To think in MN land no one should have a dog?

[bluesapphirestars]

The only acceptable dog is a rescue, with a few exceptions, and rescues won’t rehome to people who WOTH or who have children, so that immediately rules most of mn out.

The only other acceptable alternative is to make the dog more than a pet, it’s a lifestyle, involving intensive breed research and so on. Again, not conducive to homes with children.

So in short - the verdict on MN is no dog.

(Semi light hearted!)

One of my work colleagues has two dogs who are his life. He uses a doggy daycare that seems to function the same as a childminder, in that he takes the dogs, in his car, to the dogminder on the way to work, drops them off for a day of doggy fun and picks them up on the way home.

I don't know why, but this actually blew my mind a little bit when he told me.

It seems to me that owning a dog involves much the same commitment as having a child and seems to be just about as expensive.

To use your favourite counter argument op; show me where I have implied someone is mentally ill because they disagree with me? You think "I should expect" to be called mentally ill, as an insult, because I wasn't naive enough in response to a thread which I found beyond distasteful? Again, this says a lot really.

Erm, the five or six paragraph post peppered with 🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂 and fucking, fucking, fucking?

That was me "implying you were mentally ill as an insult" was it?

Sorry if you're offended by the swearing btw. But since this is mumsnet and not nethuns, I believe swearing is fairly standard. And I would rather be a bit sweary than someone who A) thinks that people who have strong views on animal welfare issues are there to be mocked or B) uses mental illnessas an insult.

When I was a child we had a lovely dog, it stayed at home, we walked it every evening and fed it once a day and there was no drama. The hoops my friend had to jump through to get a rescue dog were unbelievable. It was as if they were adopting a child. The world has changed.

@bluesapphirestars

I bitterly resent your thought that dogs should be banned from this site. Dogs are never to blame for their actions, people are. Ergo people should be banned from this site.

#imownedbyacat

I’m not offended by the swearing in the slightest. What I’m saying is it came across as an extremely bizarre, angry post, and people will be a bit perturbed by it.

Well, this has got weird.

It’s MN and dogs. It happens.

@Hoppinggreen

A large proportion of people who have dogs shouldn’t and some of them are on MN

I disagree, a small proportion of people have dogs who shouldn't, and some of them aren probably on MN. Most people who have dogs are likely to be excellent dog owners, who's pooch is a member of the family, sleeps on sofas, eats bits dropped from the table and chases the kids round the garden for fun. Yes they will have moments of being badly behaved (eyes Thunderdog up, who stole the sirloin steak last weekend from the table next to,the BBQ) but that's ok - we forgive them. So I think on the whole we are a nation of pretty good dog owners.

YANBU, OP. As witnessed by the replies on this thread.

@ClaraTheClownfish

Your supporters have. You've gone with , which isn't much different.

I'm not alright after reading your thoroughly distasteful thread. I happen to actually give a shit about the way animals are bred, bought, sold and treated in this country. Yes, that includes farm animals btw. You clearly don't, so it's no wonder my being upset is bewildering for you. But, personally, that doesn't make me feel like I'm the one who needs help tbh. Enjoy your lolz everyone. I find this thread revolting. So, you know, bye!

Clara, you changed your mind about leaving the thread, why?

@midnightstar66

It's pretty obvious why a new dog (rescue or puppy) wouldn't be suitable for a house with young children, as in under 8. People think that rescues are difficult for caring but really they should be asking why breeders don't.

Meanwhile though IRL hundreds of thousands of dogs in the uk alone live happily and successfully in families with children under 8.

Particularly those where the dog was there first. Our lab, who predated the baby, used to guard the pram.

My doggy daycare is now £700 a month

@bluesapphirestars

What would be very helpful is if you could provide links, Greyt

Links to what? I gave you the experience I had with my local rescues and me adopting my current dog, if you must know he is from the Retired greyhound Trust which has branches across the UK. Often same with breed specific ones. It's not hard for you look at ones in your local area

@midnightstar66

It's pretty obvious why a new dog (rescue or puppy) wouldn't be suitable for a house with young children, as in under 8. People think that rescues are difficult for caring but really they should be asking why breeders don't.

Meanwhile though IRL hundreds of thousands of dogs in the uk alone live happily and successfully in families with children under 8.

And I'm not saying they don't manage well with children. But rescues need to have blanket policies as it works easier that way and minimises the amount of dog returned.

There we are: polite question and a sarky response and face. Thanks greyt, very helpful.

It's also largely irrelevant that you're home all weekend and can take the dog on lovely trips - it's still stuck inside on its own for the vast majority of its life.

I do agree dogs shouldn't be left alone all day but that is ridiculous. Even someone out of.thr house for 10 hrs a day for 5 days a week will.be spending around 20 hours a week with their dog ( 4 hrs an evening and maybe an hour in the morning ) Mon to Fri and around 30 hours at the weekend . That doesn't include holidays . So the worst case scenario of a dog alone for 50 hours a week with no human contact at all still leaves wellover 50 hours a week with their owners. Then there is the night time in addition and many dogs sleep on owners beds

I am not saying it is great but the hyperbole on here about dogs is bonkers .

I also don't think it is terrible to leave a dog alone for 2-3 days a week ( with a walker in the middle) even if you are out for a long working day.

@IJustWantSomeBees why should they?

They may drop dead tomorrow as the person who owns the dog due to disability and age doesn't work. The dogs are only left alone for a couple of hours. Even then one neighbour was sufficiently worried about their dog a few years ago to get another neighbour to sit with her when the entire household went out for a few hours.

