Pet-Sitting

I've pet-sat for friends/family many times in the past and it's never been a big deal. Cats, dogs, an iguana...

This one is making me pull what's left of my hair out.

The first is the dog. No particular breed I can make out. A rescue, a girl, about 1 year old and completely untrained. She will, however, sit for about 1 second for a treat.

The second is a cat. Also a rescue and a girl - no particular breed I can discern. But black, so may be the cause of my misfortune.

Well, I'm in day 2 of 5. The dog chews everything. Absolutely everything (the family gave up on remotes and uses a roku app on phone which I had to get). She needs be watched constantly or kenneled. I walk her 3 times a day to wear her down to no avail. The floor is covered with destroyed toys the same day it is cleaned. No bone is good enough. It has to have innards to tear out and spread everywhere.

The cat is fine except she likes to play bat-around with the dogs food pellets (it's a small house and they can't easily be separated). This of course gets the dog angry and they fight like the species they are. Over and over... Also, the dog goes to where the cats dish is and cleans it out in one fell swoop, spilling most of it. I worry about the cat sometimes as the dog is 5 times her size...but she fights like Royce Gracie on her back with claws up and has been fine - so far.

This isn't my home and it certainly isn't set up properly for these two. I'm doing my best but am ready to give them both some sedatives (jk).

Like I said this is mostly a rant. I'm an animal lover but these two have driven me to drink. Happy Easter all!

My daughter does this for exclusive clients.

Two dogs have their own decorated rooms.

I think Obedience School might be a better investment.

originally posted by: whyamIhere
My daughter does this for exclusive clients.

Two dogs have their own decorated rooms.

I think Obedience School might be a better investment.

My situation is far from exclusive, lol.

But, yes, these animals need some obedience school. For sure. I've been trying to keep them in line but I've only five days and they don't know me very well.

What they need, the dog especially is a professional trainer before it's way too late. At least she is not a biter. I just worry the rough-housing with the much smaller cat.

a reply to: Gnawledge

 I walk her 3 times a day to wear her down to no avail. 

Here's your problem. Walking doesn't cut it with high drive dogs.
Sprinting full speed all over the place is their normal state.
Being inside? It's like putting on your running gear, drinking a case of redbull, then standing in a phone booth.
This is fixed by one way....running...faster than a human. So bicycle runs or ball retrieval in a fenced in area or psycho dog.
Start chew training too.
Chewable flavored toys given, with junk shoes on the floor. Firm no!, turn dog away from shoe, don't move shoe, then chew toy given until it learns what's chewable.
Also don't throw toys everywhere or they can't focus.
Try that and you should be good.
Destructive behavior is boredom with dogs.

What they need, the dog especially is a professional trainer before it's way too late. 

Disagree..this is an owner issue. High drive dogs need high energy owners.
The behavior will disappear with sufficient exercise, the chewing is a failure to train the dog on chew toys.
They will eat entire couches like this...double so when pent up.

Look on the good side. They're not yours. When you are done, you get to go home. You don't have to do this again.

a reply to: Mandroid7

All good points. Unfortunately there is no way i'm running and I don't own a bike. :/

I like the shoe tip, a lot! She actually JUST grabbed one, great tip, ty! Toys are kept in a bin, but two girls live here and shoes are everywhere.

And, yes, the boredom is palpable, I just wasn't banking on dog-training this Easter weekend. /sigh

Thank you!

a reply to: schuyler

Hopefully the owners can be trained, so the dog doesn't suffer.

originally posted by: schuyler
Look on the good side. They're not yours. When you are done, you get to go home. You don't have to do this again.

Oh yeah, I'm done here, lol.

originally posted by: Mandroid7
a reply to: schuyler

Hopefully the owners can be trained, so the dog doesn't suffer.

Fair.

a reply to: Gnawledge

Let's look on the bright side. If anything horrible happens to the animals you will be held responsible.

originally posted by: olaru12
a reply to: Gnawledge

Let's look on the bright side. If anything horrible happens to the animals you will be held responsible.

Gee, thanks!

No, they won't die. Not on my watch. Barring an ELE, of course.

Certain breed just need to run, and run hard.

We have an ACD and if this dog couldn't run about 15 miles in a day he'd be climbing up the walls. At first we just tried to "walk" him...no go! He needed to "run", and run "far"!

In our case, we hooked him up and rode the ATV up and down the road at about 15-20mph. He absolutely LOVED that! We wouldn't go too fast for him, but fast enough where he had to run. He absolutely loved it, but we'd have to run him about 2-3 miles which was up and down our road about 1.5 times, with a little cool down time. He'd sleep all night, and not go crazy during the day, but we had to do it every day.

He's about 9 years old now, so he doesn't need that so much anymore, and he can go find his own exercise which he does on a daily basis. Again, it's all about the breed.

My beloved Lab, who has passed now, we could jog her for about a half mile and she'd be good, but the ACD was a whole other story.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Sorry to hear of your lab. Thank you for reply.

Yes, I think this dog definitely needs to run. I don't have the stamina/bicycle/atv or other means on my 5 day sit.

Unfortunately, as a rescue-dog the adoptive family has more heart than know-how and I feel this one just may not work out.

a reply to: Gnawledge

I'm 68...my Yorkie -from -Hell -son....is 18 months old...12.5% Taco Bell dog....

He is born a Gemini-same day as my wife.

The "4" of them get the house....me? I get the shed out back.

Little demon steals things, bring them back for a treat...drops em at your feet like "HERE! Now, gimme s'mthin'!"
Heading to North Carolina soon, dog to be day-spa-ed down there...ha!

"Jr." will have the border-er in the pen before I back out the lot!

He don't need a sitter, but the sitters need a drink.

Some here may be happy to have an update.

The hyper-energetic dog got adopted by a family that jogs every morning and has a kid that absolutely loves her.

The cat has taken over the house and is gaining pounds by the day.