What to do with the dogs?

[Kite16510]

We are going to Walt Disney World staying in the cabins at Fort wilderness arriving March 28 staying through April 4. It's going to be myself and my 25-year-old son who has autism.

My 21-year-old daughter was going to be watching the dogs seeing as though she lives with us, but she has decided to move out mainly because I won't let her boyfriend stay overnight at our house. Boundaries.

I am a single mom and don't really have a lot of friends in this town yet.

Now I have to figure out what to do with the dogs for the trip. I have three dogs. Coco is 10 years old, she is a mini dachshund who barks a lot and has fear aggression. This dog is actually my daughter's dog and she could probably stay with her for that week if my daughter does move out. My daughter doesn't want to take her with her when she moves out because Coco barks so much. I'm OK with being responsible for Coco.

Melody is a six-year-old golden retriever and we have a nine month old Pekingese puppy named coda.

None of them have been boarded since like 2018. What would you do?

She hasn't yet rented an apartment. She's just in the looking phase, but I'm trying to get plans made just in case. It doesn't help that I'm in a town where I haven't been living in 30 years since I moved away from home. Certainly if I'm going to board the dogs, I'm going to have to do some good research. I'm not thrilled with the idea of somebody just coming into the house because we're still potty training the puppy and I don't want somebody to just let the dogs out accidentally. We have a fenced in yard but all of our dogs try to rush the gate.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

arriving March 28 staying through June 4

Did you mean to say March 28 through April 4?

 

[Kite16510]

Yes, sorry. I'll go back and edit it.

 

[fla4fun]

We are going to Walt Disney World staying in the cabins at Fort wilderness arriving March 28 staying through June 4. It's going to be myself and my 25-year-old son who has autism.

My 21-year-old daughter was going to be watching the dogs seeing as though she lives with us, but she has decided to move out mainly because I won't let her boyfriend stay overnight at our house. Boundaries.

I am a single mom and don't really have a lot of friends in this town yet.

Now I have to figure out what to do with the dogs for the trip. I have three dogs. Coco is 10 years old, she is a mini dachshund who barks a lot and has fear aggression. This dog is actually my daughter's dog and she could probably stay with her for that week if my daughter does move out. My daughter doesn't want to take her with her when she moves out because Coco barks so much. I'm OK with being responsible for Coco.

Melody is a six-year-old golden retriever and we have a nine month old Pekingese puppy named coda.

None of them have been boarded since like 2018. What would you do?

She hasn't yet rented an apartment. She's just in the looking phase, but I'm trying to get plans made just in case. It doesn't help that I'm in a town where I haven't been living in 30 years since I moved away from home. Certainly if I'm going to board the dogs, I'm going to have to do some good research. I'm not thrilled with the idea of somebody just coming into the house because we're still potty training the puppy and I don't want somebody to just let the dogs out accidentally. We have a fenced in yard but all of our dogs try to rush the gate.

Have you asked your veterinarian for advice since you don’t have local friends to rely on? They should have an idea where you could board the dogs safely.

 

[Kite16510]

I'll talk to them in the morning. She just told me this evening that she is looking at a place on Thursday.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

We board our two dogs for that amount of time and it costs about $900+. We know they’re well cared for, though; they’re used to going and they know we come back. (One is a rescue who I always fear thinks he’s being dumped again.)

We tried using a combination of our son and a pet sitter once and it didn’t work out too well, one dog became very anxious and had accidents, so we stick to the kennel plan.

I, personally, would probably think about renegotiating with your 21 yo daughter. I doubt she really wants to pay all that rent right now, does she? Maybe she is fearful about staying alone for the week? It would matter to me what the boyfriend is like and how long they’ve been together, etc. If you’ll allow the bf to stay it might be best for all concerned? Unless you are very principled about it. He’ll likely be staying at her apt, right?

 

[Kite16510]

We board our two dogs for that amount of time and it costs about $900+. We know they’re well cared for, though; they’re used to going and they know we come back. (One is a rescue who I always fear thinks he’s being dumped again.)

We tried using a combination of our son and a pet sitter once and it didn’t work out too well, one dog became very anxious and had accidents, so we stick to the kennel plan.

I, personally, would probably think about renegotiating with your 21 yo daughter. I doubt she really wants to pay all that rent right now, does she? Maybe she is fearful about staying alone for the week? It would matter to me what the boyfriend is like and how long they’ve been together, etc. If you’ll allow the bf to stay it might be best for all concerned? Unless you are very principled about it. He’ll likely be staying at her apt, right?

She just met him a couple weeks ago on a dating app. Prior to this she had a boyfriend and I agreed to let him come over one weekend and that turned into he was here every weekend for a year until they broke up. So I said a boundary that had already been in her lease stating no boyfriends. No men in the house, no alcohol, no drugs.

I just don't want my dogs to feel abandoned. I've even been thinking about just canceling the trip over this. I realize that's a knee-jerk reaction but well it's certainly something that I hadn't planned on.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

She just met him a couple weeks ago on a dating app. Prior to this she had a boyfriend and I agreed to let him come over one weekend and that turned into he was here every weekend for a year until they broke up. So I said a boundary that had already been in her lease stating no boyfriends. No men in the house, no alcohol, no drugs.

I just don't want my dogs to feel abandoned. I've even been thinking about just canceling the trip over this. I realize that's a knee-jerk reaction but well it's certainly something that I hadn't planned on.

