I recently left the military because I didn’t enjoy my job. I had decided 1 1/2 years before my contract ended I was getting out to do something I enjoy.
Instead I got a dog and a job from 2pm to 11pm.
Not only did I ruin this dogs life I took all the freedom away that I just got after leaving the military. Now it’s the two of us in a small apartment until I leave for work. When I get home I have to clean up the mess he made because I have no friends or family who can watch him. I have no time to get food or essentials from the store. The only thing I’ve had to eat in two days is a chicken sandwich and a coke. I feel bad because he could have gone to a family who works from home and has a big yard. But instead he got me, a starving boy who can only take care of him for half the day
I had friends in the military, now I have none. I moved in with my parents after I got out but I wanted to be independent so I got an apartment. Now I feel more alone than I have in my whole life. I can’t go and see them because my dad hates dogs and we are off work at different times. I can’t go make friends because I’m taking care of the dog or going to work. I don’t know what to do if I get rid of the dog I’ll have less on my plate but he might never get a family, and with no dog I’ll be even more alone. I’ve been thinking of running away, pushing my car into a lake and running away. Or jumping off the roof of my building, five stories would do it. I don’t know what to do, if I run I’ll need money soon if I jump it feels like I’m quitting.
It sounds like you are going to a very difficult period of adjustment. Starting a new life can be a lonely thing, and it can take a while to make friends.
Of course I don’t know much about your situation, but it sounds like creating a schedule for yourself might be helpful. For example, grabbing some groceries on your days off, or going to or from work. When I was single, I had a dog and a cat. They really enjoyed each other. Dogs do need time and attention. Taking walks with the dog is very helpful, and you can teach the dog the usual commands, such as sit, stay, come, etc.
People use to paper train their dogs, but newspapers are pretty much a thing of the past. These days, people go to pet stores or department stores and get “training pads.” I think some of them are pre-scented to encourage a dog to do their business on them. If you want the dog to use a pad rather than poop and pee all over, it’s important to thoroughly clean up the poop and pee from the floors, and use odor remover which is also available where pet supplies are sold. Way back in prehistory, when I was young, newspaper was easy to come by. My approach was to smear a little pee on the newspaper, along with a turd or two. Doing that, along with placing the dog on the newspaper if I saw it preparing to poop or pee, resulted in the dog using the newspaper instead of the floor. Another possibility is crate training, but the dog needs to be old enough to hold his poop and pee for several hours. Dogs don’t like to poop and pee in the same place they sleep. Therefore, if they are taken directly from the crate to outside, where they can eliminate, housebreaking becomes almost automatic – usually. If the dog really does turn out to be unmanageable, maybe you can find another home for it.
I think if you hold off on running or jumping for a while, you will have time to figure out how to make your life more manageable.
I sort of liked working afternoons because my natural circadian rhythm has me staying up late, then sleeping till 10 or 11. The only problem is that a lot of businesses are closed after 11, and it’s easy to just hang around the house until it’s time to go to work at 2 PM. At that time, I ate out a lot or ate easy to prepare stuff or frozen dinners at home.
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Thank you for the advice I had a heart to heart with myself and found a store that is 24hr
I went after work and got food and cleaning supplies and some bully sticks to keep my dog occupied while I cleaned and cooked. I’m not sure why I got so worked up for the first couple days but after I took a step back to look at the whole situation I realized it isn’t impossible to make it work. It’s just nice to hear it from other people.
I’m so glad to hear that you’ve found the energy and taken the initiative to help yourself and your dog. You’re 100% right in saying that you are able to make this work. I hope you give yourself a pat on the back and are proud of yourself for your efforts yesterday/today (because I’m proud of you)!
Thank you for the update (and original post). If anything is on your mind in the future, please don’t hesitate to make another post. You rock!
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