Things to Know Before Taking a Dog to Pension

Things to Know Before Taking a Dog to Pension

So you’ve decided that when taking your next trip abroad, Chompy doesn’t deserve to suffer! If you leave him at home with a dog sitter, he may very well be in good hands, but certainly not professional ones.

Entrusting the care of your dog to a good pension instead of a dog sitter can be compared to leaving your child with an experienced and trained nanny, or with a babysitter from the local junior high school.

Is your dog pining or just happy to see you?

Dogs, intelligent though they may be, are not human. Even when they express themselves in ways that seem to us very human, their range of emotions is completely different to ours.

If you prefer to leave your dog with a friend or relative because you feel he will miss you less, we at Uncle Moshe’s Farm, after 50 years experience, can definitely dispel this myth, dogs don’t miss people as we do.

A dog’s conception of time is very different to that of humans. A little observation of your dog’s behavior will show you that he will be just as enthusiastic to see you whether you have just popped out for 5 minutes, or been away for a month.

In addition a dog doesn’t feel your absence with the same sort of intensity that your children, or other people who love you would. Dogs are incapable of abstract thought. Barks of joy and a wagging tail are evident when an external stimulant excites the dog. The stimulus can be a familiar smell, sound or sight. Without this element of stimulation the dog is incapable of judging whether 5 minutes or 5 days have passed. For as long as you haven’t returned and generated this stimulus by your presence, the dog doesn’t think of you, and of course, doesn’t pine.

This is another very good reason for choosing a pension over leaving your dog at home with a sitter. At home he will be surrounded by familiar sights and smells, but without his family. In kennels he has only new stimuli to interest and occupy him.

In trying to make your temporary absence easier for your dog, you may inadvertently do the opposite.

Here are some tips to prevent this:

  • Visit the pension together with your dog prior to leaving him there. During the visit your dog will smell all the smells and hear all the sounds of the place. Next time you come it will be familiar and give your dog confidence and security.
  • Don’t leave articles from home with your dog. Contrary to common belief, smells from home will confuse and frustrate him. The dog is getting to know and enjoy a new environment; old smells will just frustrate him.
  • In spite of the convenience of home collection of the dog, it is an experience that may not be easy for him. A strange person taking him in an unfamiliar vehicle to an unknown destination is a recipe for tension and confusion.
  • On the same principle, try and part from your dog without him seeing you leave. If he parts from you in the pension grounds without actually seeing you get into your car and drive away, he won’t feel abandoned.

His last memory of you is that you are nearby.

Things to Know Before Taking a Dog to Pension 1
Things to Know Before Taking a Dog to Pension 2
Things to Know Before Taking a Dog to Pension 3

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