Since this pandemic began, I have noticed a lot of people walking new dogs. A lot of people.
Which is great. Dogs are fantastic companions.
We got our dog six years ago. Initially, I was torn about getting another pet (we already had two tempermental cats.) We were a busy family at the time, with a lot of weekend obligations (soccer, birthday parties, etc. Remember those days?) In addition, both my children were in school full time and my wife and I worked away from home during the week. I was worried about our ability to take care of a dog as well as having to leave it alone for large parts of the day.
Still, our children persistent. Couldn’t we see how they needed a dog so they would have something to love that would love them back? (apparently my wife and I were falling short in that area.) How could we deny them a creature that would show them unconditional love and affection? (unlike our fickle cats) They even made a Powerpoint presentation (damn you, Powerpoint!) listing all the reasons why we had to get them a dog right now if we wanted to be good parents and how they promised to be responsible for it’s care and upkeep (Ha!).
(INSERT POWERPOINT PRESENTATION HERE)
So in spite of my misgivings, we got a dog. And I’m gonna be honest – it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I have loved every minute of having this easy-going, goofy, alway hungry creature in our lives – and so have my kids.
Because let’s face it – there is nothing like a dog’s unconditional love. Our dog is happy to see me every time I come home, no matter how long I’ve been gone. I can leave for five minutes and he is thrilled when I return. He is way happier to see me then my family ever is. Coming home at the end of the day to that kind of excitement just feels… great.
Not to mention all the scientifically proven benefits of bringing an animal into your house. Having a pet can lower your blood pressure, not to mention that walking a dog twice a day is fantastic exercise (yes, I’m the one walking the dog, despite the promises made during a certain Powerpoint presentation.) Studies also show that children who have an animal in their house can often have fewer allergies later in life.
In addition to being an endless source of love, playfulness and enjoyment, I am certain having a dog has added years to my life. My kids were right – I had no idea what I was missing.
Of course, having a dog can also be a lot of work. They need to be fed and walked every day (according to my calculations I have gone on 4368 walks and picked up 4368 bags of poop over the last six years.) They need to be groomed, bathed, teeth brushed (yes I brush our dog’s teeth – no cavities and it is adorable) as well as occasionally taken to the vet (not cheap.) And our particular breed of dog has a lot of hair. I mean, a lot of hair. Every week when I brush him I could fashion a small animal out of the hair he sheds. That makes for a lot of vacuuming.
But I can tell you without reservation, it is totally worth it. I can’t imagine life without our dog.
So when I see people with new pets, especially during this pandemic, I get it. I’m happy for them.
This lockdown has been hugely isolating for everyone. If you have kids, you’ve had to isolate them from their friends and peer group, at a critical juncture in their development. (For more about this, see my earlier blog article.) It has been torturous. And if you don’t have kids or a partner, I can only imagine how isolating this pandemic year has been.
People are getting dogs for all the right reasons: love, companionship, someone to watch Netflix with. Humans need connection and this pandemic has deprived us of that. Dogs are loyal, loving, forgiving, playful – the perfect companion. And the fact that animal shelters are at their lowest capacity in years (site this) is just icing on the cake.
I also think it’s safe to say dogs are having a different pandemic experience than we are. While we might be feeling anxious and depressed because of this isolation, dogs are having the opposite experience. They love having us home all the time. The pack is together 24/7, the way God meant it to be!
Still, I can’t help but feel a little trepidation. I worry that a lot of new dog owners have no idea what they’ve gotten into. Having a puppy can be like having a small child – they need lots of attention. And patience. They can have accidents, they can mess up your furniture, chew up your shoes (in fairness, my children rarely chewed up my shoes.) They can deprive you of sleep when they are very young, and they never stop needing food, water and poop-scooping. Having a dog is a commitment. And while I understand how people need a loving, playful companion for their kids or for themselves during these trying times, I also wonder how many people have thought things through before getting a pet.
Because eventually, our world is going to get back to normal. Parents will go back to work again, children will go back to school (please!) – and our pets will suddenly be… alone. Maybe for the first time in their lives. And this is going to stress them out. I’m talking about the largest wave of doggie depression in modern canine history.
To be clear, I’m not trying to convince people not to get pets. I just want them to go into it with eyes wide open.
When animals are stressed, they can act out in different ways. Not every dog will react negatively to being left alone, because different dogs care about different things. My dog, for instance, could care less about fireworks, while according to the ten million posts I see on Nextdoor every 4th of July, some people’s pets (and thus, their owners) are completely traumatized by the sound of fireworks.
There’s really no way to know how your dog will react to a given situation until you’re in it. So if you’re planning to get a pet, or you’ve already got one, you should take some steps so that everything goes smoothly once this pandemic is over.
What can pet owners do to get ready for that joyous/probably-also-sad day when things go back to “normal?” A number of things. One important piece of advice is to start getting your pets used to being alone right now. Studies indicate that when a dog’s owner – sorry, “companion,” leaves, the dog has no idea if they are ever going to come back. That really stresses them out! That’s why we need to start leaving our dogs alone for increasingly longer periods of time right now, instead of waiting until the last minute to spring it on them. And yes, I know none of us has anywhere to go right now. But it’s important that you leave your pets for chunks of time anyway so they can get used to it.
Along those same lines, experts also recommend not making a huge deal out of it when you leave the house. I know it’s hard not to fuss all over your pets and assure them you will be back in no time, but unfortunately, they don’t understand what you are saying because they are dogs – and this heightened attention can make them feel even more stressed out by alerting them to the fact that you are leaving right now and it is a big deal. (The same can be said for making a huge fuss when you return home, but since you’re there with your pet, it seems to be less of an issue.) So just leave, without saying goodbye, like it’s no big deal. Then, hopefully, your dog will get used to the idea of you going and returning and start to trust that when you take off you are going to return because you have done it over and over again.
By starting this training now, you are exponentially decreasing the likelihood that your dog will suffer mental or physical anguish, or become destructive, when you leave the house. And good news for puppy owners – the younger a dog is when you start training for this, the easier it will be for them to adapt.
My point is, don’t wait until the last minute. I know most of us don’t have anywhere to go, but if we practice leaving our dogs alone for increasing periods of time starting right now, then when everyone gets vaccinated and our world returns to “normal” (sometime in 2023?), it won’t be some huge traumatic event for your pets when your family has to leave for the day.
One of the few marks in the positive column for this pandemic is that animal shelters are at all time lows. It would be a shame to see that trend reverse once people head back to the office and no longer have to depend on their pets for companionship. Or because they went back to work and their pets became noisy or destructive.
Start teaching your dog how to be alone right now. It’s the least we can do for a creature that has brought so much love and joy into our lives during these difficult times.
And in the meantime, throw a ball. Go for a walk. Lower your blood pressure and make a connection. There aren’t a lot of great takeaways from this pandemic, but having the time to hang out with our four-legged friends is definitely one of them.