My pets really tie me down!

I have three...two rescued dogs and one kitty. I love them, and they really ARE a lot of company, but I'm also realizing how they limit my freedom. Shameful to admit, I know! I could travel a lot more if they didn't need me. When I ponder finding homes for them, I realize no one else would care for them as I do: making sure their medical needs are met, seeing that they are free of parasites like fleas and ticks, keeping them in a safe environment where they are not tied up!, feeding them, loving them, letting them sleep with me! I adopted Fozzie, the Golden mix at 8 weeks old, and he's like my child. The older female dachshund, Feather, is blind, but so sweet and loving. Yellow Kitty, my Maine Coon cat is the sweetest cat I've ever owned. Realizing all of this, I admit I do feel stifled and limited. Even moving to a new location is daunting. One has to find a pet-friendly neighborhood. I've worked for years (literally) to make my yard escape-proof!
Okay...so that's my rant. I just wonder if anyone else has the same feelings!

You're not alone. I wouldn't trade my Loki (bird) for anything, but I worry, what if my boyfriend and I decide to go our separate ways. I don't know if I could take him with me, because my boyfriend paid for him and I don't think he'd let me take him. Loki likes me better, in that he lets me pet him more and I give him far more attention. But I also feel a little limited, because I can't travel somewhere for several days, because I know he'll miss me and be worried and I feel guilty leaving him. So, I won't go anywhere where I'll be gone for more than two or three days.

I also want dogs, and I want them to sleep with me, but at the same time, I really like having my bed to myself. I like being able to sleep most days however long I want. If I had a dog, I'd commit to walking it and playing with it, and taking care of all its needs. I admit I'd miss some of my freedoms, but it's worth it, to me. You don't need to be ashamed of how you feel, because we don't choose our feelings, only our attitudes. Having others who depend on you can sometimes feel limiting and trapped. (((seeker1950)))

Editing this to add one more thing: Even parents often feel "tied down" because of their children. This doesn't mean they don't love them, but it's a reality that even moms and dads feel that way.

Seeker, I have definitely had similar feelings. I'd really like to be able to travel, but the critters make it difficult. I not only have cats and dogs that need tending, I've got the horses. Finding someone competent to look after them is daunting.

Maven pegged it when she said that parents can feel the same way abouth their kids.

For me the bottom line is that I would not trade the daily pleasure my fur family brings me for the freedom of not having to care for them. My life would be so empty without them.

Thank you, Maven and LizardLady! I was afraid to come back on here and see if there were any responses to this post of mine! I felt I was sounding too selfish! My pets are all so very sweet, but they sure do limit what I can do! Not only the limitations of travel, but if you take care of pets the correct way, there is the financial obligation! And I certainlly do that also! That is another reason I know no one else would go to the expense that I do to keep the pets healthy....and I'm not one of those people who run to the vet often, but just keeping them parasite free and shots is expensive. Food for three pets is also expensive, and I don't even go for the high-end expensive foods. I don't feed them garbage dog and cat foods, but what I do buy is expensive: Purina 1 and Alpo canned for the dogs and Purina Indoor Cat for kitty. I've been pondering retirement, and I realize this will be a major expense to a limited income.

I'm in the middle of going through a divorce and right now am the only person taking care of 5 big dogs, 5 alpacas, 5 turkeys, 17 sheep, 4 goats, several chickens and a 3-legged cow. I enjoy interacting with them and they bring a smile to my face, but it's too much for me and I know I'm going to have to let some/all go. It breaks my heart, but that's just life, y'know.

I guess this is why they say that pets teach you responsibility. They're almost like children because you are in charge of a precious life.

Maine Coons are an excellent breed of cat. I had this cat a few years ago which looked something like a Maine Coon but in all honesty it was so oddly proportioned, it was about s wide as it was long and i just called it the blob. It wasn't fat, it was just a robust looking cat. Anyway i digress.

Tell me about it!

I have 27 sheep, 6 chickens, 3 dogs and a horse. I ain't never leavin the house!!!!!

The sheep were my husbands idea but I have to take care of them. Now I have to have a Livestock Guard Dog to guard the sheep from the coyotes and Herding Dog to move the sheep.

Same with the chickens, all his idea.

And the horse was my wedding present, again, his idea.

The only animal that was my idea was Oliver...

C and Oliver (my Service Dog)

I feel extremely limited in my activities due to Kitteh...he had such a rough start, abandonment issues, and being cooped up in that cage for a year, so he acts out. I was hoping I could harness train him so we could take walks (common for his breed) but he wants nothing to do with it. He cannot deal with feeling restrained. Even just holding him and giving him lovies lasts a few seconds. And he doesn't like going in the car, either.

I feel so responsible for his healthcare, comfort and well-being. I cannot imagine life without him. My other beloved kitteh didn't LOVE staying overnight at the animal doctors but I knew if she did, she wouldn't freak out. This one, he will totally freak out!

