Pet Hostel/Pet apartments?

[rvwandering]

Southbound has restored all of urbankid's posts. Some of the topic lines were lost. I'll be restoring those but they'll be a little different since I can't remember the exact wording.
I will probably delete most of the comments about the removed posts.

 

[WanderingRose]

I still see his posts, but apparently missed the ones he has removed.

It is too common, really, for people to ask for feedback and then pounce on disagreement.

We’ve had a couple of those here recently, where posters then respond they will just take their toys and go home.

I remind myself there are a lot of walking wounded out there, to be patient and exercise tolerance.

Some days I do better at that than others.

 

[Ripper238]

Now with the OP posts restored i get what he was suggesting.

I too would love a Dog, but with my 9 hour days and traveling I simply cant allow my self. However with an affordable way to kennel a pet in a humane way with easy access this could change things. Really not a bad idea if we consider the alternative for so many animals is being abandoned/euthanized vs experiencing love from someone.

Is it better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all? Maybe.....

 

[Morgana]

Is it better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all?

To those who looked less kindly on the idea, I think it was less a question of having "loved and lost" and more one of being "locked in a coal cellar for half of every day by the person one loves, and being powerless to do anything about it or to even understand it."

"Loved and lost" would be more like the adorable stray dog that tried to follow me home from my walk last week. I was scared it was going to run out into traffic so I tried to discourage it. Even though I wanted to pet it. Stomp foot, turn around, cry, keep walking.

I debated calling animal control but what if there's no no-kill shelters around here? It seemed to be healthy and calm. It didn't have a collar, so I guessed it didn't have a human. It might have had a chip, but if not, then it would be stuck in animal jail. Probably better off on the lam ... or at least so it seemed to me at the moment. I never know what to do about that.

 

[RoamerRV428]

ahh leave The UK alone all, there are issues there all good on whatever goes down I would think

 

[vanbrat]

Now that so many people have jumped on U I'm going to stand on his side. So maybe it is not good to leave a dog in a kennel for too many hours. It sounds like he is trying to find things to make things work. I would like to have a place to leave my dog if I had to, that worked. Key fobs or whatever. If the kennels where open to an outside area or if they had enough room for my dog to be comfortable for however long it took for me to get back to him that would be better then having him locked in my car or even in my house all day. If there was someone around to make sure he was safe and if an emergency happened, they where around to help my dog that would be great. I know that is what a doggy daycare is, but right now they only seem to work at 'regular' business hours. And are really expensive. If there was a doggy daycare that allowed drop off and pick up at odd hours with a key fob that would work for so many people. We are fortunate that either one or the other of us has been able to be home or in the van with our doggy 99% of the time. But we also had dogs when we worked full time also and our dogs had to stay outside all day in all kinds of weather, (yes they had shelter), but sometimes we still need some one to care for the dog when we can't. Like when I was in hospital or when we had to fly out to family for an emergency. I don't think a mass crate stacking is the answer. If I had to drop my dog off and he was in a smaller kennel until a care taker arrived to take him to a bigger space as soon as the daycare 'opened' then that would be ok. When I was a kid we boarded horses in a stable that had similar thinking. You take care of your animal and his space and the barn owner only rented the space out. Why would this be any different? We went twice a day to feed, brush, clean up after our horses. I know dogs need more interaction then most horses and truth was our horses where spoiled rotten most days as only teen age girls can spoil their horses... Sounds like that is what U is looking for.
I know lots of people don't think twice about crating their dogs all day in their homes while they are at work or only letting them in the bathroom or such. Not that I think that is ok either. Sometimes ya just gotta make the best that ya can.
I know I am going to get jumped on for this but seriously folks......

 

[Morgana]

Why would you get jumped on?

Nobody jumped on the OP -- that person asked a question and got some civil answers, not all of which happened to be the answers they wanted, so they got mad and tried to delete their posts. I'm not sure if the rude language they used at that point was retained when the posts were restored. But if anyone has done any jumping here, seems to me it was the OP. And it also seems we've all survived it just fine.

No reason not to continue having the same civil conversation that was going on before.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

I agree with others: doggy daycare is about as cheap as you are going to get. And those already exist, from cheap to expensive depending on how good conditions you want your pet in. It costs over $300/day to have 1 minimum wage employee there around the clock.

Around me prices start at $20 for up to 12 hours (6am to 6pm) to $50/day and up depending on size of kennel and other amenities.

 

[RoamerRV428]

I know I am going to get jumped on for this but seriously folks......

nope, no getting jumped on.
somewhere to 'store our pets' is a big deal out on the road for sure There are definitely times ya gotta 'do something with them' when ya gotta do something with them in order to get on in our day!! I feel ya on that!

 

[Cammalu]

A dog in a cage all day can certainly lead to problem behaviors and seems cruel to me.

 

[WanderingRose]

He wanted feedback on a proposed housing situation that sounded like a storage locker full of kennels with what would undoubtedly be unhappy animals in them.

Minus a human present to insure safety and provide basic care.

IF one could get a permit for something like this, which seems doubtful, to me.

Moving into a vehicle, as a pet owner, to save money, was a choice he was looking at, per a different thread.

Adequate care for our pets is part of the lifestyle, whether we are working or not and one of the choices that goes along with it.

Every day, what I do and don’t do revolves around my dependent dog.

Vanliving may be a step he can take once he’s paid bills down and has some more flexibility with his cash.

The kind of shelter situation as he described is not something I would ever leave my dog in.

 

[Freelander]

Yes my dogs are my children and I treat as such. I would never lock them in a cage. The sleep with me in my bed every night, and free run on the RV.

They're furry, 4 legged little people.

