Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi, I live on my own and have, with careful planning, decided to get a dog. She’s 1 1/2 years old. I’ve had her a week now and she is everything I could have wanted. I go out and talk to people in which I never did before. The problem being that I’m struggling to deal with the life style change and change to routine. I know it was part in parcel of having her but it still didn’t prepare me for the emotions it has brought with it. I just wanted to ask if it gets easier or any tips on coping. Thank you in advance
My dogs are lifesavers to me :-)
If you mean the schedule and routine of taking her out regularly, you'll get used to it. If you mean the dependancy, that is always somewhat harder.
I don't like leaving ny dogs alone but it is inevitable.
Is that what you mean by the emotions?
Before getting her I did everything at the same time each day and didn’t really go out much but obviously she has to be my routine but adapting is difficult to get my head around. I get very overwhelmed quickly
Dogs are great for your routine, it just takes some time to adjust your and the dog's schedule :-)
Are you helped if I give you an example of a routine?
She was the first few days though. How do I know if it’s a learnt behavior I’ve let her get into or a genuine thing she doesn’t like to do
I’m glad it’s not just me
I was really stressed out when I had my dog as a puppy. And an adolescent dog like yours can be tough :-)
Aaaah, she's great!
Nice dog for playing catch and good for her to get rid of her energy. Also really good dogs to train.
And it is actually a good thing she doesn't do anything in your garden. She has recognised it as her territory.
Yes, my dog is high energy. She is a Border Terrier so can run for miles. We found her by chance when we went to see a puppy. She hasn't been in a house much so gets easily startled.
I got tendonitis walking her too much so my husband has taken over while I recover. This is helping them to bond.
When we had TV repair men here yesterday she guarded me from the stairs!
It'll take some time for her to adjust, and not all dogs are the same. But because it is you and her, it will be fine after some weeks.
Is she a high-energy dog? My older dognis and he starts pacing when he doesn't get his energy out - though that was mostly when he was young.
As for your dog the poor thing must be terribly traumatised...
Thank you so much that is really helpful. Because our dog (I won't use the 'B' word!) was kept in a crate and a yard she doesn't go to the door when she needs the loo she just starts whining and pacing. She also seems to do this when she is tired.
HaHa!
That would be helpful if mine warned me. I’m only just getting to grips with the diagnosis myself
Dogs are great for predicting meltdowns actually. Mine will show signs of slight stress before I feel I'm spinning out of control.
Thank you so much. I’m writing one as we speak. I love my dog very much and just want to be the best I can be for her. Enjoying having her instead of being anxious
Pfffft, the three stars showed up for the female dog word...
My routine was like this when I was by myself with one dog. That was a male and he needed to go out quite a lot. That was four times a day. And he is active, shepherd-mix.
I am very much time-driven and obsess a lot about it.
I'd get up at 7:00 and make sure I'd shower, eat and take him out at 8:00. Weekends maybe 8:30 at the latest.
I'd go for an hour and get back and feed him and work. Then I'd eat at 12, walk him from 12:30 to 13:00. Get back, work, take him back out at 17:00 till 17:30. Prepare food, eat, clean up, etc. Then at 21:30, latest 22:00 I'd take him for a small half hour.
But my *** can hold on much longer and is lazier. She can easily manage three walks (8:00 - 9:00, 14:00 - 14:30, 21:30).