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You might know that Rory and I are close. Really close. I am completely and utterly in love with my little fluffball and anyone who says otherwise…well, we might have words. Often times the best part of my day is arriving back home to her inquisitive round face and happily wagging tail. We do all sorts of things together: watch movies, go for walks, sit on patios sipping tea and doing the Sunday crossword, host dinner parties, explore our city, enjoy bike rides, cook, clean and more. Rory is a constant companion and I wouldn’t trade her for anything. I’m sure many of you feel the same way about your pets.
However, I wanted to take a moment to talk about something that I don’t think is discussed a lot in the pet world…
While we are all eager to gush about our beloved animal friends and declare our adoration for them time and time again, we never seem to talk about the time we spend away from them. Countless parenting and family magazines tout advice from some of the world’s leading experts, proclaiming that parents need to invest in time spent away from their children so they can recharge, reconnect with themselves and be better parents. The theory is that by taking some ‘me’ time, a parent grows to better understand themselves, feel more rounded as an individual and thus have a greater ability to connect in a meaningful way with others, specifically their kids. It is an intriguing and often debated topic, one that has started me wondering about the average pet parent and whether or not we too need time away from the fur-babies in order to be more capable for them.
Over the years Rory has occasionally been left with her doting ‘grandparents’ for a weekend at a time while business trips or vacations emerged. And if I am perfectly honest, I must confess upon thinking back that I did enjoy, even relish, those brief times without the 7AM walk, the grooming, the running and the other daily activities that inevitably accompany a fur-child’s routine. It was lovely to have the freedom to go out and about without constantly checking my watch to make sure I was back for Rory in a timely manner and to know that when I did return for the evening I didn’t need to go out for another walk before completely turning in.
Don’t get me wrong, I missed Rory deeply. I was itching to get back her after a day and half of being away and neither of us could contain our enthusiasm upon being reunited at last. Yet I did return feeling rested, restored and even more appreciative of that waggy tail. Does this make me a bad pet parent? At first I thought yes, but having spent a little more time thinking about it I feel that some time spent apart every now and again can in fact be a healthy habit. On the one hand, it allows the human to do all the things mentioned above — rest, rejuvenate, reevaluate life etc. — and teaches the canine ‘child’ how to be comfortable in somebody else’s care. Of course I couldn’t be away from her too much and nor would I wish to be, but once in while might not be so terrible, no matter how much I miss her.
So I’m curious: how much time do you spend away from your dog? Do you and your spouse have a standing ‘fur-childless’ date night? Do you plan for ‘me time?’ Do you think spending some time apart is a good idea or do you prefer to never be separated? I would love to hear your thoughts on this subject.
We really try and limit the time our dog is alone in any given day. This means that during the week, if I am working out of the house, we try and be home with her in the evening. On the weekends, we tend to be home with her more during the day, so we go out on the weekend evenings more often.
The great debate with our current dog is what to do if we go away on vacation. She is a lot more work than our previous dogs. We never boarded them, always had friends who would come and stay with them. This is not the case for Lee. So at this moment we can’t agree on what to do with her, so have put travel together on hold. I am sure we will work it out!