Dog in grad school

[MicroRocks]

Hey all, I'm considering bringing along my 7 month pup to grad school once the Fall term starts. I've read positive and negative responses to this on the internet but was hoping I could get some input here as well. I'll be entering a geoscience program that is ok with me bringing her around to my office at least a few times a week. I also plan to live with roommates (who either love or also own dogs). Does anyone have experience with this? Will she just make me miserable? Or the opposite? Also, has anyone had this have a particular negative or positive effect on their social life?

[2017 Applicant]

5 minutes ago, MicroRocks said:

Will she just make me miserable? Or the opposite? Also, has anyone had this have a particular negative or positive effect on their social life?

This whole post makes me sad. It's questionable to get a dog when you know your near future is up in the air and you might not be able to take care of it, but to have a dog and then wonder if it's going to make you miserable? I wish you put more thought into this before you adopted the puppy. I hope if you choose not to keep the dog, then you actively look for a good home for it. 

 

 

[MicroRocks]

7 minutes ago, 2017 Applicant said:

This whole post makes me sad. It's questionable to get a dog when you know your near future is up in the air and you might not be able to take care of it, but to have a dog and then wonder if it's going to make you miserable? I wish you put more thought into this before you adopted the puppy. I hope if you choose not to keep the dog, then you actively look for a good home for it. 

 

 

Haha sorry, maybe miserable was a bit of an extreme word. I'll by no means be giving her away - WORST case she'll stay with my parents (where we currently are) for the first year of grad school. We get along great now and all my friends love her. My questions is more along the lines of: will it be very hard to care for her and meet people in a new city at the same time? She comes to work with me every day now and usually accompanies me to any happy hour and brunch outings. I'm just wondering if this will (for some reason) be more difficult in grad school and if anyone has direct experience with it and can give me some perspective of work life with dog vs grad school life with dog. 

[2017 Applicant]

I'm glad to hear that she'll have a loving home in either case. It sounds like you care for her a lot more than your first post implied, which is great. I can't specifically answer this question, since I've never had a dog in school (I want to adopt one, but I don't think I'd be able to give it enough attention right now). However, if your program is ok with you bringing her in every now and then, it sounds like you should still be able to do all of those things. In fact, I think grad school would be more flexible in terms of visiting her during the day than a full-time job would be.

I think your ability to take her to social events like happy hour will depend on how much free time you have based on your workload. And that's a completely separate question from anything dog related. I would ask students in the programs you're considering. I bet it will work out, though - after all, some people have kids in grad school. 

[rising_star]

57 minutes ago, MicroRocks said:

She comes to work with me every day now and usually accompanies me to any happy hour and brunch outings. I'm just wondering if this will (for some reason) be more difficult in grad school and if anyone has direct experience with it and can give me some perspective of work life with dog vs grad school life with dog. 

This is going to depend largely on your location. Where I did grad school, it would've been fairly easy to bring my dog along to happy hours, brunches, or the office (though not the classroom due to concerns about student allergies) because there were lots of outdoor patios and the area was dog-friendly. Where I live now, there are basically no places I can take my dog for happy hour or brunch. So, a lot will depend on location. 

Location will also matter for thinking about what you'll do with your dog over breaks, conferences, etc. I fostered dogs in grad school and always had roommates who were willing to pitch in with extra dog care when I had to travel for a conference or to see my family. I do fieldwork for my research so having a dog then would've been complicated (gone for 4-8 weeks at a time) but it's doable. 

In terms of having a dog in grad school, there are a few relevant previous posts:

There are also a bunch of posts on pets in grad school that may be useful.

[Pink Fuzzy Bunny]

I know plenty of grad students who have not only brought dogs to graduate school, but who adopted them in graduate school as well. One overarching theme is that the easier it is to commute home, the better it is having a dog - some first-years lived nearby and were able to go home at lunch to let their dog out and such, but other first-years had to miss homework sessions because it took them 45 minutes to go home to let their dog out. That's the major con - finding time to take care of it. Depending on the breed, it might also require a lot of socialization and play time which if you're working 15+ hours a day might be a little tough on time (I'm not telling you anything you don't already know I'm sure!)

That being said, I have yet to hear of a graduate student who regrets having a dog. I know a handful of students who adopted a dog just because it helped keep unhealthy work habits at bay (see: previous comment about working 15+ hour days). It helps with depression, anxiety, and general stress to have a friendly pooch who greets you when you come home!

It really comes down to this: will it make you happy for the dog to be there?

 

 

As a side note, I really can't in good faith condone taking your dog to your office unless she is absurdly well-behaved. A dog is distracting, and it's hard to make sure that everyone who is in the office (and/or will enter the office before it is cleaned) isn't allergic. Even if you and your officemates aren't bothered by a barking dog, it's hard to say that the people who are near your office won't be as well.

[EpiPhDGal]

I have 2 dogs and am currently in a master's program. I'll be starting a PhD next year. Dogs are a lot of work, as you probably already know, but I cannot imagine my life without my boys. I live pretty close to campus, so the first year I just made sure I came home every 5-6 hours to let them out. This year I actually hired a dog walker, which is basically where all my money goes. Nonetheless, I actually think having a dog in grad school is easier than having a dog in the "real world." I am not in a lab based program, so I can easily work from home. My schedule is pretty flexible, aside from having to be on campus for class, so it makes it easy to spend time with my pups. It also forces me to exercise and get out of the house (especially on the weekends, when I could easily stay in and work all day). Anyway, in sum, I think you can make it work-it just requires some trade-offs and sacrifices. 

