Pets

[SumDay]

We're on vacation. When we're at home, I'm normally up right at 6, because I can hear the dogs squealing and rustling downstairs, and there is normally a cat sitting on my head, either screeching at me or slapping me. Just another day in paradise. I start work at 7:30 anyway, so 6 is normal.

Again, we're away on vacation, and DH has awakened me at 8 (same time zone) each morning (because he's ready to go eat). I'm amazed at how much more relaxed I am, thus I'm sleeping in. I know part of it is because I'm off work all week, but not having the small zoo to care for is pretty darned enjoyable.

Don't get me wrong - DH bought be a puppy as an engagement present, and we've had at least 1 critter for all of our 30+ years of married life.

Our kids are both gone, but yet with all these pets we have to hire a sitter, even to go away for the night.

Do you ever envision a time when you won't have any pets? I can't believe I'm even thinking of this because I am a rabid pet fanatic.

Life sure would be easier, but I'm not sure if I'd like it 365 days a year. They're my babies, but boy are they loads of work, not to mention the $$$.

Anyone else had these evil, petless thoughts?

 

[pb4uski]

We had a dog and a cat until DH was pregnant the second time and she got it in her mind that she was done with pets and within 48 hours they were both gone!

We have since had cats - as many as 3 but now down to one. With DS still living at home there is no animal sitting issue currently. Once our current cat passes on I'm not sure what we will do.

 

[ohyes]

We are down to one dog (13 or 14 years old) and two newts. The newts are totally DH's responsibility, though one of them was his birthday present to me many years ago. He is such a romantic.

We have had as many as five cats and two dogs at the same time..when our children were young. We swore we would not get another cat until we moved. We have had some bad luck with cats marking territory on the carpet, even after being spayed/neutered, whatever. We were out at the animal shelter the other day, just "looking" so I think we maybe getting close to getting another cat.... They are just too cool. For $50, you can adopt a cat with its shots, spayed/neutered, leukemia test, de-fleaed with Capstar and microchipped.

I think we will always have pets despite the hassle when you want to travel (or sell your house). Although, whenever we lose one, i swear that's IT...never again. That may be why we are "looking" at the cats, because our wonderful dog is slowing down so and it worries us.

 

[Midpack]

DW and I have had pairs of Shelties for 33 years. Our last passed last Sept at over 16 yo - she made us both laugh and smile every day of her life, all 4 dogs did. She and her brother could not be left in a kennel in their latter years, so we went about 4 years without taking a vacation together. We have been without dogs since last Sept, and we've taken several trips together, and we're far more flexible with our hours away from home. But we still expect to see her (the last dog) and we miss having dogs in our lives terribly. We're taking a break for now, but I fully expect to have at least one more pair of dogs before I go poof. DW is not convinced as our last two had to be put down (cancer) and DW says she cannot go through that ever again.

In summary, we know exactly how you feel. Very much a decision that's unique for each individual...

 

[gauss]

During the past 10 years or so, we have only had cats. This was intentional due to their low maintenance level compared to other pets.

-gauss

 

[Calico]

For the past 30 years I have never had fewer than two cats, and sometimes as many as four of my own at a time, as well as varying numbers of foster cats/kittens over the years, in addition to my own. I can't imagine a house without cats.

Having said that, I have no interest in traveling once I retire - I am very much a homebody. So I don't (and won't) feel tied down by my pets.

If you do find yourself in a "pet free" situation in the future, and not ready to be full time pet parents again, for whatever reasons (emotional, financial, desire to travel), there are some alternatives. You could contact a local shelter or animal rescue group and become a foster parent - I don't know of a single shelter or rescue who can't use more foster parents. This is a time-limited situation, where you nurture and love the animals until they are adopted. (It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it!)

When I fostered in the past (before one of my own cats became elderly and ill, and required all my time and attention) I enjoyed it immensely, and met some wonderful pet people that way. There are two drawbacks, however. The first danger is that that the so-called "foster pets" will worm their way into your heart and become permanent residents of your household (ahem - that's how I acquired my two youngest orange tabbies). The second difficult part is saying goodbye to them as you send them off to their adoptive homes - no matter how well you screen adoptive pet parents, it still tugs at the heart to let your fosters go. I always looked at it as a way to make room for the next batch of fosters, though, which made it easier. The aforementioned orange tabby sisters were incredibly sneaky, though, and wormed their way so completely into my heart that they never left - little devil cats.