But he takes a lot of energy out of me and sleep. Also, he is expensive to maintain (on a good month): Just his food (Science D), toys, bottled water, newspaper, swheatscoop, flea treatment, L-Lysine tablets and calming diffusers (2 to 4 a month) run me a couple hundred a month. Just for a lil 17 lb ball of furry love!

(He is an indoor kitty so thankfully I don't have to worry about running him to the vet every 5 seconds. But he does go annually for his boosters and a check up which also adds to the tab)

He is so high maintenance, too. I didn't know a kitteh could behave so dog-like. And to think...based on his health, lifespan, lifestyle, etc. we will be together for another 15 years or so...I hope my salary improves a teeny bit

Yes, I was just reading a fiction book. There was a cat in it that no one wanted to adopt after its owner was killed. (Well, it was a mystery book.) One lady was saying, "Well, the cat is only two years old--and cats can live twenty years or longer! That's a major commitment!" At least we can legally not be responsible for children after the age of eighteen!

I'm glad we have a neighbor who can look after our pets when we need to leave town for awhile.

Yes, our pets are truly a commitment. I think, sometimes, my weariness is an example of my lack of commitment, re/relationships, i.e., marriage. But you can leave a man; you can't really leave a pet! That said, now, after hearing some of your stories on here, I feel like I have a "light" load!
I mean...sheep?!!! horses!...alpacas! (bubsmiley).

IT...the cat you had does indeed sound like a Maine Coon!

My Yellow Kitty is inside-outside. I've tried keeping him inside all the time, but he becomes destructive, knocking lamps over if he can't get out. I bought this house on a quiet street near woods because I hoped he'd be safe. At the time of moving here, I had two Maine Coons, brothers, and one of them was poisoned while outside. I know this was my mean neighbor who hates cats. Thankfully, my nice neighbors across the street keep Yellow Kitty when I'm at work, like his second home, letting him out when I pull into the driveway of my house. I also keep him inside at night, but he will wake me up mid thru the night by romping on me or knocking over a lamp. So, I've learned, much to his dislike, to put him in the attached garage after a little bed time together!

Some kittehs are meant to be outdoors. No matter how much we want them to be in so we can keep an eye on them AND save on vet bills, they insist on being outside. It becomes a battle that Kitteh wins. (they are so smart. Simply by wearing us down, they get what they want )

Ohhh honey, I am so sorry about your mean neighbors. That is awful. I would be so sad And I am glad you have nice neighbors that help look after Yellow Kitteh. I wish I had a garage. I would put Kitteh in there, for sure.

We have orange kitteh in the neighborhood. He belongs to a house that has had a few tenants over the years. I'd say he is over 11 years old now! The last person that Orange Kitteh adopted moved across town and James loved Orange Kitteh and brought him with him to the new house. Well, kitteh didn't like it much and kept coming back to our neighborhood (he even had to cross a couple of major streets to get back!).

So the nice neighbors on the block take care of Orange Kitteh and love him and feed him and give him shelter. And look after him. He pretty much owns the neighborhood!

(I would worry endlessly if Bengal Kitteh was outdoor cuz he hasn't any front claws thanks to his previous owners (they were more concerned with their furnishings). If he were to go out, he would probably turn wild again and go for the jugular with the other kittehs if they went for him. But he would get roughed up Especially now that it's spring and lots of cooped up kittehs are outside. I worry about the cars mostly. We live in a beach community and people are zipping around 24/7. And not paying attention at all. they just want to get home).

I used to know a girl in high school who had like umpteen dogs, horses and probably a bunch of other animals I don't remember. She'd even been kicked in the head by a horse!

You always hear about pet overpopulation as far as dogs and cats are concerned, but I would like to know if there's overpopulation of other pets. It seems likely...hamsters, gerbils, (pet) rats and other animals like that frequently have many babies per litter, so I wouldn't be surprised. I know there is probably overbreeding of rabbits, too. There used to be a rabbit rescue place in my county, but I guess it failed because it closed down. I'd hoped to one day adopt a rabbit there.

I am mostly anti-breeding for dogs, cats and overpopulated pets, although I remain open-minded for possible good reasons to breed despite overpopulation. I've heard of breeding to try to weed out health issues in certain breeds, but it seems to me you'd have to stop certain breeds altogether. Dogs and cats with squished-in faces are adorable, but they tend to have breathing problems. So, you'd have to stop making cats and dogs with that look. I understand wanting to keep each breed alive, but again, we're overpopulated, and it saddens me that so many people choose to buy from breeders instead of adopting from a shelter. I also think many breeders are only in it for the money (especially those sick jerks running puppy mills), and others sincerely love the breed, but are perhaps uninformed as to how they're worsening the problem. Having said that, I don't think people who buy from breeders are bad people; I like to assume they love their pets, no matter where they came from.

My boyfriend and I were just talking about this the other day, because we have to leave town for about a week soon-ish. We decided to start looking for a "pet-sitter" in the end. I don't know if you have those where you live, but here there's a small firm that puts pet owners in contact with certified pet-sitters (though I have no idea how one becomes "certified" in that ) so pet owners can travel.

