Since I got Jago my concern was:
will he be bored at home?
I live in a house with a garden, medium size garden.
I work not far from my house, 10 minutes by car.
I adopted Jago when he was a tiny 10 weeks old puppy.
I know that many people are against adopting a puppy if you work full time, but the owner couldn't find a home for the 8 puppies and he was ready to bring them to the pound.
So I took some days off and on a Friday I brought home Jago!
After a couple of days I started to get him used to stay alone, to avoid
separation anxiety.
I began leaving him for few minutes in a different room, then going out for 5 minutes and so on.
Obviously he was following me
everywhere!
And he was crying a bit when left alone, but he was so tiny and scared!
I bought
kongs and other
toys to keep him entertained.
He started to think that
me going away = treats and toys.
So the time came that I had to go back to work. I put my computer to record Jago and listen what he was doing. I left a stuffed kong and treats hidden.
Jago was fine! I was bringing him outside at lunch time and again in the evening and spending a lot of time with him when not at work.
But... but.. he is an high energy dog. Growing older I saw that he started to destroy, chew furniture and the kongs were not enough. I had sometimes to stay in the office for lunch.
I started to feel guilty obviously.
So I decided to try the
doggie day care!
I have a day care near my workplace. It is a dog training structure, with professional trainers, where I went for Jago puppy training classes.
I bring Jago there at 8 in the morning and I collect him at 5 when I finish working.
The first day I was soooo emotional! My puppy alone with a lot of other dogs!!
The day care staff is fantastic, they put photos on their facebook page and they explain you if the dog had any issue, or anything. They divide the dogs into groups, puppies, small dogs and big dogs.
He was coming back
happy and tired and in the morning when I bring him there
his tail is wagging!
I am sure it's a great opportunity for playing and for socializing.
I am glad to know that he will meet different dogs, with different behaviors and he will get used to share time and space with them.
Obviously they are
supervised all the time and they have interaction with the day care staff.
There are 2 breaks during the day, to allow them eating in a safe place and to relax a bit.
There are many day cares in Ireland, I know at least
Dog Training Ireland in Blanchardstown and
DSPCA in south Dublin.
They are not really expensive, 15/17 euro per day.
Now I bring Jago once a week.
Obviously the dog should not be aggressive and if he is over 6 months there will be an
assessment before accepting him. Some of the day care centers will not accept male dogs if not neutered.
I am sure that day care is a brilliant opportunity to entertain your dog, help
socialization and avoid anxiety and boredom, but obviously
it should not be a way to avoid interaction with your dog, training and play time with him!
Another place to add to the list of dog friendly pubs
