Signs Your Dog is Not Adjusting to Living Between Two Homes:
In an ideal world, living between two homes is something that all dogs would be able to do. This is not an ideal world, however, which is why some pooches may not be able to withstand the strain and stress that can be associated with living between two homes, while others can. This is why it is important to complete a trial session with your dog if having them live between two homes is something you are looking to accomplish.
That being said, there are signs that you will need to look for to determine if your dog is adjusting well to the new living conditions. The first, and most obvious, sign is changes in their temperament and overall behavior. For instance, if your dog is normally obedient and energetic, you would notice if they have become lethargic and unfocused in their new (second) home. If this is the case, it is clear, your pup is having trouble coping with the new living situation.
In addition to a changing temperament, it is also common for dogs to react to living between two homes by acting out behaviorally. You read right, dogs can be just as sensitive as children when it comes to reacting to stress, which in turn can result in them misbehaving in the new situation, most likely because they are acting out of fear. This misbehavior can manifest itself in a variety of ways, including relieving themselves in the wrong spot and destroying furniture or objects by chewing or biting them.
These are some signs you will notice when your dog is not adjusting well to living between two homes:
Some other body language signs to watch for in your pooch include:
The Science of Dogs Living Between Two Homes
You may be wondering why it is that dogs have trouble living between two different homes. Well for starters, this has to do with the fact that dogs are social creatures, and rather than becoming attached to houses, dogs actually have a tendency to become attached to humans. As a result, its not the actual new home that is detrimental to your dogs development, but it is the absence of the human they are most attached to.
In some cases, this could be avoided if you are living between the two homes with your dog (e.g., you and your dog visit your vacation home together every other week in the summer). It is likely in scenarios like this that your dog will take some time to adjust to the new living conditions, but because they are with you, the impact of living between the two homes is far less then if you were not there (e.g., you are sharing your dog with your partner between two homes).
Interestingly enough, research supports the notion that the bond between pet owners and their dogs are similar to that of a parent with their child. This bond between owner and dog is known as the secure base effect where the animal uses their pet owner to provide them with a base or basis for interacting with the world around them. The secure base effect is normally found in children, but recent research indicates this is also present in animals, including dogs.
As a result, canines behaviors are directly influenced by their owner. As you can imagine, if a dog is young and is being trained to live between two different homes, its likely they will be concurrently experiencing the secure base effect, meaning that they will have trouble in what ever home their secure base is not in.
How Do We Work Out Who Pays for What When We’re Doggy Co-Parenting?
Keeping a pet is a lot like having a child; it’s not cheap, but the reward is amazing! With this in mind, it’s vital for both parties in the co-parenting agreement to be fully on board, agreed, and happy about who will be paying for what.
A common checklist of expenses looks like this:
It’s common for people to split everything down the middle when it comes to costs, but there are other ways of organizing the money side of things. This is part of the fun of co-parenting, though, as you can always work it out on an individual basis.
Living With Tigers: Family Share Home With Pet Tigers
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Are you considering dog co-ownership? While this arrangement is most often seen in the show dog world, many people–either due to divorce, lifestyle constraints or financial reasons–consider co-owning a dog with a friend, former spouse or partner. We recently received a reader email that I wanted to share along with our suggestions on the subject of dog co-ownership.