Who are the dog owners?

[gellyshoes]

My mother's generation of women and before her generally gave up work when they started a family enabling people to have pet dogs without the worry of them being left alone. These days in general women return to work after having children meaning that people simply aren't in the family home for periods of time that is suited to a dog's needs.

I know there are options such as dog walking/doggy day care and some people may take their dog to work/work from home etc but assuming that in general people work full time during the week- who are the dog owners of today? Are they mainly retired? Are they families that are lucky enough to have one parent stay at home and intend to forever? Or perhaps one partner works shifts so there is always someone home? I'm just intrigued as it seems our 'nation of dog lovers' will look very different in 20,30 50 years down the line.

Part time working after children is pretty common too, even for parents of school aged children. (Usually women to be fair)

I know quite a few people who have overlapping shifts so neither DC or dog are alone.

Working from home happens more and more all the time as technology develops.

Sadly where I live is generally thought entirely acceptable to leave your dog alone while you work full time. :(

I am lucky in being able to work at home most of the time, rarely leave the dogs for more than a couple of hours and can also take them to work with me if I want.

I agree with bubble ,there is still a majority of people who think that it's perfectly fine for dogs to be home alone whilst they go out to work . My main concern is with people who use crates when they leave their dogs and I do think that is becoming more common .

I used to work night shifts opposite/overlapping my DP's day job for this reason (by choice, day shifts were always available).

Then I was lucky enough to get a job within walking distance of home so I go home every lunch time. It's also in a veterinary practice so I could take them with me if needed, many other staff do.

Though I enjoy my job and it's extremely convenient it is poorly paid compared to other industries. In almost any other sector I would earn a lot more but I wouldn't be able to have my dogs. It's a sacrifice we've chosen to make because we are nutty dog people.

Prior to having my dcs I chose to work part-time (3 hours a day including travel) which meant our income was considerably lower than it could have been, but like toboldlygo, it was conscious decision on our part because we wanted to have dogs.

I've now been a sahm since I went on maternity leave with ds1 13 and a half years ago. Partly because there was a bigger gap between having ds2 and dd and now because I am unable to return to work for health reasons. So I'm always home with my dogs, barring two twenty minute school runs a day.

Within our family the other dog owners include a professional dogwalker who takes her dog with her and someone who runs their own internet based business from home while their partner works full time out of the home.

Of the retired people I know, none of them have dogs, because they like to have the freedom to go on overseas holiday umpteen times a year at the drop of a hat. Several of them love dogs though and get their fix, as it were, by dog-sitting for other people.

Locally, the majority of dog owners seem to be families where the mum stays at home or is employed part-time.

My dh works full days and when he comes home I go out to work so the little man isn't left alone very often and when we do leave him he's a nightmare!

gelly what an interesting question!

You are certainly right - my mother gave up work when we were young (3 kids) and was therefore at home most of the time with our dog. She went back to work part-time but then our dog was much older. Also, we lived in a cul-de-sac and our dog was pretty much free to roam. She (dog not my mother )definitely visited a neighbour or two and got extra biscuits! Can't imagine that happening now.

I certainly think that many more people leave dogs at home for much longer nowadays. If people working full-time leave the house around 8 and get back at, what, 6 or 7, that's a hell of a long time with just a dog walker coming in for an hour of two. Certainly can't rely on relatives, friends or neighbours, like moose said.

It seems so much more that people choose to have dogs for the wrong reasons - more like an accessory to their life. I'm sure that once they've fallen in love the dog becomes part of the family but, should they have chosen a dog in the first place? It is a very interesting question to ponder

I work nights, while DH works in the day. There is obviously two periods of the day when the dogs are "alone" as I sleep in the day and DH sleeps at night. However they do get 5-6 hours a day with us all about, a couple where it's either one of us or DS, and all the weekends.
The amount of time they are actually home alone is negligible.

Really interesting, although certainly when my parents were kids it was the norm for dogs to be let out to wander the streets during the day.
I work part time shifts and dh has a Mon - Fri day job. On the 3 days a months when I work a day shift my retired mother plays 'dog owner' and meets up with her friends who do the same.

Most people I know (ourselves included) have a combination of shifts (so one person working 9-5 say, and the other working differently), parents calling in/dog being left with parents and dog walkers/doggy day care.

