People leaving dogs at home while they are at work

[Sparkles57]

AIBU to find it appalling when people go to work all day and leave their dogs home alone?

I have two and work full time and I spend a small fortune on daycare for them through the week. If I’m out at the weekend I’ll leave them for 5 hours max, any longer and I’ll pay someone to drop in and let them out etc.

I’ve noticed lately from people talking at work it seems to be the norm for people to just leave their dogs in the house when they’re at work! 10 hours alone seems really cruel to me, so I’m really surprised by the blasé attitude a lot of people seem to have to it.

On the other hand, mine are kept downstairs at night so they are on their own for a good 9 hours whilst I’m in bed, so maybe I’m just being a judgey bastard?

@Toughtips I think thou doth protest too much. YABU and you know it

We have a 6 month old puppy and have only recently started leaving him for a couple of hours, he seems to take it as an opportunity to sleep.

My dads dog is 9 yo and can be left all day (he hardly ever is) he just sleeps, if you come back to check on him he isn't that bothered.

My friend did point out that you do risk kidney failure in dogs who have to hold their bladders for hours on end though.

My aim is to not leave our dog for more than 3-4 hours max.

The dogs trust in my area do allow working families to adopt as long as they have arrangements in place such as a dog walker so it's not true to say that rescue centres will not allow working families to adopt.

The individual dog definitely affects how long they can be left.. high energy high anxiety breeds like collies and huskies can’t be left as long.

My 3 are as energetic as dust bunnies. But I worked nights (or half days) until mat leave. So they went to bed at most an hour earlier than usual.. by went to bed I mean I remove food dishes and turn lights off... and wake up earlier the next morning. Over the years I’ve left my laptop webcam on record, figured out how to do auto answer on webcam and eventually got a WiFi camera thing with night vision, which was set to alert me to any noise. So I know for a fact they slept and didn’t drive my neighbours insane and that they were safe too (after the great bird saga of ‘17).

Locally we don’t have a doggy day care, and there’s one dog walker.. who doesn’t do empty house pick ups, won’t take dogs that can’t be walked as a group or are too frail/small for her routes.. Mine are too small for as long of a walk and wouldn’t do a group walk and obviously if I worked days or wanted to sleep through the walk when I was nights I’d have expected her to come and get the dog without me handing over. She obviously has a large enough clientele from elderly people/people who wfh that she doesn’t need to take on clients that aren’t perfectly suited to her routine.

I am a volunteer dog walker.
The dogs are alone in a concrete cell with no stimulation for 23 out of 24 hours, 7 days a week. Heartbreaking.
How is that better than being left in a loving home for 8 hours a day ( and probably only 5 days a week) ?

Meadowland, how dare you share your experience and talk sense, on a thread where people are determined to be ludicrous and higher than thou.

You are right, it is awful to think of all these dogs in kennels. You are doing a wonderful thing.

@Bodyposiftw. Thank you.
And can I ask anyone with a few spare hours to think about volunteering too. The dogs need it so much.
And it is very rewarding (and great exercise!).

Yep, whereas every year, people who love the cold and rain and murk really get their 6 month fix.

Winter is so much harder when you don’t have a decent summer. I remember putting my heating on in August.

Whoops wrong thread 😣

I'm amazed so many people have dogs, when you think of how few actually give any thought to this. Hence all the poor folks driven mad by neighbours' barking dogs, whether inside or out. I've moved more than once because of twattish people who did this. They did not understand or care in the slightest. But really, Doggy Day Care - FFS! How did people manage before?