People who are attatched to their pets and vice versa.

Cortney1982 · December 2011

What do you do when you have a pet and want to go on a honeymoon? I have a little chihuahua and I worry she would be devasted after she hadn't seen me in a day and stop eating. We've been side by side for nearly 4 years.

So far, we have nixed any vacation plans.

BrittneyRN · December 2011

I was the same way. We got an adult male chocolate lab in June from a family that no longer wanted him. I was afraid he'd think we abandoned him like his last family. Hes so attached to my fiancé. My family and his family would feed him, et him out, etc. and he did great. I think it was harder on me than him! I'm excited for my honeymoon but, dread leaving him again!

StealthBride · December 2011

We have several dogs and cats. We also have a love for traveling. We have an AMAZING petsitter who comes and watches our animals in-house when we're gone.

StephBeanWed61502 · December 2011

A friend of mine has a dog and kitten who are insanely attached to her (she only works part-time, so she's with them nearly all the time), and she "prepped" them for her honeymoon by having the person who had agreed to petsit (another friend of hers) come over and play with them 5-6 times a week for like a month. Every time the sitter came over, she'd bring them special treats and stuff they only got to have when she was there. Now they associate her with awesome treats and lots of fun, so they were completely fine when she came over for the week while my friend was on her honeymoon. (The petsitter lived at my friend's apartment for the week she was away.) My parents have done the same thing with their yorkie - they have a family friend who the dog knows and loves who comes and stays overnight with him when they go away. With a little extra care, your little dog should be fine with a petsitter.

ARJ6511 · December 2011

I totally understand!!! I used to miss our family dog horribly when we went on vacay. H and I just got a dog in Oct and I still miss her when we have to leave for work. Does your dog have a family member she likes that she could stay with?

amymaysa · December 2011

We have a pup we got from the shelter. The poor thing was abused/neglected before we got her (we got her at 3mo) and has some major anixety. We have had great progress in the past 1.5 years, but it's still hard sometimes.
She either stays with my parents or a sitter when we go away. It's helpful that her sitter is also her doggie day care provider, so she knows him so well and knows going ot his house means fun!
I agree with the PP in getting your pup used to being away from you and the person who may be watching them. I know it's hard to leave them when you think they will be misearble without you, but we have to. We didn't leave the house together for 7 mo (unless for work) b/c she would bark and bark and bark for HOURS. Once we got her used to it, she's all good now.
Good luck!

KellyBrian2013 · December 2011

If you are worried about leaving your dog at a kennel, there's a few options you can look into:
1) Some kennels have "suites" in which the dogs have a quiet room and often have a television left on... these can be pretty pricey.
2) Smaller, family kennel. One of my best friends and her family own a small family-run boarding kennel and grooming facility that is fantastic. The kennel shares a drive with their home, and their backyard fencing backs up to the kennel building.

In either case with a kennel, be sure to ask for a tour and see the facility prior to agreeing to board there.

If you don't want to go with a boarding kennel, a live-in pet sitter is a great option. I used to petsit for select clients prior to getting engaged (moved away from most of my clients when we bought our house)... one dog that I stayed with developed a significant aggression issue and the owner's other dog has significant health needs (10 medications 2x per day, special diet with lots of restrictions, etc) so she wasn't comfortable hiring anyone else. I visited her house 2-3 times per week every week for several months leading up to one trip, working on positive training with the aggressive dog. He went from (then) backing into a corner growling and snapping to (now) wagging his tail and rubbing up against me. All of the dogs that I petsit for greet me with wagging tails and lots of kisses

There are plenty of fantastic pet sitters out there - ask your veterinarian or friends for recommendations.

Cortney1982 · December 2011

Hmm..an in my home pet sitter would be the only thing I'd consider. Thanks for the idea!

StealthBride · December 2011

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_people-attatched-their-pets-vise-versa?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:712bd0c9-01ad-4279-99a2-21e59cc33a05Post:a7b0c0a6-1f86-4774-9d60-7be00aa71a20">Re: People who are attatched to their pets and vice versa.</a>:
[QUOTE]Hmm..an in my home pet sitter would be the only thing I'd consider. Thanks for the idea!
Posted by Cortney1982[/QUOTE]

I'm also going to be bluntly honest with you, and you may not like what I'm about to say.

You need to teach your dog some independence. Worring that your dog is going to "stop eating and get depresed" if you leave is NOT healthy for you or the dog. What happens if you're hospitalized? Or when you have kids and you have to leave for a few days to give birth?

I'd highly suggest googling NILIF (Nothing in Life is Free) and work on some confidence building before you end up with a dog that needs prozac for life due to separation anxiety.

bridetobemo · December 2011

I totally understand your worries, when we first got our first dog, he was a rescue and had BAD separation anxiety, when we would leave the house he would wimper and whine so loud you could hear him in our driveway! Thankfully hubbys parents were willing to watch him for us, since they have 3 dogs to keep him occupied and he knows them, but the day we came back, and we pulled up to pick him up, he came running full speed from the back of their yard so happy to see us!

Michele707 · December 2011

My parents are going to watch mine during the honeymoon. He loves going to their house because they have a dog too. The day of the wedding he will stay at a pet daycare that he LOVES to go to. He is attached to me, but he is very happy to play with other pups.

It will be ok! Just find a reliable petsitter or doggie daycare. They need to learn some separation.

