What to do with an old dog?

[Sundaymorning]

I'd be thankful to hear the opinion of fellow dog lovers on this topic:

A neighbor and good friend of my parents unfortunately had an accident and has to spend some time in hospital and rehabilitation. Thankfully, chances are very good that after that, she will be fine.

However, she has an old dog, which of course she can't take care of in the meantime.

The people (including my parents) who would be willing to take the dog in all have cats who aren't really fond of strange, large dogs.

The dog is quite old and she is a bit particular and doesn't really like strangers, last time she was put into a dog hotel a few years back, as her owner had to leave for a few days, she was really unhappy.

The dog has now been brought to me, and since both my partner and I are at home right now sick, it is fine, my partner, who is better, went with her walking regularly, and I should be healthy again in a few days. I would keep the dog until her owner gets home again in (hopefully) a few weeks.

However: I also work a lot. And my partner currently works in another town so we can't live together during the week. I could manage to get home during lunch time to go for a short walk with her, but other than that she would be left alone in the apartment during the day until at least about 6 o'clock in the evening 5 days a week.

People I told about this solution thought I was crazy and that it would be really cruel to leave this dog home alone for such a long period. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely know and agree that this situation is a bad one for a dog.

But as far as I can see, it's the best option we have got right now.

The dog has known me since she was a small puppy and I'm the only one able to take her in.

Do you think it would be somehow feasible for the dog, or should we put her in some kind of dog hotel instead?

[Bethella]

I think it would be fine. Our dogs were always left at home from 8-5 with someone coming home at lunch as are most of our friends' dogs. Ours usually curled up on the couch to sleep most of the day :) I'd make sure you have food/water available as well as toys and make sure the dog is somewhere where if she has issues (chewing, potty accidents) that they won't be too much of an issue. If it really bothers you, would it be possible for someone (maybe your parents or a dog-walker) to come let her out/play with her during the afternoon? If none of these work and you decide you can't keep her it might be worth contacting the local shelter to see if they have a foster family that could take her.

[browncoatslytherin]

our dogs were always left for hours at a time during the day while my parents worked and i was in school, i don't see what's "cruel" about it. as long as they get let outside and they have food and water available, i think the dog will be quite fine until the owner gets out. and i think it'll probably be better for the dog psychologically as well, as she knows you.

[shedemei]

The only problem I coukd see is that she might not have good control and end up pooping or urinating in your house if she's used to going out during the day. Can you hire a dog walker? Perhaps crowd funded?

Its very nice of you to do this.

[Buzzard]

Is it a big dog? They can hold it a lot longer. I had two dogs, one unfortunately died in october at the age of 16, my other is now 9. They both are alone from 8am - 5:30pm with no problems all their lives. They know when I go through my morning routine that when I take them out I really mean it and they make sure to empty themselves.

Its really nice of you to take care of the dog. Im sure it helps a lot to know that they are in a loving home environment and well taken care of.

[Maggie Mae]

There are several people in my office building (and a coworker) who keep their older dogs in their vehicle during the day. That way they don't have to go home to let them out - they just pop out of the office every few hours for 15 minutes or so - let the dog run around a bit - and then get back to work. It's not ideal, and I don't think people do it everyday. But my coworker's dog didn't seem to care one bit. We figured he would just be asleep at home all day anyway, so this was probably just as good of an option. Plenty of blankets and he got "out" 3-4 times a day.

[Sundaymorning]

Thank you all very much for your answers!

A dog walker would be a good idea, but unfortunately, this dog isn't very fond of strangers. It's the same problem as it would be with a dog shelter, she just doesn't like people she doesn't know well. She isn't aggressive towards them, just completely indifferent, she downright ignores them. And she is extremely stubborn. If she doesn't like something during a walk (like being led by a stranger) she will lie down on the ground and won't move an inch. And she is a huge Leonberger who weights more than a 100 pounds, so you can't just pick her up and carry her. I can hold her with the leash should she ever want to pull away (she thankfully amost never does), since I'm quite tall and fit, but even I couldn't carry her home.

My parents work during the day too, so they can't come and visit her, only advantage of her staying with my parents would be that my mother usually gets home earlier than me.

Of course, in my flat, she has water and toys available as much as she wants, I also feed her twice a day. And she can hold it usually for quite long.

@browncoatslytherin: around here it's considered animal cruelty if you leave a dog alone for too long. Of course, if there are several dogs, they can keep each other company, so its quite different. The reason is that dogs are considered pack animals who want to be with their family or at least another pet.

But I think the dog will be fine for this few weeks she has to spend alone during most of the day, and won't get any depressions beause of it (like a friend is still convinced).

I actually love dogs, and would like to get one but this is the reason I don't have one, it would just be home alone too much.

@Maggie Mae: Regarding keeping the dog in the car during the day: where I live, you actually would get into trouble with the authorities. I assume your coworkers don't keep their dogs in a car when it gets hot outside, as that would be very dangeours. Still, around here, keeping a dog in a car the whole day is against the law.

I talked to my boss, and I will be able to take her into office on certain days, when I don't have any meetings with clients and don't have to leave the office in order to go to meetings and such. So I think she will be fine. :)