Are we too busy for a dog?

I would say you  are too busy for a dog unless one of you could take the dog with you to work.  If you do decide to get one please do not get a puppy or a large breed.  Doggy daycare may be an option if there is one in your area.  Or at least a dog walker twice a day when you are gone.  Personally I feel guilty when my dogs are alone for 5 hours at a time once or twice a week.

Actually it sounds to me like you already know the answer to your own question.  Maybe for now it would be best to put it off until your schedules calm down a bit.  Although, unless you can take the dog to work like Candace suggested.
 
 

Personally, I would probably hold off on a dog for now.. It's very difficult for a dog to be left alone for periods that long, and it would greatly increase the chances of the dog becoming bored and being a "bad" dog - being destructive, chewing on things, eliminating where it shouldn't... stuff like that.
My feeling is that once you get up in the morning, you'll both be busy getting ready for work, and the dog will be left out. The he/she will be left alone until 6 or 9 PM when you return.  It may be able to spend 4 hours or so with you before you go to bed. By this time, the dog's probably already slept 8 hours while you are gone and will not want to sit on the couch and watch TV with you. And then it's time for bed... and the dog's not sleepy, he wants to play.

Perhaps in the future a time may arise when you could provide an optimal home for a dog, but it's my opinion that now is probably not that time.  Welcome to the forum, by the way, and it's great that you're keeping the dogs needs as well as your own in mind!  []

I would tend to agree
I leave my house at 7:45am and come home at lunch to take Molly out and give her some attention.
My son is home by 3:15 and then he takes her out to play for a little while.
And approx. 5x/week we get Molly out to play with her friend for an hour or so. She so looks forward to that exercise and puppy interaction.
Then you also have to allow time for vetting and a potential emergency - something you can count on with pets. And then there's also time for socialization.
Pets can be time consuming - well not can be they simply are. A time consuming commitment.
Ever consider getting 2 young cats? They will keep each other company and entertain each other during the long hours they are home alone.

ORIGINAL: marynh

Ever consider getting 2 young cats? They will keep each other company and entertain each other during the long hours they are home alone.

i agree with marynh. we have two cats. we have had one of them for about 7 yrs and the other one for about 6 yrs. and i never felt really too guilty about leaving them alone for a long period of time because they can kind of take care of themselves. also, they will provide as much love and affections as a dog will.

Yep I agree also.  Dogs need and want much more attention and interaction than that.  You would barley be able to have the time to even train the dog.  Cats are an option if you like cats, but I would not suggest you get a dog, he will be lonely and bored.

Yep, it would not be fair to the dog. Mary had a good idea though.
I think goldfish would better fit into your lifestyle though [sm=rofl.gif]

Poor goldfish... their a lot harder to keep than most people think... (cycling, water changes, and other things).
 
I think cats sound like a good option []
 
 

What kind of cars do you race?  Stock?  Mod? anyway...

You could pretty much give up any sort of social life you now have if you got a dog.  That is unless your friends like to take loong long walks to the park everynight...

I have to agree that you sound too busy right now.  A puppy would pretty much be out of the question, and even an older dog would need to potty more often.  If you can afford day care or a dog walker, it might work, but my advice is to wait.  If you do get a dog at some point, I hope you will do your research well - a dog that will have to live with infants and toddlers must be very special and extra tolerant.  It isn't fair to get a dog and then have to give him up when junior arrives.

I think it's really great that you're asking yourself this question now, before you get a dog.  Too many people get the dog first without realizing what a time committment a dog is, then wind up bringing the dog to a shelter because they don't know anyone who wants him.

I also say wait to get a dog. My fiance got me my dog as a birthday present and, although I love my dog, my schedule at that time was not the kind of schedule one needs when owning a dog. I had to change my entire lifestyle for my dog. My schedule now revolves around her. I can't even work overtime unless I know what I'm gonna do with Ash. It's a lot of hard work and I would think, can be similar to having a child in some ways. Especially with a puppy. If you had a child, you wouldn't leave the baby home all day. You'd make sure someone was with the baby. If your schedule is too busy for a child, then it probably is too busy for a dog as well. My mom always tells me that having a child is nothing like having a dog, but then at the same time she tells me that before having kids, I need to raise a puppy. []  Now that I've had Ash for over a year, she'll ask me jokingly if I'll be having kids anytime soon and I can't even respond to that. I just look at her and she knows that she will be waiting many more moons before that day comes along.  
 
If I had known my fiance was going to get me a dog for my birthday, I would have told him not too. I wouldn't trade Ash for the world now, but my lifestyle, schedule and income would've been a better fit for a cat.

Thank you all for the replies. Is this one of the more popular message boards for dog owners or are there others?
 
Huskymom, I drag race a rear engine dragster with a 540 Chevy in super pro brackets.

its probly been said enough, but anyway i agree with everyone else that you are way way too busy to have a dog.  i agree with the 2 cats idea but you would really need 2 of them not just one.  there are lots of dogs forums out there, but i dont know which ones are popular.  i belong to 3 now and im new to them all.