Dog

[Guest oliver5]

For all of you med students out there, do any of you have a dog? I do and I'm a little concerned he's going to become completely neglected...so I'm thinking of giving him to my parents but I'd hate to have too! He's such a great stress reducer! So... do any of you have dogs?

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hey there,

 

A couple of my classmates, at least, are dog-owners and from what I can see they really appreciate their pooches. As far as I can tell, the dogs don't seem to be a hindrance at all. In fact, a few times I'd considered adopting a wee doggie this past year as, among other things, dog-walking would be a great way to de-stress.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest 007]

I too want a dog in the near future if possible. How have people dealt with a dog's walking needs vs. time constraints during clerkship and residency? Do the people that have dogs have backup walkers?

[Guest satsumargirl]

Hey,

 

I am not in med school. But as a working person (i.e with much more free time than a resident...and probably a med student but my time is less flexible than a med student) I would not get a dog because I would not have time. Not fair to the dog. Some people at work have dogs and it's alot of work. Either they've moved close to the hospital to be able to get home faster to let the dog out at lunch, or they have flextime and can take an hour and a half say at lunch and work a little later. That won't happen in med school or as a resident.

Given that dogs need a schedule of walking and feeding I just think the unpredictable schedule of meds is not a good match. Unless you have a significant other that can help.

 

I had a cat as a student and he was fine 'cause I was home between classes and could devote to him a good amount of playtime. Then when I got to my last clinical placement (full time, and since I was a student had to prep for my cases, and had to finish my research and write a thesis....so I was averaging 4 hours of sleep/night for about 2 months, and I am not kidding that for 1 week I averaged 2 hrs sleep/night) and my cat started having some issues. He started some destructive behaviours such as chewing my bed corners, he would run and jump at the door when I'd leave in the morning, and when I got off the elevator (which is at the end of the hall) I could already hear him meowing his little head off. I FELT HORRIBLE!!! So I got him a kitten (she's 2 now) and they get along great! They do everything together and he is so much happier with a friend.

 

SO, if you dont' already have a dog, perhaps consider 2 cats. At least if you have to spend overnight at the hospital on call, you can leave out some food and they'll use the litter, and the 2 of them will keep each other company and give them someone to play with.

 

If you do have a dog already (I wouldn't want to give my dog away - if I had one, and I really would love one -to even a family member) perhaps you could work out sending to dog to a doggy day care at least once a week. One of my friends did that for her dog when she was a student. She felt guilty about not being able to give him as much time, and he was a little low. But the day away each week, with other dogs and out in the country really helped his mood and behaviour. It helped her feel less guilty too!

 

Also, for those who don't have dogs and who want one...you can always sign up with your local humane society to take dogs that they don't have room for (or cats or bunnies or whatever). There are pros to this...their food etc. is paid for (great for student budgets) and the commitment is temporary. Cons...you don't get to keep the cute little things. BUT good to try out maybe to see if a permanent dog is something you can manage.

 

I wonder if I could take care of a horse and go to med school! (ha!ha!...I wish but I doubt it!)

 

Cheers