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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

Has anybody had a dog in a non-ground-floor-flat?

29 replies

30sthngLondon · 16/12/2020 21:01

Just that really... Are they happy? Is it a nightmare?

My flat is first floor, terraced house. I have a back garden (currently a big mess of brambles but a space that I can work on) but it's down a side passage that's padlocked (I can open it).

I've wanted a dog for years. Had family dogs, will be having dogs not children... Am ready for hard work of dog-owning. We've bought our first flat and won't be able to afford to move for a good few (5 min) years because we won't get another mortgage because of job change.

Has anybody toilet trained a puppy in a flat? Is it a nightmare? What about getting an older rescue? Are they happy?

It's making me a bit sad to think that I might not be able to have a dog for 5 years, but equally every time I think about the logistics it seems a bit crazy...

OP posts:
tabulahrasa · 16/12/2020 21:20

Yep, 4 dogs, 3 different flats... never a puppy though.

It’s honestly fine, you might end up with a few more accidents due to illness than in a house or ground floor flat because you can’t get out as quickly and you do have to be aware that a very small, old or unwell dog might struggle with stairs.

Other than that you just do little toilet walks where most people let their dog out into the garden.

doingwhatican · 16/12/2020 21:20

We have a lab in a top floor flat in London. We haven’t had him long and we got him when he was two and a half. It’s been no problem at all but it could just be his personality. He gets wonderful walks on and off the lead so is well exercised. When he is at home he mostly sleeps or hangs out. Occasionally he’ll want to play but mostly he just wants cuddles. We do have a roof terrace but all his toilet breaks are street level. Some people will jump on here and say it’s not possible and cruel. We make it work and we have a very happy, trim and healthy dog.

PollyRoulson · 16/12/2020 21:30

Yep I had dogs in first floor flat in uni. Not puppies.

Being in uni meant I had a lot of flexible time to let them out and walk etc so it was not a problem at all. We did spend more time out than in though Smile

SpringerMonster · 16/12/2020 21:45

I don't live in a flat but the layout of my house does mean that we spend all our time upstairs. We had a puppy - it was fine. Probably easier for us than you because our stairs aren't communal so we could pop down for night time wees without getting fully dressed! The hardest thing was when the puppy was too small to do stairs safely. Carrying a rapidly growing dog up and down stairs every 20 mins for toilet training was hard on the thighs!

Hm2020 · 16/12/2020 21:49

I had a dog in a 3rd floor flat with no communal garden but 2 min walk to a nature reserve mine was toy breed and even for a toy breed she was small think 500g when o bought her we used puppy pads but by a year she could hold it till she went out and sort of transitioned herself off them with a gentle nudge along the way I know two other people in non ground floor flats with no garden and the dogs have enough mental and physical stimulation and are 2 of the happiest dogs I know and they are not the smallest breeds either you could definitely make this work i live in central London and nearly everyone I know is in a non ground floor flat and plenty of people have dogs round here’s there’s even 2 specific dog parks with in a 5 min walk.

elQuintoConyo · 16/12/2020 21:50

5th floor here, no lift. Legs of steel!

She was 4yo when we moved, not a puppy.

We all cope fine, as do thousands of other Spaniards. Love will find a way Grin

mrsjoyfulprizeforraffiawork · 16/12/2020 22:17

Yes, on my second dog in this first floor flat but neither as a puppy. First dog was large breed and current one medium. Both happy. Garden (mine) just down my stairs, across the path and through a gate. We've usually got there in time when they've occasionally had the runs but we usually go out to the forest (2 mins walk) or round the nearby streets to gaze at their cats. Dog likes looking out of the living room window at all the neighbours passing. She is quite keen on the occasional train or bus trip and is disappointed if we just go via the station to pick up a metro and don't board a train.(she was an inner city stray dog when the dog warden picked her up and then I adopted her from Battersea).

