Amanda Teixeira
During the corona pandemic, many people bought a dog. Even after the pandemic, these five aspects are fundamental to dog ownership and should be observed by everyone with a “corona dog”.
During the corona pandemic, there was a veritable pet boom. A lot of people suddenly had a lot of time and therefore got a pet. Some well thought out – some not. It should be borne in mind that getting a pet means responsibility beyond the duration of the pandemic.
Even if this is actually obvious, many are not aware of it when purchasing it. Even after the first lockdown, a large number of animals ended up in animal shelters or were abandoned – animal shelters fear a further increase in the number of animals given up after the pandemic, when “normal” life continues again and the pet no longer fits in. Therefore, everyone should be aware that these five points in particular are important when keeping a dog even after the pandemic:
1. Lifelong responsibility for the dog
The most important thing should be said first: Anyone who gets a dog commits themselves to taking responsibility for the dog until the end of its life. And that’s longer than a lockdown. Depending on their breed and size, dogs can live up to 15 years or more. During this time, the dog owner must be there for the dog unconditionally: Find out about species-appropriate nutrition, husbandry and care, accept veterinary costs and take care of the dog if it gets sick.
2. Make time for the dog
A fundamental point, which is also very important for species-appropriate dog ownership after the pandemic, is time. During the lockdown, with contact and travel restrictions as well as working from home, everyone has enough time for long, long walks and extensive hours of play and cuddles with their dog.
But that is still important after the pandemic – even if “normal”, hectic everyday life returns. Then there may not be time for long walks and the daily exercise is limited to the lap around the block. To ensure that this does not happen, dog owners with a “corona dog” should be aware that they have to consciously take this time for the dog after the pandemic. After all, anyone who bought their dog because of Corona has not yet experienced “normal” everyday life with a dog.
3. Reconcile dog and work
It has probably never been so easy to reconcile work and dog as it was during the corona pandemic. With the home office, the dog can always be with you and does not have to be left alone. But sooner or later everyday office life will come back and dogs cannot be left alone for eight to nine hours at a time.
If you haven’t already, start thinking about how you can reconcile dog ownership with your post-pandemic career. Is it possible to take the dog to the office with you on a few days or to work (partially) from home even after the pandemic? Otherwise, ask friends or family members for help, or find a professional dog sitter.
4. Training with the dog
Puppies in particular have been more in demand than ever during the lockdown. But buying a puppy takes a lot of time. Because he has to be trained from scratch and a lot of time has to be invested in training. The imprinting phase, in which the puppies also learn how to deal with other dogs, for example, lasts longer than just a few weeks and longer than a lockdown. Every dog owner with a “corona dog” must be aware of this. Of course, older dogs also want to be challenged.
5. Tied to holidays in the region
During the corona pandemic, air travel abroad was replaced by vacations in a mobile home or car in the region. Not that much has changed for dog owners, because the travel destinations that are possible with dogs are limited to regions that can be reached by car or train anyway. Because air travel means great stress for animals and should therefore be avoided.
Dog owners who got a dog during the pandemic should therefore be aware that they will still have restrictions on their travel destinations after the Corona crisis – unless they put the dog in an animal boarding house for this time.
But that doesn’t have to be a disadvantage! Dogs love to travel with their people and on vacation with a dog you experience a lot in nature and in the fresh air – what could be nicer? Traveling with a mobile home and with a dog is also possible and a great experience!
However, the dog should not be abandoned or handed in at the animal shelter because the owners want to travel to Corona without the dog and do not know where to put the animal.