The number of pet-friendly learning institutions has been increasing lately. Although the permission to have a dog on campus is not that widespread in comparison to low-maintenance animals, there are exceptions for service and emotional support dogs. However, if you are a lucky one and your institution doesn’t mind dogs on campus or you are simply planning to have one while living independently, there are some points to think about.
You Will Need to Learn a Lot
Getting a dog is often about learning new things like what dogs need, want, and understand. For instance, some people think that only punishment works well when training a dog to obey them. However, positive reinforcement is much more effective, and it doesn’t make you nervous or your pet – afraid of you.
Also, not everyone knows that dogs don’t possess the skill of abstract thinking, that’s why yelling at them for tearing a shoe in pieces even 2 minutes after it had been done won’t bear any fruits. Yes, dogs understand the voice tone and may submit and show signs of reconciliation if you read them The Riot Act, but it doesn’t mean they get why you are angry. Thus, there are some things you’re going to need to work on.
Again, You Will Need to Learn
Don’t forget about the learning part that is directly connected to your student’s life. What you will mainly have to do during your college years is to:
- attend classes
- participate in projects and workshops
- write papers
- read a lot
- prepare for exams
- and, of course, do chores and care about yourself
Well, the writing part can be easily sorted out by googling ‘EssayPro’ – there are a number of writing services that will gladly take your assignments off your hands. However, what do you do about the rest of the points?
As an option, you may reconsider your schedule, or simply think about creating one, to squeeze in the pastime with your dog. If you can’t dedicate at least 1,5 hours per day to your pet and manage the rest of your important tasks, it means that you will need to sacrifice some aspects of your life, which is a very bad idea.
You might think that you can ‘budget’ on self-care and look after your four-legged friend. Yet, with time, you will probably become drained with no resources left to do that. Getting mad at an innocent animal is probably the worst you might deal with in the end. So, make sure you are able to take care of your needs first of all. And if there is still some space for a cute pug in your life, go for it. Otherwise, it’s better to consider a low-maintenance pet or not getting one at all for a while.
Dogs Are Living Creatures, First of All
You may hear a recommendation about getting yourself a dog to deal with the depression you’ve been struggling with for some time. Well, dogs can really work well as antidepressants, but that is rather a side-effect of a well-brought-up pet. The latter is not always that easy though. So, if your sole purpose of getting a dog is to make yourself happier, that might lead to negative consequences as a result.
Sure, there are chances that becoming responsible for someone may make your depression go away and everything will be just fine. Yet, it’s an animal we’re talking about, right? It would be a shame if it didn’t work out and you ended up being responsible for more than just yourself while not being able to take care of either.
They Need More Leisure Time Than People
Your fluffy friend won’t be strictly against lying on the sofa with you while you watch your favorite movies and series or sleeping while you study. Yet, at some point, it will start bugging you asking you to play with them, which means less time and fewer opportunities to concentrate. Be ready to spare some time for your pet regularly, otherwise, its behavior may deteriorate.
Even if it gets used to little to no movement during the day with time, its health will probably suffer. It is especially likely to happen if you sterilize your dog. After such surgeries, it will need to be more active to avoid becoming overweight.
The Obvious Thing
While living in a dorm, you will need permission to have a pet in your room. What’s more, agreeing on it with your roommate(s) is even more crucial. Whether the person has allergies or something against pets or dogs specifically, you won’t be able to change that later. So, if they mind having a four-legged roommate you want so much, you will need to switch the room. If the latter is not an option, unfortunately, getting a dog while living in a dorm will only lead to tension and conflicts.
Takeaway
The decision to have a pet is important in general. It’s always about dealing with something new and finding free time to look after the animal. Since students are one of the busiest and most stressed-out people you may find these days, before getting a dog they must consider all pros and cons. Yet, first of all, they should be able to take care of themselves. Only under this condition, both you and your pet will enjoy the benefits and each other’s attention.
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