Some rescue groups will provide food for fosters, and all the rescues I know provide vet care, so basically your responsibility is to love them (not difficult!) and work to find them a good home. You can take breaks from fostering if and when you need to (assuming you haven't committed to a foster animal for a certain time period).

Good luck with whatever you decide. Fostering is a great way to help animals in need, and matching up the right animal with the right permanent home can bring you, the animal, and the adopters a great deal of joy. Not to mention that you are literally saving lives - there are lots worse ways to spend your time.

 

[Katsmeow]

We currently have both dogs and cats.

I can honestly say that I can't imagine a life worth living without being able to have cats. DH's mother was in a nursing home her last several years of life and I was happy to see that the nursing home had cats that wandered around inside the home which I told my husband I would see as a necessity if I was ever in that situation.

I do think that cats are much less maintenance than dogs. I think that when our dogs eventually pass we will not get new dogs. Right now, to go out of town for anything more than a day we have to board the dogs which is hugely expensive since we have large dogs, expensive to board.

With the cats, we wouldn't have to board them for a trip of a couple of days. They are indoor cats so we could leave plenty of food and water (and leave the lids up on the fountains just in case) and we could easily go out of town. So we only have to board for longer trips.

Also, cats are generally much lower maintenance than the dogs. They don't have to be exercised or go outside. We do have large enough property that we don't need to walk our dogs. On the other hand, we had to spend money to build a 6 ft fence and we were limited where we could buy since we could only buy in a semi-rural area where there we didn't have the standard subdivision pet limits (usually limited to 3).

Cats are just easier to deal with and I think we will always have at least a couple of cats.

 

[Calico]

....and there is normally a cat sitting on my head, either screeching at me or slapping me. Just another day in paradise. I start work at 7:30 anyway, so 6 is normal....

I think our cats are related.

 

[ER Eddie]

One dog is enough for me. I can't imagine being without a dog. On the other hand, I have never gotten a second dog, although I have thought about it repeatedly. I'm concerned that it would become a hassle.

 

[brewer12345]

I will always have dogs. It isn't home without them. If I could not have them in a nursing home, I would not be going.

 

[bbbamI]

Anyone else had these evil, petless thoughts?

I've had a pet since I was a little girl. When DH and I got married, we had pets for 35 years. Last year our kitty died at the age of 20 years.

A year before she died, we talked about not getting any more pets. It wasn't about the money or work ...it's just that we are getting older, we're retired and we would like to travel without worrying about our pet being left behind.

Having that thought process helped us. However, I still miss not having a pet. But, it gets easier with each passing day.

 

[cj]

Calico, there was a picture of a friend of mine on Facebook the other day, posted by the local Humane Society. It said she had adopted another cat. When I asked her about it, she declared it a "foster failure". I had to laugh. Yes, they find a way of weaseling themselves into your heart and home.

I've already posted elsewhere that we wrecked our long term plan of only having 2 cats when we brought home another young one. I can't imagine life without cats. We are in a really good situation right now where our immediate next door neighbor is a cat person as well. When we went away last week, she sent me emails three times a day about who came for food and who hid. It was awesome! No worries!

 

[Midpack]

One dog is enough for me. I can't imagine being without a dog. On the other hand, I have never gotten a second dog, although I have thought about it repeatedly. I'm concerned that it would become a hassle.

We've always had pairs of dogs. I believe dogs are pack animals, they really aren't meant to be solitary. A human companion will do, but most humans can't provide constant companionship, so another dog is ideal. Our pairs all got along famously with each other, and if anything they're even more entertaining in pairs (or more). FWIW...

 

[davemartin88]

Sometimes we think about what it would be like to be without pets but then we get over it! Right now, we have 7 alpacas, 3 dogs of our own plus a foster puppy, 1 cat, and a tank of salt water fish. Just posted a picture of the foster puppy in the "What did you do today thread".

 

[Calico]

Calico, there was a picture of a friend of mine on Facebook the other day, posted by the local Humane Society. It said she had adopted another cat. When I asked her about it, she declared it a "foster failure". I had to laugh. Yes, they find a way of weaseling themselves into your heart and home.