[MicroRocks]

On 2/16/2017 at 8:06 AM, Pink Fuzzy Bunny said:

I know plenty of grad students who have not only brought dogs to graduate school, but who adopted them in graduate school as well. One overarching theme is that the easier it is to commute home, the better it is having a dog - some first-years lived nearby and were able to go home at lunch to let their dog out and such, but other first-years had to miss homework sessions because it took them 45 minutes to go home to let their dog out. That's the major con - finding time to take care of it. Depending on the breed, it might also require a lot of socialization and play time which if you're working 15+ hours a day might be a little tough on time (I'm not telling you anything you don't already know I'm sure!)

That being said, I have yet to hear of a graduate student who regrets having a dog. I know a handful of students who adopted a dog just because it helped keep unhealthy work habits at bay (see: previous comment about working 15+ hour days). It helps with depression, anxiety, and general stress to have a friendly pooch who greets you when you come home!

It really comes down to this: will it make you happy for the dog to be there?

 

 

As a side note, I really can't in good faith condone taking your dog to your office unless she is absurdly well-behaved. A dog is distracting, and it's hard to make sure that everyone who is in the office (and/or will enter the office before it is cleaned) isn't allergic. Even if you and your officemates aren't bothered by a barking dog, it's hard to say that the people who are near your office won't be as well.

Thanks for the response! It's good to hear that so many people have positive (although expectedly trying) with their dogs in grad school! I've definitely debated the bringing her into the office EVERY day issue. But I think she should be fine. She's a hypoallergenic breed that, post morning run, sleeps for about 5 hours straight. Very relaxed dog with minimal barking. Of course, if any of my office mates are uncomfortable with her, I'll have to make alternate plans with popping out to walk her at lunch breaks. Thanks for bringing it up tho!

[TakeruK]

30 minutes ago, MicroRocks said:

Thanks for the response! It's good to hear that so many people have positive (although expectedly trying) with their dogs in grad school! I've definitely debated the bringing her into the office EVERY day issue. But I think she should be fine. She's a hypoallergenic breed that, post morning run, sleeps for about 5 hours straight. Very relaxed dog with minimal barking. Of course, if any of my office mates are uncomfortable with her, I'll have to make alternate plans with popping out to walk her at lunch breaks. Thanks for bringing it up tho!

I don't want to push on this point too much, and maybe it's totally fine for the department you have in mind, but since it has not been mentioned before, I think I should at least bring it up. First, remember that it can be hard for some people to express their discomfort, especially if they don't want a confrontation with you. And, hypoallergenic doesn't mean it will be okay for everyone's allergies as each person is different. Maybe it's just me, but I always thought of workplaces as inappropriate for pets except for very rare cases when you have your own enclosed office (e.g. maybe your pet is sick and needs to be watched over for the day). 

I would say to get explicit permission from everyone before bringing your dog in, instead of waiting for someone to make a fuss about it. And when you do this, be sure to ask in a way that doesn't pressure people into agreeing with something they don't want. It's not even about allergies or barking, because I know a few people who are really uncomfortable around dogs (or animals in general) and people should have the expectation of not having to interact with your dog when they are at their place of work. Remember that your office is not just an extension of your own personal space. 

[rising_star]

As the owner of two dogs, I wholeheartedly agree with @TakeruK on getting people's permission. It may irritate people because they cannot do the same (can't bring a cat in, can't bring their children in, etc.). Think of it this way: if your colleague had a child and didn't want to pay for after school care, would you be okay with their six year old being in the office/lab with you for 2-3 hours every afternoon, five days a week, for months on end? If so, then it's worth considering that others may feel exactly that way about your dog.

For reference, I sometimes bring a dog with me to work, usually either at times of high stress for students (and will then tell students to come by to pet the dog if they need to de-stress) or because the dog is sick (two weeks ago, I had a dog with a serious UTI which meant issues with urinating in the crate because of an inability to control its bladder). I know, from having talked to all of my coworkers, that it's no big deal to them if I have a dog in the office for a few hours. In fact, I get requests from coworkers to bring a dog in more often because they like petting and having a dog around. But, like I said, I've asked and made it clear that the dogs can and will stay at home if there are any issues or problems. Also, it isn't every day (honestly, I'd be annoyed if anyone brought their dog in every day, which is on the list of reasons I don't do it personally) and usually isn't for more than four hours on any given day.

To accommodate the dogs' need for exercise, I have a dogwalker come and take them out 2-3 days a week so that I can stay at work and the dogs get the exercise they need. On the other days, I take care of it myself and I've planned my work schedule accordingly. I'm rarely gone for more than 6 hours and live a short (10-12 min walk) trip from the office. As others have said, having a dog has forced me to get exercise, go outside, work shorter hours, etc. I often say that the most important thing for helping me complete my MA thesis on time was fostering a dog that wasn't housebroken and needed a bunch of training. All of my reading, writing, coursework, and paid work were done in such a way that the foster dog could have regular bathroom breaks and training sessions. It worked for my stress and ensured the dog got the attention she needed.