are legally entitled to? I sincerely hope not. It is nothing to do with you.

Or are you the manager from the thread a few weeks back who denied the request because the OP wasn't getting home until 10pm on Sunday?

What the fuck? Annual leave is taken for any reason and doesn’t need to be approved or even notified as to why. I never tell my boss why I’ve taken a day off, I just request it.

if you want to take annual leave to spend the day in bed, neuter your dog etc etc it makes no odds to anyone but you and on this occasion, your dog!

I’m mystified by this thread.

In my 45 years of working, I’ve never had to explain why I wanted to take my annual leave. Sure, someone might ask in passing “are you going away?”

Surely the norm is that you book your leave and that’s the end of it? Why would you need to explain further?

I also highly recommend surgical suits if your dog doesn’t like the cone of shame - she was much more comfy and it stopped her licking. The cone just came out at night when I couldn’t keep an eye on her.

Surgical suits are no good for boy dogs, the wound is too far back. OP if you have a large dog I would recommend an inflatable buster collar rather than the cones, they are lethal to human legs and anything else that gets in their way!

No one will be bothered. If the work is covered, no one cares, unless they are very unreasonable, in which they are in the wrong, not you. Your work won’t have a policy that A/L can only be used for things everyone deems reasonable! It’s yours to use however you like, provided there isn’t a business reason to decline the specific dates (like if your colleague was already off).

I don’t understand why you’re even thinking about this.

I don't understand why you're asking.

When I was in a job with AL, it didn't ever occur to me to consider whether my manager would think my reason was appropriate or not.

I was never asked for a reason and never gave one.

It's your time to take whenever you want for whatever reason you want.

The only time a manager will refuse it is on the grounds of staffing levels. Not whether they think it's a reasonable reason or not.

Well your dog will need someone with him for 24 hours at least as he'll be under the effects of a general anaesthetic.
My cat had surgery recently and she was out of it for 2 days with the anaesthetic/pain killers. I wouldn't have left her alone.
You can take annual leave for whatever reason you want, you don't have to even give a reason.

Are you serious? It’s none of her bosses business why she takes annual leave! You can take annual leave to spend the entire day on the sofa if you want! You must know that?

Why?

It’s no ones else’s business but yours why you take annual leave.

Op you can do what you want with annual leave. People can and will judge you for all sorts of things so try learn not to care. Personally yes I would take leave in this situation unless I could wfh. I would not care 2 hoots what my manager thought! When I’ve signed off leave as a manager I have not been in the slightest judgemental - people can live the lives they choose. You also do not need to give a reason for annual leave!