I do agree dogs shouldn't be left alone all day but that is ridiculous. Even someone out of.thr house for 10 hrs a day for 5 days a week will.be spending around 20 hours a week with their dog ( 4 hrs an evening and maybe an hour in the morning ) Mon to Fri and around 30 hours at the weekend . That doesn't include holidays . So the worst case scenario of a dog alone for 50 hours a week with no human contact at all still leaves wellover 50 hours a week with their owners. Then there is the night time in addition and many dogs sleep on owners beds

So it's acceptable for them to live half their lives alone? Dogs are sociable animals. Why should they be stuck home alone for half of their lives because people are too selfish to think about their dogs' needs?

If you can't afford care for your dog, don't get a dog. It's not complicated. Unfortunately, humans are selfish and put their desire for a nice cuddly pet above the actual needs of the animal they proclaim to love.

What kind of life is it for a dog to be alone for 10 hours a day, five days. week? Not to mention all the times they're left at the weekend while their owners go shopping, or out for meals, or to the cinema, pub, theatre or on a night out.

Some people will defend shitty lives for animals to the death, though. As long as they can justify owning their dog, they don't really care about whether it's the right thing for the animal.

@vanillandhoney
I haven't said any of the things you have posted. I just think that in the real.world life has a way of changing and sometimes we need to adapt. So if you buy a dog and never leave it alone and then for whatever reason you circumstances change so.that you are having to leave your dog alone for longish periods of time , then I think it isn't ideal but it is better than rehoming and it doesn't make you a terrible pet owner . I also also think some dogs are ok left alone for periods of time longer than 2-3 hours and whist not ideal, when is life always ideal?
I certainly don't advocate leaving a dog every day 5 days a week and people should.do everything they can to avoid to avoid that. If however that happens for a while for whatever reason, I still think the dog can have a good life for that time.

I do agree with that actually bumbling

For example, you might be a SAHM to older children, then your husband is made redundant and gets another job but less well paid so you work part time to make up for the drop in income.

Sensible dog owners will work around that, such as finding a dog walker or asking a relative or friend to help out. It doesn’t mean no one should even consider getting a dog ever in case circumstances change.

[quote bumblingbovine49]@vanillandhoney
I haven't said any of the things you have posted. I just think that in the real.world life has a way of changing and sometimes we need to adapt. So if you buy a dog and never leave it alone and then for whatever reason you circumstances change so.that you are having to leave your dog alone for longish periods of time , then I think it isn't ideal but it is better than rehoming and it doesn't make you a terrible pet owner . I also also think some dogs are ok left alone for periods of time longer than 2-3 hours and whist not ideal, when is life always ideal?
I certainly don't advocate leaving a dog every day 5 days a week and people should.do everything they can to avoid to avoid that. If however that happens for a while for whatever reason, I still think the dog can have a good life for that time.[/quote]
But my point is that it's not a choice between staying home all the time and leaving the dog alone for hours - there are other options and if you have a dog, you should be prepared to use them. Just like parents have to pay out for childcare, for example.

Personally, I have no issue with people owning dogs and working full-time, but only if they can ensure their dogs are well cared for while they're out. When I first got my dog, DH and I both worked full-time. Three days a week, our dog went to daycare and we covered the other days between us. Now he comes to work with me, or goes to my in-laws during the day. If that wasn't an option, I'd still be paying for daycare.

If you can't be around to provide care for your dog, you need to outsource that care. Whether that's a walker, daycare, a sitter, family or friends, or BorrowMyDoggy or similar. There are so many options out there that means dogs don't have to be left on their own all day long.

I don't think there's anything wrong with leaving settled, adult dogs for a few hours each day, but beyond that I don't think it's fair and I don't think it makes people good owners. I'm well aware that many will disagree with me, though.

Sensible dog owners will work around that, such as finding a dog walker or asking a relative or friend to help out

Some dogs owners don’t have the sense they were born with. For example I had a friend whose puppy was from the same litter as one of mine. She stayed home from work for a week “to train the puppy”. She went back to work when puppy was 11 weeks old. She was out of the house from 8am TIL 6pm Mon to Fri. Saturdays she takes DS to football from 9am. Arrived home at 12pm. She has her weekly night out with the girls every Saturday night.
Sunday she takes dd ice skating and is out most of the day. There has been no provision made for dog whatsoever. Her parents picked dc up from school and kept them at theirs until friend picked them up on her way home from work.

When I found this out dog was 2 years old. I offered to take him for an afternoon walk with mine. Never again! The dog is an absolute loon!! I have spent a considerable amount of time training my dogs to behave themselves when out and about. There is no way I could control 2 trained dogs plus a strong, crazy dog who had no idea how to walk on a lead, jumped all over me and everyone else, and was a bloody nuisance around my two. There was no way I could let him off the lead in a field to play ball. I couldn’t hold him on a lead so the walk was fruitless - for everybody.

I explained to friend why I couldn’t take him again. She complained about everything he did

• He was still toileting in the house
• He chewed rugs, flooring and door frames
• He wouldn’t settle on the sofa for the family to watch TV in the evenings so was shut out the kitchen.

And so it went on.....

I gave her some advice about how to get dog to settle in the evenings and told her that the dog has lots of energy to burn and that he must be taken out every day. I mentioned that it really isn’t fair for the dog to be alone for so long and he could have a lovely life with someone who “Isn’t so busy with work and kids”. She told me, in no uncertain terms that she wouldn’t be rehoming her dog because she loves him”.

Just another case of a useless owner who puts herself before the basic needs of her dog.
Poor dog 😢

We haven’t spoken since.