I know it can be scary to give the house keys to a complete stranger, but for us at least we have the firm guaranteeing that the person they send is 100% "clean and honest". If that falls through, we'll probably asked one of my friends to come round every day to give our cats food and water and throw out the litter, and also give Little Fluff her weekly bath (I don't envy them for that -.-).

Not only am I tied down with my 4 horses, I am farm sitting at the moment so we have the farm owners 4 adult cats and 6 kittens, their 2 dogs, rabbit, and 14 horses that are on property. Luckily that's the only animals they left, they have a couple more horses, a goat, a cow, 3 more dogs, rats, and a donkey. The others are filiming with them at a movie. We honestly couldn't go anywhere even for a night if we wanted to :/ darn animals!

I do have the wonderful neighbors across the street who would gladly come over and feed my pets if I go away. Mentally, though, I don't feel free to do so! I feel they NEED me! Little Feather, the 12 year old blind dachshund whom I rescued last year, actually gets sick with diarrhea
when I go away. I even pre-mixed their food so there would be no change in their diet the one time I did travel. She's afraid of men, and the husband was the one who fed them. (The wife went with me.) He had to clean up poop from everything she came into contact with. I think this is because she's been abandoned and mistreated so much in her life, being used for breeding primarily.
Anyway...if I do have to travel, or choose to travel, I have that source of care for them.

Seeker, I don't believe it's a sign of lack of commitment. I believe it's something most pet parents experience. We get tired. We want a break. It's human.

C Oliver, have you considered getting a donkey to keep the coyotes away? I realize it sounds like yet another animal to care for, but they are very low maintainance and will kill any coyotes that come around.

Lizardlady, donkeys kill coyotes??? I did not know that. Of course, I don't know much about burden animals and cattle. I would fear living in an area where there are coyotes, because of the horrible stories I've heard of them killing pets. I would not leave my pets outside and alone if I lived somewhere like that, but now you've given me another tool I could use...I just have to learn how to care for a donkey! Not that I want to kill coyotes...I hate the killing of any animal.

We have a wonderful Livestock Guard Dog that is working great for us plus he won't eat the grapevines that the sheep are grazing underneath and the sheep dog can go under the vinerows where the donkey could not.

Our dog Gaius is AMAZING, he has a deep low bark and really scares the coyotes away but doesn't bother us while we are sleeping. I can hear it because I am attuned to it but it doesn't bother me it gives me a little peace that he is out there doing his job. My husband doesn't even hear it. It is the perfect bark.

And he is amazing with the sheep and the lambs and chickens. He really thinks he is one of them. It is so cute!

C Oliver, have you considered getting a donkey to keep the coyotes away? I realize it sounds like yet another animal to care for, but they are very low maintainance and will kill any coyotes that come around.[/QUOTE]

I also feel tied down and stressed with responsibility when I am looking after the parent's farm while they are away. They have about 40 animals, including sheep, chickens, goats, pigs, cats, a dog, etc.

It's a lot of responsibility. Not only do I have to feed them but some animals have to be locked in at night or they will be eaten by the foxes.

Oh, and i was minding my own business one day at the farm and i turned around and there was a stray dog right in front of me. I was too scared to try and scare it away in case it attacked me so I slowly made my way to the house, and then when i reached the door I yelled at it and clapped my hands and it just trotted off.

What kind of LGD do you have? We are using Great Pyrenees with much success too. There are a few stay dogs in the "neighborhood" and our 2 Pyrs keep them away, as well as the foxes, raccoons and yes, coyotes. They truly deserve their reputation as gentle giants for the way they interact with "their" flocks, but give how large Gus is, I wouldn't want him to be angry with me!

Maven, I live out in the boonies. Many of my neighbors raise cattle. They have all gotten donkeys to deal with the coyotes. We have a horrible problem with coyotes in this area. I don't allow my cats outside because of the coyotes and packs of roaming dogs. I don't worry about the horse because they are big boys, no way a coyote could take one of them down. I also don't worry about my dogs because Ivan, the Rottie, can hold his own. Al, the Lab, killed a coyote last fall. Beats me how he did it. Al is about eleven zillion years old, half deaf, stove up with arthritis and senile. In spite of that he killed a coyote!

Gaius is 1/2 Spanish Ranch Mastiff, 1/4 Italian Maremma and 1/4 Polish Tatra.

The mix is a special mix called a 'Tripple Cross' designed for small ranches where the dog is supposed to guard very close to his flock. He came from a ranch similar to ours that is VERY knowledgeable in LGD. I was very lucky to find him. I got him as a pup and he was raised with our flock.

My husband did a short video for jeep that has our sheep and Gaius in the first 30 seconds of the video if you would like to see it and if it links up ok...

I loved that commercial! I wanted to hug the sheep and pet Gaius and run and play with them all! That's your hubby? Tres cute! (Sorry, don't know the code to put the proper accent over the French "tres"!)