Scattyhattie · 16/12/2020 22:28

Had 3 large dogs in a first floor flat, with a small private garden. Dogs were as happy as living in previous house, either way most exercise is done out on walks & in winter the garden would get so muddy it was quicker to do a quick street walk for toilet trips than clean paws so little change there.

For owners its definitely easier to be able to open the door into a garden especially when you or the dog is unwell, i quickly stopped caring about wearing pjs in the street for night trips though. Stairs when have injured/old dog can be more of a challenge, I used a full body support harness as bit too heavy for me to carry all the time. Noise is definately a consideration especially as some flats have poor sound insulation, my greyhound/lurcher were great flat dwellers as liked to sleep a lot and have zero guarding ability so don't really care about outside noises to bark, the mutt has watchdog traits which one one hand makes me feel safer but does put more at risk to complaints so I wouldn't advise breeds known to be like that.

All mine were adult rescues but i don't think i'd get a young puppy in a upstairs flat as going out that frequently is total pain with a sick dog but you know it will be over relatively soon.

Original poster
30sthngLondon · 16/12/2020 22:35

Thanks so much for all these replies!! You're definitely making feel a bit more hopeful :)

@SpringerMonster and @elQuintoConyo I'll see thighs of steel as a possible side-perk Grin

Yeh I have definitely thought about the amount of stairs - they're pretty steep so am certain an elderly dog would not be very happy with them but I'd also hope we won't be here much longer than 5-6 more years anyway...

Not sure I can cope with London pollution for much longer than that!

OP posts:
bunnygeek · 17/12/2020 14:11

Breed type is definitely a big consideration when it comes to stairs/noise. I've seen many dogs handed into rescue because of the noise + neighbours, that included a Beagle and a Pug.

Greyhounds and whippets are definitely quieter but some may struggle with stairs. One of our work dogs, an elderly ex-racing Greyhound had to take the lift as he couldn't do stairs at all.

blowinahoolie · 18/12/2020 20:11

DB has a Rommie in a first floor flat. She is medium sized so not particularly heavy to carry. He manages fine, takes her out a walk nearby but also has a communal secure garden to let her toilet in too. AFAIK she isn't too noisy either.

People who would make fantastic pet owners shouldn't be discriminated against if they choose to live in a flat. Good luck OPSmile

vanillandhoney · 18/12/2020 20:43

It should be fine, just make sure you consider the breed!

Puppies shouldn't climb stairs when they're young, so you'll need to make sure you can carry any puppy up and down the stairs for at least the first six months.

Toy breeds tend to need the toilet more often as their bladders are smaller. Some breeds are also more difficult to train than others - you could consider training to pads but then you have the smell to consider.

Breeds like greyhounds and whippets may really struggle with stairs - and you don't want to be carrying a greyhound around!

Noise is also worth considering - a breed prone to barking probably isn't ideal either.

SimonJT · 18/12/2020 20:48

Yep, we do, we got our puppy in June, toilet training was fine, he was fairly reliable with toileting sooner than we expected.

Flat living is still fairly unusual in the UK, in most countries in the West living in a flat is very common, lots and lots of dogs live in flats.

HundredMilesAnHour · 18/12/2020 21:15

For those of you living in England, can I ask where you got your dog(s) from? I am a lifelong dog lover (I grew up in the country with dogs) but I live in central London in a 1st floor flat (with communal gardens) and have always assumed a reputable breeder or rescue would turn me down if I tried to get a dog from them because I live in a flat. I work from home now (doesn't almost everyone?!) but my office is only 20 mins walk away (and there's doggy daycare on the way) so suddenly dog ownership has become a possibility for me. I no longer travel for work and my hours are shorter, and I'm around all the time. But I don't want to go to a puppy mill etc.

Any advice would be much appreciated. Please note the most important thing to me is the dog's well being and happiness....which is why I have been desperate for a dog for years but haven't acted on it because my lifestyle just wasn't compatible with being a dog owner. Maybe it still isn't because I live in a flat but it would be interesting to get your thoughts.