I've already posted elsewhere that we wrecked our long term plan of only having 2 cats when we brought home another young one. I can't imagine life without cats. We are in a really good situation right now where our immediate next door neighbor is a cat person as well. When we went away last week, she sent me emails three times a day about who came for food and who hid. It was awesome! No worries!

LOL! I'll have to remember that one.

My neighbor has two cats, and when he travels I care for them. He has offered to do the same (if I ever go anywhere!). Your neighbor sounds wonderful.

 

[obgyn65]

To answer the OP's question, I have made the choice not to have pets. No time to take care of pets. I also travel too much here and abroad and therefore would not have enough time to devote to them.

 

[JOHNNIE36]

We have been married for 40 years and can't remember any length of time without a pet. Many dogs over those years and are now sitting here with two chihuahuas and an African grey parrot (my wife's). I hear tell that you will live longer with pets in your life. They are comforting sometimes but they do keep us at home. Even if we go somewhere within the vicinity, we always keep an eye on the clock. Never leave them for more than 4 hours.

 

[Silver]

I have had many pets over the years, but always dogs. Most recently I had two male yorkshire terriers who were brothers from the same litter. One died at age 8 years from lymphoma, and the other died a year ago at 14 yrs, also lymphoma. One of the saddest days of my life.

My DH and I had no pets for about six months, and I was so very sad and lonely. Four months ago we adopted a 2 year old papillon I found on Petfinder.com......and the three of us are madly in love.

I don't ever want to live without a dog curled up beside me.

 

[Snowcat]

Just returned from our second home for several days-the cats do great there. In fact, I think they like the change in scenery. The car ride, well, it is always an experience until they settle into nap mood. Thank goodness cats nap about 20 hours a day.

I can't imagine not having them with me. We are on a rotation program. Two cats most the time. When one passes, after a reasonable mourning time, we adopt a kitty and the cycle continues.

 

[48Fire]

We have always had 1 or 2 dogs and a cat, but now just 1 dog, and he is our best dog ever. We have agreed he is our last pet, but we will see.

 

[Calico]

We have always had 1 or 2 dogs and a cat, but now just 1 dog, and he is our best dog ever. We have agreed he is our last pet, but we will see.

My father and stepmother said the same thing many years ago when their elderly Siamese cat passed away. As I recall, the pet free period lasted six months, and they went on to have two more cats and one more dog between them! Best laid plans.......and then a furry face presents itself.......

 

[ER Eddie]

We've always had pairs of dogs. I believe dogs are pack animals, they really aren't meant to be solitary. A human companion will do, but most humans can't provide constant companionship, so another dog is ideal. Our pairs all got along famously with each other, and if anything they're even more entertaining in pairs (or more). FWIW...

Yeah, I believe that I'm cheating my dog out of some fun she might have, if she had a companion, for the sake of my own comfort/convenience. Maybe when I'm ER, I'll have more time to take care of a second dog. At this point, it would be a little too much. I'm a bit concerned with how she would adjust to a new dog in the house, but I'm sure I could help her make the adjustment eventually, and in the end, it would probably be nice for her (and for me) to have another doggie. I do love 'em.

Can't imagine life without a dog.

 

[martyp]

I have two Jack Russell Terriers, both 13 1/2 yrs old. DW plans to retire in a year or two. The dogs will probably be gone in the next 1-3 yrs. We haven't taken a vacation together for about 4 yrs now due to dog care issues. We plan to take a break after these two are gone. We haven't been without dogs for almost 30 yrs. It will be a mixed blessing. I see one more dog in my future . . . sometime.

 

[youbet]

Do you ever envision a time when you won't have any pets?

After raising a family and having assorted pets over the years, we've chosen to be pet-free in this stage of our retirement. When we visit the grandkids, we visit their pets too and that's enough pet contact for now.

Leaving the house without a thought as to whether Fluffy or Fido will be OK, or arranging for boarding or sitters, is a real pleasure.

 

[ShortInSeattle]

I adore our two kitties, and I am so glad to have them. DH and I have agreed to a "pet free" period after they pass on, to try out the whole "no hassle, no pet hair, no litter box" lifestyle for a while.

I have a feeling that our pet free years will be temporary, but they do have a certain appeal.

SIS