Michele707 · December 2011

My parents are going to watch mine during the honeymoon. He loves going to their house because they have a dog too. The day of the wedding he will stay at a pet daycare that he LOVES to go to. He is attached to me, but he is very happy to play with other pups.

It will be ok! Just find a reliable petsitter or doggie daycare. They need to learn some separation.

Wiscisbliss · December 2011

My sister is my pet sitter. She comes and plays with out kitty Jojo every day and makes sure she has food, water, and snuggle time.

Occasionally we have had to take her to the boarders. She doesn't care for it there, but the people are very nice and the spaces are large and there is a web cam so I can see what the cat is up to. Our last cat actually loved going there and the people who worked there.

alithebride · December 2011

dh and i travel a lot. we just returned home saturday after 2 weeks in mexico. we have an awesome boarder that we use that our dog LOVES. no worries.
and i HIGHLY agree with stealth. you need to have your dog stay iwth someone who is capable of takign care of a dog with separation anxiety. you need to do some sep. anx. training.

amys325 · December 2011

We had just gotten our puppy a few months before we went on our 2 week long HM in Italy and Greece. I was nervous about boarding her, but realized it would be fun for her (ok, maybe I talked myself a little bit into that). However, my mother decided to come stay at our place for 2 weeks (she's in Ohio, we are in Illinois) and take care of our puppy and our kitty.

Going forward we will board her for our trips. It's like a week long daycare session for them...they actually enjoy it and they are very happy when you return.

mica178 · December 2011

After I got my dog, I found a boarding place which is more like a doggie daycare. Berkeley liked that place so much, she'd become excited as we drove close to it. She loved it there. Then, when I lived near my mother, she'd watch Berkeley when I traveled. She's always happy when I come back to get her, but she has fun pretty much wherever she goes.

Just find a nice place that your dog will enjoy, and doggie will be fine.

LADY324 · December 2011

Our dog is staying with my FIL's while we are away. Our dog is spoiled but he is a rescue dog and had a crappy first 10 months in this world so he deserves it. My FI watched my parents dog when we took a family trip to Italy. Their dog is very attached to my step dad she actually lost some hair from the anxiety of them being gone. She did not do well at all so I think every dog is different. I would look for a reputable in home dog sitter that you would trust or ask a family member and pay them if they are able to watch your dog.

RKPugs · December 2011

We have a rescue pug that used to get such bad anxiety when we boarded him that he would make himself sick. He lost 10% of his body weight one time we were gone. He couldn't handle the boarding facility with all of the other dogs barking constantly. Now everytime we leave my good friend (who he knows well) comes to stay at our house. We haven't had a problem and he gets so excited to see her...even if she's just coming for drinks. He was recently diagnosed with a terminal brain disorder 3 days before Thanksgiving. 2 days before we had flights to FIs grandma's house. It was soooo hard to leave him...but he was in good hands and loved snuggling with my friend for 4 days. I wouldn't not have a honeymoon for my dog...and I LOVE my puggies!

kristinanddan · December 2011

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_people-attatched-their-pets-vise-versa?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:712bd0c9-01ad-4279-99a2-21e59cc33a05Post:d3a5d1ef-a297-4741-9a1d-626e0a867025">Re: People who are attatched to their pets and vice versa.</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: People who are attatched to their pets and vice versa. : I'm also going to be bluntly honest with you, and you may not like what I'm about to say. You need to teach your dog some independence. Worring that your dog is going to "stop eating and get depresed" if you leave is NOT healthy for you or the dog. What happens if you're hospitalized? Or when you have kids and you have to leave for a few days to give birth? I'd highly suggest googling NILIF (Nothing in Life is Free) and work on some confidence building before you end up with a dog that needs prozac for life due to separation anxiety.
Posted by StealthBride[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>Seriously. And dogs don't have the same sense of time that we do. My dog may look after us as we leave him (he stays at my ILs), but as soon as we are out of sight he gets over it.

</div>

hz80408 · December 2011

Another type of boarder is one that boards in their own home....so it's not at a kennel facility. Our dog is 2.5 and when we went on our HM we left him with our parents. He knew them well enough and didn't have any issues.

This past summer we boarded him for the first time. We weren't comfortable having someone come into out home, especially incase there was an emergency, what if the sitter couldn't find what they needed in time?

We ended up boarding him with a company who boards out of their house. So it's a small and more natural enviroment than a large kennel facility. They only board 3 dogs at a time, so Oscar got plenty of attention. The first day and a half, he was confused and missed up and decided to stop eating, but the boarder put special treats on top of his food to entice him and after that, he was fine.

Our boarder actually "specializes" in our dog's breed, which was a huge reason why we choose her. (She's familiar with wrinkle cleaning, limiting outdoor exposure in heat, etc...all of the things that come along with being a bulldog parent). Granted, she's about $20/night more than other facilities, but to us, the cost is worth the comfort and reliability we have leaving Oscar in some one else's hands.

FutureMrsMiller25 · December 2011

A friend from college last minute rebooked all their hotels to pet friendly ones... their honeymoon was a bit of a road trip so they just brought the dog along!

Blueyed228 · December 2011

We had a bad experience with boarding so we hire a dog/house sitter while we are gone.

People who are attatched to their pets and vice versa.

Re: People who are attatched to their pets and vice versa.

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