What does it really mean to bring your dog to work every day?
Posted by Tina Hougaard posted on May 04, 2019
Many of us dog owners dream of having our beloved four-legged friend with us to work every day. This way they won't be alone for so long and our conscience and the ticking of the clock won't be as concerned about the dog.
But how does it actually work in practice if you were allowed to take your dog with you every day?
Before I became a full-time freelance dog trainer and teacher, I worked between 40-50 hours a week. And that was excluding transportation time to inner Copenhagen every single day.
Luckily, I had a fairly flexible work schedule where I could flex my time a bit. And I've actually been lucky enough that even though I've worked in an open-plan office, I've had my dogs with me on shifts at times. I think it says a lot about a workplace that there can be room for that.
First I had my very sick Ella with me for a couple of months. She lay quietly in her basket next to me - high on medication. When she was well I got a puppy and had him with me for a while until he could be alone every day. Then I had a young male dog in a house together with an intact female. So when she came into heat I took turns taking either one or the other to work.
There was always room for them to be with me. And today I sit in my own office with my partner Stine, where we have a total of 5 dogs in the office every single day.
But what does it actually require of the dog? What does it require of you? And what does it require of the workplace?
In my opinion, there are several things that come into play. First of all; the dog must be OK with many people - if there is one thing that attracts your colleagues, it is taking your dog to work. Next, all your colleagues must be OK with there being a dog at work (so they cannot have allergies) and your dog must be able to lie still for most of a working day and not bark. At the same time, it must also be able to handle people walking by who do NOT want to say hello.
It may seem like basic skills, but it's actually not. For many dogs, it will be a tough task.
When we get to my existing situation: we have 2 bitches and 3 males. Two of the males can't get along. That is, it takes a lot of getting used to before the situation is OK for everyone. This means that ours is currently closed off from each other and separated by child gates, etc. It can be a bit stressful for all parties at first. But with the right training and getting used to it, many things can be successful.
It requires that we take everyone into consideration. And we can see that Monday morning is the hardest - because then the dogs have been apart for a few days. Whereas Wednesday is a completely normal working day with peace and quiet, on both sides of the children's fence ;)
Below is a short video from the current workplace.
Behind the scenes of this week's blogger:
Tina Hougaard is a trained dog trainer, currently training to become a behavior therapist and is passionate about training, especially Nose Work, and runs PowerDog. She is the happy owner of the beautiful and cheeky Tibetan Terrier Pilou aka PellePirat, with whom she trains obedience, tricks and Nose Work.
Olli is the newest member of the house. A Malinois bitch who will hopefully also step her beautiful paws into LP, tricks and Nose Work.
What does it really mean to bring your dog to work every day?
Many of us dog owners dream of having our beloved four-legged friend with us to work every day. This way they won't be alone for so long and our conscience and the ticking of the clock won't be as concerned about the dog.
But how does it actually work in practice if you were allowed to take your dog with you every day?
Before I became a full-time freelance dog trainer and teacher, I worked between 40-50 hours a week. And that was excluding transportation time to inner Copenhagen every single day.
Luckily, I had a fairly flexible work schedule where I could flex my time a bit. And I've actually been lucky enough that even though I've worked in an open-plan office, I've had my dogs with me on shifts at times. I think it says a lot about a workplace that there can be room for that.
First I had my very sick Ella with me for a couple of months. She lay quietly in her basket next to me - high on medication. When she was well I got a puppy and had him with me for a while until he could be alone every day. Then I had a young male dog in a house together with an intact female. So when she came into heat I took turns taking either one or the other to work.
There was always room for them to be with me. And today I sit in my own office with my partner Stine, where we have a total of 5 dogs in the office every single day.
But what does it actually require of the dog? What does it require of you? And what does it require of the workplace?
In my opinion, there are several things that come into play. First of all; the dog must be OK with many people - if there is one thing that attracts your colleagues, it is taking your dog to work. Next, all your colleagues must be OK with there being a dog at work (so they cannot have allergies) and your dog must be able to lie still for most of a working day and not bark. At the same time, it must also be able to handle people walking by who do NOT want to say hello.
It may seem like basic skills, but it's actually not. For many dogs, it will be a tough task.
When we get to my existing situation: we have 2 bitches and 3 males. Two of the males can't get along. That is, it takes a lot of getting used to before the situation is OK for everyone. This means that ours is currently closed off from each other and separated by child gates, etc. It can be a bit stressful for all parties at first. But with the right training and getting used to it, many things can be successful.
It requires that we take everyone into consideration. And we can see that Monday morning is the hardest - because then the dogs have been apart for a few days. Whereas Wednesday is a completely normal working day with peace and quiet, on both sides of the children's fence ;)
Below is a short video from the current workplace.
Behind the scenes of this week's blogger:
Tina Hougaard is a trained dog trainer, currently training to become a behavior therapist and is passionate about training, especially Nose Work, and runs PowerDog. She is the happy owner of the beautiful and cheeky Tibetan Terrier Pilou aka PellePirat, with whom she trains obedience, tricks and Nose Work.
Olli is the newest member of the house. A Malinois bitch who will hopefully also step her beautiful paws into LP, tricks and Nose Work.