Any interest in possible alternatives to actual ownership, as per my post above?
Though if so, my further reply would have to be tomorrow, I think, as it's getting a bit late 😮
Holistic
I'm open to the idea but i don't know of anyone. It's one of these things that if there's a dog needing me it will appear I reckon.
I also kinda like the idea of it being mine though.. perhaps a whole other thing going on there i guess..
But also, I don't love everyone's rabbits but I very much like mine!! Maybe I'm just a bit selfish that way...
Could you get home at lunch time or pay for a dog walker to go in for an hour? I would definitely not recommend getting a puppy if you are out of the house all day but there are older dogs that would be ok with the arrangement. You would have to be sure that they would get a decent break at lunchtime.
I used to work full-time out of the house and adopted various dogs from rescue. I prefer to have more than one dog when they are left during the day as they then have each other for company (I agree you would need to be very careful about leaving a dog and rabbit together, unsupervised).
There are older pairs of dogs looking for a new home together, I volunteer for a rescue that helps rehome older dogs. Feel free to contact me if you'd like any help/advice/suggestions 🙂
I endorse all that has been said here.
We once 'rescued' a 4mth old border collie from a family.
It lived outside in a kennel with rabbits which were allowed to run free in the yard. The family had 4 kids under 6 and all the dog had known was chasing rabbits and kids. The pup was a total wreck never having been socialised or trained in any way. When we took him home he chased anything that moved, cars wheels, bikes, prams etc and took many months of walking up and down a main road and town centre to re train him. Plus he had alot of other issues too.
If you introduce a dog into your house without supervision it will be a recipe for disaster, no matter how well meaning you are.
I have 2 dogs and I work full time but my mum (83yrs young) comes in a couple of times a day to let them out. I would never ever leave my dogs more than 4 hours without them being let out.
CrissyB
at the animal rescue centre where I volunteer, they would not let someone adopt a dog, if they were out all day, as the dog needs company , stimulation and long walks. as well as needing regular outings for a wee like you mentioned.
Is there anywhere near you that needs volunteer dog walkers?
tigress