No concept of a dogs needs?

elsien

Just posting because I'm still trying to get my head round this one, and wanted opinions.
Someone I know who has a dog is planning to go away for a week leaving their dog at home basically alone for the week. (It's work related but they don't have to go, they could say no without repercussions.) They can't afford kennels and say they don't have anyone who could have the dog while they're away. So they're arranging for someone to call in for half an hour a day to feed etc, and the dog has access to outside the rest of the time. Also has cats for company. So in terms of food, water, shelter etc, it's not cruelty.

The bit I can't get my head round is, why would you? If you have the choice, what would possess you to think this is a good idea? I've expressed my opinion and been told to butt out, that the dog is very laid back and it's none of my business.
So for my own peace of mind (not that there's much I can do about it anyway, I live too far away to help), does anyone have any very laid back dogs that could cope with this sort of scenario?

quietheart

i'd report this to the rspca.
you cannot leave a dog for a week and give it 3 and a half hours human interaction.
they shouldn't be allowed to have a dog.
i have a really really dopey lazy greyhound. today i left her from 10:30am til 1pm, i was only home for half an hour and then dh was back at 4:30pm. she was fine but this was a bad day for the dog.
it is cruelty to leave a dog overnight.
oh and on xmas eve we left her for 6 hrs as we were visiting the in laws and dogs were banned. pooch urinated in the kitchen, she was so stressed out when we got home i wouldn't do it again. this is a dog who will happily sleep 20 hrs a day.

krlyr

I wouldn't, but then again, many things pet owners do baffle me (like the everyday occurence of leaving pet cats to fend for themselves amongst traffic, predators and other dangers and this being considered the social norm)

RSPCA might act on the five freedoms, which gives them a bit more scope than they previously had (it used to be that food, water and shelter would put them in a difficult position but now the five freedoms are there it's a few more points they can act on)
http://www.rspca.org.uk/utilities/faq/-/question/ENQ_Five_Freedoms/category/Pets/

Freedom from hunger and thirst
By providing enough fresh water and the right type and amount of food to keep them fit.
Freedom from discomfort
By making sure that animals have the right type of environment including shelter and somewhere comfortable to rest.
Freedom from pain, injury and disease
By preventing them from getting ill or injured and by making sure animals are diagnosed and treated rapidly if they do.
Freedom to express normal behaviour
By making sure animals have enough space, proper facilities and the company of other animals of their own kind.
Freedom from fear and distress
By making sure their conditions and treatment avoid mental suffering.

As the webpage states, though, these are just recommendations and not necessarily enforcable by law.

quietheart

responses may be biased as we both have hounds as our avatars!

katholicos

This is selfish and cruel and i would think that reporting this to the rspca would be the wisest thing for you to do in this situation.

scubaangel

I would agree that some dogs are likely to be ok overnight on their own - the bloke and I looked after one that way over Christmas as we couldnt have her in my flat or his accomodation, but she was with us from 6am -11pm - theres no way on earth anyone should be leaving a dog all day and all night with an extremely brief period of being able to get outdoors and interaction with other beings.

I would definately be thinking about reporting it. Poor dog.

elsien

It's certainly not something I'd ever contemplate doing. The owner however appears to genuinely believe that the dog will cope just fine.
Given that the dog isn't going to be physically suffering , I do have my doubts that the RSPCA would do anything, given how hard it can be to prod them into action with dogs that are being seriously physically neglected.
Is it cruelty though? It's certainly a very stupid, selfish, neglectful thing to do, but cruelty?
(The dog apparently has access to the outdoors 24/7)

krlyr

Just to add, one of my biggest concerns with this kind of setup is if the dog were to get into trouble. Perhaps spill all its available water, choke on or suffer from an obstruction by swallowing a toy or something else (chew the sofa from stress and eat the stuffing), break a bone in a freak incident, get a gaping wound, a violent D&V bug, etc. - depending on when it happened, it could be up to 23.5 hours until the dog was seen by anyone and given medical attention. I had a pet chinchilla that trapped its foot and broke its leg overnight - it chewed through the skin and muscle to try to free itself. I found it first thing in the morning, in shock from the pain and bloodloss, and rushed it to the vet. I have no idea when during the night it happened, but much longer and it probably would not have survived.
OK, we have to leave dogs at times - I could get home tomorrow to find one of my dogs dead or seriously hurt but I would know it was not lying there all day dying. A few hours might not be a death sentence, but nearly a whole day could be a lot worse. And at least overnight, dogs generally snooze through it so are unlikely to come to too much harm - whereas a bored, understimulated dog with no one to entertain it will likely spend a fair bit of those 23.5 hours getting up to various things and possibly resorting to unusual behaviour because of the circumstances.
Also, what if the dog escaped? Fence blew down, someone left a gate open, dog managed to jump out from adrenalin/stress (my rather lazy, clumsy GSD flew over 6' fencing when panicking about where we'd gone the first time I took Kiki out without him after adopting him - fence had to be adapted ASAP to keep him contained! Fortunately I'd only popped into the field adjoining the garden, which is why I'd left him in there to play by himself) or even stolen. Again, up to 23.5 hours before his disappearance may even be noticed.

Person_one

quietheart wrote: »

oh and on xmas eve we left her for 6 hrs as we were visiting the in laws and dogs were banned. pooch urinated in the kitchen, she was so stressed out when we got home i wouldn't do it again. this is a dog who will happily sleep 20 hrs a day.

OT, but I would definitely recommend trying to build up your dog's tolerance to being alone.

Having recently had to leave mine on their own for longer than ever before in order to rush a seriously ill relative to hospital and deal with the ensuing chaos, you never know what the future might hold and it was such a relief to me that they are well used to time alone and don't get distressed by it.

zaksmum

I'd never leave my dogs alone for a night, never mind a whole week!

This person should definitely be reported.

Fosterdog

A dog should never be left alone for that amount of time, somebody calling in for 30mins a day is nowhere near enough time either.

I know you said the dog will have 24 hour access to the garden but what about a proper walk?

How old is the dog?

My brother in law went away for 10 days a couple of years ago and they left their 14yr old dog at home alone. However he had 24 hour access to the garden, we called in first thing in the morning to check on him and feed him, his "granny" called in at mid day to take him for a short walk (he couldn't manage more than 10mins) and spend some time with him. We then brought him to our house everyday between 4pm and 9pm and took him home for his evening meal and to settle him for the night.

He was old and not in the best health at the time (has since gone to the bridge) and as he slept for so long that was enough for him.

I would never leave a younger, healthier more active dog alone.

We once left ours alone overnight after the car broke down 100 miles from home and had to stay at a B&B with no notice, we couldn't get hold of anyone to check on the dogs and by the time we got home they had been alone for 16 hours. They had access to the garden and plenty of water (bowls in the house and in the garden) but they had no food for the night. Despite being housetrained we got home to two stressed dogs, one had shredded their bedding and chewed a chair.

These are dogs who are used to being left for 4-5 hours a day and are very easy going, and while it was unavoidable at the time we have now made extra copies of our keys for family and the guy next door so if anything like that happened again we have someone to check on them.