It seems like more people than I realised work shifts! I don't personally know anyone who does but there are obviously a lot of them out there being responsible dog owners as well as others making adjustments in their lives for the sake of their canine companions

I take my dog to work, as do three of my colleagues. Some days we have a springador, a Labrador, a Cairn and a Border terrier scampering round the office.

It's quite common in small-scale East London media-y workplaces.

It's lovely.

Another vote for shifts here. There is a period of about 2 hours when do has gone out before I get home. Pup uses this as nap time so he can maximise the havoc he causes when we ARE in.

Dh currently works from home but is starting a new job in three weeks.

I was horrified because of the poor dogs and have handed my notice in at work so they're not left. My boss looked at me like I was crazy when I told her why! I'm still going to work there but have taken a demotion, dropped my hours and am going back to working shifts becaus of the dogs! I think maybe I am mad!

I'm a stay at home Mum with a toddler. When our son was 2 and we were pretty certain we couldn't have a second we got a puppy as we'd have always wanted one.

When we first got our houndie we both worked full time, but I was in the fortunate position of being able to work from home, so could come back and spend time with her. Then I started taking her into work - I had a small office that I didn't share with anyone, and that was fantastic. She also used to come with me on trips up to another office in North Wales, which she really enjoyed, and it helped her become a lot more sociable, meeting so many people. Now I don't work, and although she has been left on the odd occasion all day, I leave the TV on for her, and she's fine. The people doing the house next door were surprised to meet her the other day, they had no idea we had a dog!

My dog owning clients vary hugely

• older retired people
• Young families with stay at home parents
• working people who find dog care similar to how one organises child care- family members, different shifts, dog walkers etc
• a surprising amount who take dogs to work with them

I do think that our perception of 2 full time working parents is skewed by London/south east
Where I am there are very few families that have 2 parents working full time. And of those there are a fair few who work from home for part of the week

Viva I once stated outright at an interview that I would absolutely not agree to do overtime - ever - because I wouldn't leave my dogs any longer than 4 hours and that included my commute time. I was sure I'd blown it, but they gave me the job and said they appreciated my honesty!

I wasn't all that chuffed to be honest, as I really needed to get a job, but didn't fancy that one at all! Ended up working there for 5 years until I had ds1!

I work ft and dh is semi retired and only works very pt 3 hours per day. He starts work at 6 some days, and 12 other days. I work 9-5. DD 16 rushes home from school. Between the 3 of us we manage nicely.

When I got my dog i worked ten minutes from and exDP did shift so the longest he was left was 3 hours. Since then ive had a different relationship, moved homes and jobs several times. Unfortunately now I am single and I have to commute. We are currently living with parents so again the longest he is left is maybe 4 hours but once I move out I don't know what I will do. It will be me and him and I will be out four days a week.

Ive tried dog walkers in the past but have always been conned by hour walks becoming 50mins then 45 until he's beingwalked round the block and im taken for a mug. How do people find a good dog walker?

My DH works full time (can work from home fairly often) and I am not working at the moment. If I am to start working away from home, we'll get a dog walker.

When I was a kid and we got the first family dog, my parents were both working full time which (where I'm from) is from 8-16 and not a lot of time spent commuting. I was old enough to walk home from school and walk the dog and spend time with him so he wasn't alone all day.
My parents both still work and they still have a dog, but my dad now runs a company from home, so he can be home when he needs to and if he has to go out, he can plan it around my mum's work. They also have my brother who can dog sit or come over to walk the dog during the day.

Our arrangement with DH's shifts worked brilliantly for 11 years. Then he was forced to change shifts so there are now a couple of days a week when the dog is left on his own for quite a long while although a family friend goes in every day to walk and feed him. Not ideal but the dog is 12, happy, and sleeps most of the day anyway. He's not interested in going further than round the block, even on the best of days!

When I got my dog I lived with my mum who was retired - she died unexpectedly & I really didn't know what to do for the best, whether I should rehome him. I decided not to & tried daycare & then a dog walker, but my dad has since retired & takes him out at lunch. However when he is on holiday I have to leave my dog all day on his own - think I will end up getting a professional dog walker again. What is hard though is everyone I know thinks I'm mad - they just leave their dogs all day & don't worry about it.

What is wrong with leaving your dog in a crate? Isn't that what they're for?