1990s · 18/12/2020 21:22

Same situation at Hundred so also interested in views!

@SimonJT can I ask how often you were having to take the puppy in and out each day when toilet training? I can’t remember how often it was with my parents dog, would just be useful to have an idea.

SimonJT · 19/12/2020 12:33

@1990s

Same situation at Hundred so also interested in views!

@SimonJT can I ask how often you were having to take the puppy in and out each day when toilet training? I can’t remember how often it was with my parents dog, would just be useful to have an idea.

The first fortnight of being allowed outside it was every 30 minutes, we then moved to every 45 as we got better at reading him. By week four of being allowed outside we were down to once an hour.
mrsjoyfulprizeforraffiawork · 19/12/2020 14:28

@HundredMilesAnHour
(and 1990s)

I got my dog from Battersea when she was 4. Right now, Battersea are rehoming dogs but seems not as many as usual due to Covid restrictions. They have stopped taking in dogs (in the last week, I think) as they can't cope with any more for now while they are on short staffing levels due to Covid). Years and years ago, my friend also got a dog from them when she was living in a flat (well, actually, her feckless husband brought it home as a surprise and she was a bit shocked - Battersea's standards have tightened up a very great deal since then - i.e. unlikely to let someone like friend's husband have a dog nowadays- they give you a thorough interview and in most cases do a home check - having a flat is not a bar in itself).

MLMbotsgoaway · 19/12/2020 14:34

Yes I had my dog as a puppy ina first floor flat. We did have a communal garden though. Did have quite a few accidents - but he’s a breed that’s notoriously difficult anyway.

Nat6999 · 19/12/2020 14:45

Please don't do it for the sake of other residents, I live in a block of 9 flats where resident above me has a dog, you can hear every bark, it wandering around the flat, it moaning when left alone. It isn't fair to either the dog or other residents.

HundredMilesAnHour · 19/12/2020 17:53

Please don't do it for the sake of other residents, I live in a block of 9 flats where resident above me has a dog, you can hear every bark, it wandering around the flat.

How is this different to people having children in flats? Can I ask them not to? Wink

SimonJT · 19/12/2020 17:56

@Nat6999

Please don't do it for the sake of other residents, I live in a block of 9 flats where resident above me has a dog, you can hear every bark, it wandering around the flat, it moaning when left alone. It isn't fair to either the dog or other residents.
A few people have dogs in our block, our neighbour has three. I never hear the two dogs who live above us, I thought they just had one until I saw them on a walk together. I don’t hear any of the resident dogs barking, they would need to make a lot of noise inside to be heard by another flat.

I chose a flat that had sound insulation, if I chose one without sound isolation would I really be in a position to moan if I heard sounds from another flat, probably not.

vanillandhoney · 19/12/2020 18:01

@Nat6999

Please don't do it for the sake of other residents, I live in a block of 9 flats where resident above me has a dog, you can hear every bark, it wandering around the flat, it moaning when left alone. It isn't fair to either the dog or other residents.
If you can hear a dog wandering around, surely you have some sound-proofing issues going on?

If the dog is barking or whining when left, the owner is at fault for either not training the dog properly, or for leaving it when it's not happy to be left.

Neither of those things are the dogs' fault.

MotherExtraordinaire · 19/12/2020 18:44

A nightmare for the downstairs neighbours! Very unfair.

Roselilly36 · 19/12/2020 18:49

No, I wouldn’t recommend it either. I don’t expect a rescue centre would accept it and having a pup in a flat without a garden would be impossible IMHO.

1990s · 19/12/2020 23:21

Thanks Simon and mrsjoy

People talking about noise issues, obviously as a responsible owner you ensure you train your dog not to bark unnecessarily.

If a flat isn’t suitable is a terraced house through the adjoining wall? Or letting them bark in a garden?

I’d love it if I could stop downstairs’ doing karaoke in the garden, can we ban that too?

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