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keeper130

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So I know this is a cat site, and when I first got my kitties over a year ago, much of your advice has helped them become what they are today.

I am now thinking about adding another pet to the family, a dog! While I hope no one takes the time to point out that this is 'TheCatSite!' I was hoping to get some advice.

I have known for a long time that I wanted to get a dog! I feel like there are some inherent challegnes that will be facing me, and some schedueling difficulties (especially over the next 2 or so monts). I am utterly in love with this dog, and do not think I can let her get away!

I generally leave at around 6-7:30 am, and return between 5-6:30 pm, Is this too much for a dog? He has my two kitties to keep him company (which he has met and gets along with). What are some of your thoughts?

Thanks!
 

mer636

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thats a REALLY long time for a dog to be alone
what happends when they have to go to the bathroom? maybe rethink this and ponder about how longthe dog will be alone and how often the dog will have to go to the bathroom
 

calico2222

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First of all, while this is the Cat Site, we all love all animals. I have 6 cats and 4 dogs myself, and there are many dog owners here so don't worry about that!

Ok, how old is the dog? Are we talking a puppy or an adult dog that is already house broken? If it's a full grown dog already trained then he should be fine. It is a little long to keep in the house...you may want to confine him to a room such as the kitchen until you know he won't have an accident. I normally leave the house around 9:00 and get back around 7:00 and my dogs are crated, but they have free run of the house and a HUGE yard to run and play in once we get home. Plus, my husband gets home before me a lot so that helps.

If you're talking about a puppy...that is too long to be kept inside. You need to have someone come over a few times a day and let him out to do his business and burn off some energy.

You can pm me or ask any questions you have on the site. We all are here to help!
 

juliejerks

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If the dog is a puppy, you should really reconsider. As the other members have pointed out, puppies need a lot of attention. You're going to have to be there to take him out to pee, to watch him, and discourage him from doing things you don't want him to do (early training is important in avoiding long-term bad habits), and to keep him company for the majority of the day.
In all honesty, even if the dog is older, there is a good chance that he would get very bored being home alone that long, and I'm not so sure that cats would be enough to keep him entertained.
If you do decide to give this doggie a home, make sure to give him long walks before, and after work.
If you don't, it might just not be the right time in your life for a dog. I'm positive that when the time IS right, you will find a dog that you'll love just as much. There really are a ton of amazing dogs out there.
 

baloneysmom

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Thatâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s is a really long time. I too went through the same thing but my boyfriend and I sat down and totally rearranged our schedule so we could get our baby. We also rearranged some family members lifeâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s LOL. We go for family dinner at my boyfriend parents 1-2 times a week. Because we work all day we had them puppy proof their house so we can bring him. We also now work an hour later so we can take a longer lunch to go home, let him out and take him for a pee and a run to get his energy out.

As well we made a financial commitment (after we get rid of his giardia which has been a month now!) that we would take him to doggy daycare twice a week so we wouldnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t have to work late.

I donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t think its really fair to the dog to be home alone that long. Your kittys wont keep him that much company. I used to do work at the local SPCA 5 days a week (before we got Bruno, had to stop and do other things to help) and I would always see people come in giving their dogs away complaining it barks too much, isnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t house trained, chews too much, too much energy. When asked how much time alone the dog spend they would say around 8-15 hours a day! 8-15 hours straight alone a day? And they wonder why the dog is bad? This happens at least once a week at our SPCA.

I would sit down and think about what you can do to get this dog. There are ways around it. Its hard though. My boyfriend and I wont go out on weeknights now, at all, because Bruno is alone all day with just a 1.5 hour break. We save our outings to weekends where we used to go out almost every night. Its possible to do, but a huge commitment.

Good luck
 

goldenkitty45

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What type of dog? How old? If a puppy you have a lot of work as pups need to be taken out for potty every few hours till trained. Meeting the cats a few times and getting along is not a reliable gauge for what happens the entire day.

Until you can trust the dog and cats 100% together without supervision, the dog should be kennelled or crated till you get home and are there to supervise things.

We have a lab who has raised kittens. But we also get her when she was trained and 14 months old. We do caution her to sit or "watch" when around smaller kittens till she's used to things. She's not a big lab (60-65 lbs) but still a heck of a lot bigger then the cats
 

moonlights mom

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That is a really long time to be away from a dog. What breed are you looking into? What traits do you want in a dog?

Because of your time issue I would NOT recommend a puppy. Puppies need full attention especially when learning how to housebreak, etc.

Your best bet would probably be to stop at your local shelter. Shelters have dogs of all kinds - young, middle aged, senior and many unique mixes. You might even find a dog that is already housebroken (this is what I would recommend since you don't have time to train) crate trained, gets along with your cats, etc.

Best of luck and let us know what you decide to do!
 

mbrcpr

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What kind of dog is it? If it's a smaller breed, they have dog littler boxes that they can be trained to use, as well as piddle pads and the like. That stuff doesn't work well for larger dogs due to the err...volume of output they have. I have 5 dogs, and 4 of them are crated when I'm not home because they cannot be trusted to not tear things up and poop on the floor. I try not to be gone longer than 7-8 hours at a time, but there have been instances where it was out of my control and I've been gone as long as 12 hours a few times. They usually can hold it that long although they are REALLY ready to go out when I get home! But I wouldn't recommend making them wait that long on a regular basis. If I know I'm going to be gone for too long for the dogs to hold it and don't have anyone to let them out, I put a fence across part of my basement. At least then when they potty on the floor it's not a big deal to clean up. I just use the pooper scooper to clean up the solids and dump a bucket of water on the floor and use the squeegee to push it all to the drain! Of course this only works if you have a cement floor in your basement and don't use it for much!

There's options, like hiring a petsitter to come let them out, but that will be real expensive real fast. But maybe you have a neighbor who wouldn't mind letting the dog out at least once while you're gone.
 

white cat lover

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You must realize that you can't leave a new dog alone with the cats for a very long time until you are absolutely positive s/he is safe alone in the house....not going to chew stuff, not going to harm the cats, etc.

It is very important that you work hard at basic training right away, if you are gone a lot that makes it hard.

The dog will need walks 1-2x a day, plus playing, depending on the dog's activity level.
 
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