Nonetheless, most of us have to leave our pets at home to go to work every day. This is where sharing the time between your dogs and your career becomes complicated.
Continue reading for our best advice on how to care for a pet while working full-time. We also have some tips for you if you’re thinking about getting a pet but aren’t sure yet due to full-time work.
Exercise before you go
Commit to devoting a decent amount of time to a high-energy play. That means if you have a plan for a regular morning walk, in addition to just walking, run. This will increase the chances that your dog will sleep and relax for the rest of the day. This has proven to be the best trick for owners working full time. Just a little hack here is to wake up half an hour earlier than normal.
Pet’s day care
Most of the pet owners find it preferable to have their pet at home so that it can become familiar with the environment. But having someone come to your house can be difficult at times. Hence, another option is, to enroll your pet in a day care facility, where it can be cared for and socialized with other pets by a team. This is a good option because it allows your pet to learn and share with others while also ensuring that their basic needs are met.
Preventing separation anxiety
If your absence is like a long stretches of boredom for your pet, it will always beg you to return. To stop this, provide your pet with boredom busters. It also entails leaving the house in a ‘proper’ way, without making a commotion. For example:
- Teach your pet to be alone in a crate
- Keep greetings and departures low-key
- Make sure your pet gets plenty of exercise
- Help your pet associate your departure signs with good things
- Never reward or encourage your pet’s attention-seeking behaviors
Provide a comfortable environment
It’s important that your pet is left in a healthy area during the day, as this will help it to relax. The ideal environment consists of a comfortable bed, ample amount of water, a few toys, and plenty of room. Make sure there are no potentially dangerous products within reach.
You should never leave your pet in a crate for the whole day. Holding a pet in such a small space for long periods of time isn’t fair, even if the crate has soft bedding.
Leave something that smells like you behind
When we say leave something that smells in your buddy’s crate, we don’t mean your workout clothes. It can be any t-shirt that has been worn but not washed. Your dog would be more at ease if he or she could snuggle up to Mommy or Daddy’s shirt, almost as if they were there in person.
When you have a full-time job, learning how to care for a dog can be challenging. Use the suggestions we’ve given above to make it work.
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