 

[bebewanna]

I moved into the van with a 90lb Pit Bull who although not dangerous to people is after 10 years inside National Forest he is not socially acceptable and as well an escape artist.
I was walking to the shuttle, heard something behind me. He went through the glass in the RV... Next getting ready to leave one day he broke out the rear window of my Mercedes. Glass was in 1000 pieces.
I had a Range Rover in 39 inches of snow the motor blew. The only place I could safely leave the dog.
I have years of finished art work but cannot spend the day selling, for example at NM State Fairgrounds on weekends. Why, the dog.
I shop early in the morning now that Walmart is not open 24/7.

We are moving and at 10 years old he has a new big dog harness and 30 foot cable... First time he will ever be tied up, but only if I am there.

He is my protector and best friend but he makes things very difficult.

I think those doggie day care places where all the dogs are running loose and look happy would be OK if you have a pet that can get along like there and dog parks... But for some of us that is a non starter

 

[Bunpoh]

This is an important discussion.

I have been worrying a lot about how to leave my cats for even brief periods of time in our RV, once it's usable. I have no choice about moving into the RV, this is what we have,and i can't give them up.

Still at my parents while the mechanic works out all the bugs. A few days ago my partner came down with what is probably Norovirus (which I now have,and wow, is it miserable!) But since the symptoms can sometimes also be Covid, I scrambled to find a place to test and give him the new antivirals, if necessary (At home and the PCR tests were negative, in the end.) It ended up being an endless goose chase because we weren't told important info after making appointments, and were gone for hours. What would we do if we were in the RV and it was really hot out and there was no shore power? Can't leave a generator running,can you? I would consider cat boarding, but lots of places don't offer it.

I'm hoping I can find caravans to camp with where we can get others to cat sit and such. I can't imagine trying to work a job away from the RV and having pets. As for UK's proposed solution, people do crate their pets all day, which I can't even imagine. I agree with UK that it might be the lesser of two evils, but I also know I couldn't do it.

Maybe the answer really is community. Finding people who you can trade pet sitting duties with. Or coming up with community pet sitting services for a lower fee than doggie day cares and cat boarding?

 

[Frood]

There is absolutely NO problem with crating a dog. Unless the crate has been associated with punishment or is used excessively when you are home, then most dogs SHOULD feel safer in a crate... It's an enclosed place that is homey like a den or a nest. For humans, this is another matter entirely, but unless most canine have been trained to associate negative things with being crated (ie being crated just to get them out of your hair, or to punish them after they do something wrong) they will actually go to their crate or kennel when they feel stressed out or unsafe.

The problem with the original post is that with any self-serve option for something like this, you run into sanitary issues, issues of abuse or abandonment, and with people generally using it in a manner other than how it was intended. I can just imagine the one worker coming in to see a couple of 4-year old kids locked into one of the kennels while mommy went on a date and couldn't arrange s sitter. I mean, if there are parents who would leave their kids at Gamestop, then there are definitely parents who would . The other problem is that if this is a largely unsupervised facility, then what happens if there is a medical problem with one of the animals? What happens if someone comes in and breaks into other kennels and steals people's pets (not sure why this is a thing, but apparently pet-napping is less uncommon than you would believe).

Overall the original post wasn't so much a BAD idea as one that was not developed nearly enough...

 

[Bunpoh]

Yeah sorry, we're never gonna agree on crating. You tell me that keeping a 4 year old in a crate would be problematic, I agree. How is it different? Dogs and cats have feelings and are really smart. They're in a cage, confined, alone, unable to get up and walk around, be entertained, etc. I don't buy it's okay and never will. You can disagree and tell me how they love it and feel secure all you like. That's fine, go ahead and think it. I don't buy it. You've just trained them it's the only way to keep in your good graces, IMO. I've read all the arguments either way, I've been around it, etc. It's fine for me to decide it's not okay, I can't force you to think differently either.

I agree his solution was unteneble, but there may be some compromise solutions. We certainly could use some.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

We do keep young children in a 'crate'. What do you think a crib or playpen is? A constraint to keep them safe from harm while adults are getting some work done.

All my dogs had crates. It is their safe space, their room, their den. All of them would retreat to their crate when activities were a little too overwhelming for them or just to relax.

As to the OP's suggestion: as soon as you have human monitors the price goes up above his price range, to doggy daycare prices.

 

[Bunpoh]

We don't leave kids alone in said "crate." I wouldn't leave them for hours, all day at work or whatever. If you used the crate EXACTLY as you would a crib or playpen, maybe that would be okay by me. Sitting in the same room as them, coming in to help them if they cry or need anything,etc. I've seen parents abuse that as well. Just my opinion. If you feel fine about how it's worked for you, that's fine.

 

[Morgana]

I'd be curious what the research is, how recent it is, how much disagreement there is among people who study this, how exactly they study it, etc. I don't think we can take it as a given that different species are wired the same on this. (IOW the idea that dogs might be OK with this in some circumstances seems plausible.)

I remember being told years ago that hawks find it calming to be in a very tight, small container -- much more confined than a dog in a crate. (It was at an event for some kind of save-the-raptors nonprofit, that's all I remember.) I have no idea how people measure this stuff.

After reading Frood's post I realized that the big black cloud hovering over the OP's idea, for me, was largely about what humans could do to mess it up. Which they would, guaranteed. And I agree with Spaceman Spiff that having (adequate) human supervision would bump the price back up to regular dog-care levels.

Another problem is that if this is mostly supposed to serve nomads, you wouldn't need one shelter you'd need a whole network of them. Each adhering to a different set of state and local laws. And I don't think that would have a zepto-skosh of a chance. (Unless you can talk Elon Musk into financing it.)

Still wonder if there is some kind of solution for Bunpoh's question, which is more about emergency short-term boarding. Seems like that could be a way for local Humane Society branches to make a little money ...