Should You Have a Dog in College?

By Catherine Frederick on October 4, 2017

We all love dogs. And, if we’re lucky, they love us, too. There are probably very few of us who don’t remember asking (or begging) our parents for a puppy for Christmas, or our birthdays, or for any excuse that we could think of. It’s no surprise, then, that a lot of people go to college and then become dog owners. We are, after all, adults now, and we can make our own choices. But the ability to make our own choices is not the same as the ability to make a well-informed choice, and so, unfortunately, we see a lot of dogs pop up on places like Facebook and Craigslist saying things like: “I moved, and the new place doesn’t take pets” or “I just can’t afford to take care of him/her right now” or even “posting this ad for a friend,” because people know that they’ll get called out for getting a pet and then immediately giving it up.

 I’m in no way saying that no one should get a dog while in college. In fact, my dog, Moxie, is chewing on a bone on the floor as I write this. But there is a lot that you have to take into account before you can really decide if you’re ready to take responsibility for another life.

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1. Do you have the time?

College students are busy. Between classes, jobs, assignments, friends, and clubs, it can be hard to find time to sleep, let alone take care of another living creature. In order to properly look after another living thing, especially a dog, you need to have relatively large chucks of time that you can spend with them. If you leave a dog alone for too long with nothing to do, it will start getting destructive. It will chew up your shows and gnaw on your laptop charger and bark at all hours of the night just to get your attention. Just like you wouldn’t want to be shut up in a small space and ignore, a dog doesn’t want to, either.

Another time consuming aspect of being a dog owner is training. A lot of people want puppies when they get a dog, which adds even more training to your schedule. A puppy’s bladder is pretty small. You need to be able to take them outside to relieve themselves regularly, or they’re going to develop a habit of peeing inside that’s going to be hard to break later down the line. There is also basic training. Sit. Stay. Come. All of these are important, as they can be the difference between a dog staying in your front yard and a dog running out into the street.

If you don’t have the time to let a dog outside properly or to train them how to not pee in your house, then you probably don’t have time to own a dog in the first place, and you should put your idea of adopting a dog on the backburner.

2. Do you have money?

“I’m a college student. I’m broke.” It’s not hard to hear or think this phrase at least once a week, and that’s if you and everyone around you is having a good week. Things that you might have taken for granted before (being able to buy unnecessary snacks without second thoughts, name brand products, nicer shampoo and conditioner) are no longer certainties. And for yourself, that’s fine. I find myself eating a lot of canned soup. But when it comes to a pet that you’ve taken on as a responsibility, you can’t afford to cut corners to save yourself some money. I buy my dog’s food 30lbs at a time. For a dog food with good reviews and no allegations of potentially carcinogenic ingredients, that runs me at around $45. Since it is a large bag of food, and my dog is medium sized (40lbs) that bag of food will last me around 2 months. That varies based on the size of the dog you have.

Dog toys, too, are incredibly expensive. A good chew toy that will hold up for a couple of months will cost upwards of $15, and a bag of dental chews can cost around $35. More, if the bag is bigger. While you don’t need to spoil your dog with choice as far as toys go, you do want a decent variety, if only to keep your dog busy while you crank out a 2000-word paper for one class or read 4 chapters for another.

Vet appointments, shots, and heartworm/flea medication are also thing that can creep up on you unexpectedly. Getting a dog spayed or neutered (please, please, please do this) can cost a lot of money if you want it done well and right. Fortunately, if you get your pet at a shelter, this service is already provided for you. But everything else is something that must happen at least annually, and they all need to be done.

A lot of the apartment complexes and houses that allow pets will also require an extra pet deposit, which can add another unexpected expense of upwards of $100.

There are a lot of expenses associated with having pets that a lot of people don’t consider; often thinking that once they buy their pet, it will just be small payments for food from there on out. So, if you don’t have a lot of disposable income, you might want to reconsider getting a canine companion for the time being.

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3. Are you emotionally ready for it?

While you may have the time and the money for a dog, you may just not be ready for the added responsibility. There’s a trend going around of people getting dogs as ‘emotional support animals,’ and it’s true that they can provide that service, but you have to take in all the variables and determine if it would cause you more stress to get the animal than to not get the animal. Are you ready to get up in the morning to walk your dog? Are you ready to have another living thing depend on you for all of its needs? Are you ready for something that needs your attention a good portion of the time? When you’re studying for your midterms and finals are you going to be in a place to take care of your dog? When you graduate and possibly leave the city that you currently live in, are you prepared to take the dog with you? Have you thought about a time 5 years from now, if you’ll still want this dog in your life? What about 10 years from now? If your answer to any of those questions is ‘no,’ then you may not be ready for a dog. And that’s totally all right. Not everyone is. You just need to take a deep breath and tell yourself that you may not be responsible enough yet to get a dog, but you are responsible enough to not get one.

4. Did reading this cause you doubt?

If reading this made you doubt getting a dog, then think hard. You can have doubt and still be a responsible pet owner. And if you go through all of this and then weigh the pros and cons and decide that you are ready, then go for it. If you are truly ready for a dog, then it’s a choice that you’ll never regret. You’ll come home every day to a face that’s happy to see you and a companion for all of your adventures. But all of that is waiting for you in the future, too, if that’s the route you want to take. So, think carefully about where you are in your life right now, and then make your decision.

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