Ohh, ok, gotcha.

I think a good kennel is a godsend. I would go that route, probably. The six and the ten year old dogs should be fine. A little concerned about the 9 month old being there, they’re very loud and kind of scary places, from what I’ve seen. Is there anyone who could just watch her? Could you put an ad out for someone to mind her?

I wouldn’t cancel the trip. Sounds like you need a break. You still have a while to figure out plans.

 

[Dave006]

I'm not thrilled with the idea of somebody just coming into the house because we're still potty training the puppy and I don't want somebody to just let the dogs out accidentally. We have a fenced in yard but all of our dogs try to rush the gate.

I would suggest you look at Rover, the leading pet-sitting and dog-walking app that connects pet owners with local sitters for services like walking, boarding, and house sitting, offering GPS tracking, photo updates, and secure payments.

https://www.rover.com/app/

You are able to see the reviews of your area pet sitters, and services. You can also try a couple out well before your trip is planned.

Dave

 

[cruising spud]

Please, I am just saying.....with three dogs and a 25-year-old autistic son, it might be nice to have your daughter around the house, helping out a bit. If the boyfriend has only been in the picture for a few weeks, I could see being hesitant to let him be around while you are away, but you do have until March to get to know him. Heck, by then, they might have broken up.

Why not get to know him a bit more? If he is a nice guy, he might even be someone whose company your son enjoys.

I realize you are coming at this more from a moral ground (no drinking, etc), but as my children became adults, I found out that my morals and thoughts on how to approach life weren't necessarily their morals or thoughts on how to approach life, and sometimes compromises were necessary.

Again, your house, your rules, but you did put this out on these boards, so I am just giving my perspective. I am not trying to be offensive.

 

[MPD]

We pay one of the technicians at our vet's office to come to the house 3x daily to care for our pets while we're away. It isn't cheap, but I know they are in good hands and they prefer to be at home. I would definitely ask your vet for a recommendation.

 

[Forevermarypoppins]

Off topic but, will she still have a key to your home when she moves out?

Right now, I think your best option is kenneling the dogs. I hope you can find a good one in your area.

 

[Kite16510]

Please, I am just saying.....with three dogs and a 25-year-old autistic son, it might be nice to have your daughter around the house, helping out a bit. If the boyfriend has only been in the picture for a few weeks, I could see being hesitant to let him be around while you are away, but you do have until March to get to know him. Heck, by then, they might have broken up.

Why not get to know him a bit more? If he is a nice guy, he might even be someone whose company your son enjoys.

I realize you are coming at this more from a moral ground (no drinking, etc), but as my children became adults, I found out that my morals and thoughts on how to approach life weren't necessarily their morals or thoughts on how to approach life, and sometimes compromises were necessary.

Again, your house, your rules, but you did put this out on these boards, so I am just giving my perspective. I am not trying to be offensive.

I told her that he could come, but only for day visits. No overnights.

 

[focusondisney]

If your daughter moves out before then, why couldn’t you ask her to come back & stay at your house for the week? Maybe offer to pay her a portion of what it would cost to kennel the dogs. Make the condition the BF could visit her, but not stay there. I would hope she’d be willing to help her mother out & agree to him not staying for 1 week. She could go “visit” him at her apartment once or twice during the week if she absolutely must. Then come back & stay overnight with the dogs.

 

[ars0525]

To find pet sitters I would ask your vet for any recommendations. Also try asking coworkers. When I moved 1300 miles & knew nobody, they were able to give me lots of leads & advice on area things I could check out. Next when out walking the dogs see if you notice neighbors with pets. Introduce yourself & ask if they know or use any pet sitters. Maybe a college kid will be home for the week & want some extra money? I used to pet sit over breaks...I didn't have to stay at home, played with dogs & got paid.

 

[Marthasor]

You are smart to be looking for a solution now as I have found, in our area at least, particularly during holiday times/school breaks, etc. it is difficult to find sitters and kennels - particularly as you have 3 dogs that are in need of care. We are lucky that we have a wonderful pet sitting service and the family that runs it takes our dog into their home while we are away, however we typically have to book weeks to months in advance during busy travel times. You asked, "what would you do", I think I would try to work something out with your daughter as she already knows the dogs and their routines. The fact that my dog is with a family she has known for over 9 years gives me a lot of peace of mind when we go away.

 

[SL6827]

Boundaries. Personally looking at those dogs, they have entitlement issues. I would encourage them to find a job while your gone to help fund future Disney trips!

 

[Kite16510]

Boundaries. Personally looking at those dogs, they have entitlement issues. I would encourage them to find a job while your gone to help fund future Disney trips!

Especially Coda the Peke.

 

[Kite16510]

I just got word that she's going to watch them even if she moves and she has delayed the move so that she can save up for expenses. Yay, good planning kiddo!! I do plan to pay her for watching them while we are gone. I usually give her $300 for the week.

 

[Kite16510]

If your daughter moves out before then, why couldn’t you ask her to come back & stay at your house for the week? Maybe offer to pay her a portion of what it would cost to kennel the dogs. Make the condition the BF could visit her, but not stay there. I would hope she’d be willing to help her mother out & agree to him not staying for 1 week. She could go “visit” him at her apartment once or twice during the week if she absolutely must. Then come back & stay overnight with the dogs.

I did talk with her and she said that she would stay here for that week or at least be here several times a day when the dogs needed her. So that's good and I'll pay her.