I recently adopted a dog this semester! Her name is Winnie, and she’s a 5-7 year old chihuahua mix that I adopted from a rescue. I did this after much consideration and discussion with my housemates, and decided it was time for me to bring a new companion into the family. I’ve had her for about three months now, and she’s really settling in and becoming a central part of my daily routine. Shortly before I adopted Winnie, one of my roommates adopted a kitten named Reuben. We planned to get a cat and a dog that would get along, and they do! More recently, my other roommate adopted an older kitten named Remy, and he and Reuben became BFFs. Now we’ve got a full house with five human roommates and three animal companions.
Adopting pets has been a big change, a huge commitment, and something we’ve only been able to do now that we live off-campus. Some students do have animals in the dorms, but they’re required to be emotional support animals. So, this is definitely a perk of being off-campus. While having pets can be amazing and fun, I wanted to note a few things worth considering about adopting pets in college.
1. Expect the unexpected.
Last week, Winnie developed an eye infection and I had to take her to the emergency vet. They were very helpful, but it was so hard to see her in pain! She’s doing a lot better now, but I ended up having to rearrange my work schedule a bit so I could keep an eye on her. Stuff like this can come up unexpectedly with animals, and I’m glad that it happened at a time that I could get her right to the vet to get the care she needed.
2. How will pets influence your schedule?
This isn’t as much of an issue with cats (since you can leave them pretty much all day), but it can be tricker with dogs. When I first got Winnie, I wasn’t sure how long I could leave her alone before she needed to go out. While I still don’t like leaving her alone for long periods of time, she’s done well about not having accidents and letting me know when she needs to go out! But if you adopt a pet that needs more supervision (like a puppy!), will you have the time to come home between classes? Do you spend enough time at home? Good things to consider!
3. The long-term commitment.
Adopting any pet is a many-year commitment. As a small dog, Winnie will likely live for another 10+ years, meaning I’ll have her when I’m 30! I’m glad she’ll be with me for so long, and at the same time, I have to consider that this will impact my life and especially housing for a long time. Luckily, many pet-friendly apartments/houses allow cats and small dogs, so it won’t be impossible to find somewhere to live. This would be harder with big dogs! Having Winnie will also factor into my future life plans, like traveling, moving, and working.
Those are some things that I considered that helped me decide to adopt Winnie. Ultimately, all of these things felt like challenges during college, but things that I could manage when they came up. Pandemic pets can bring a lot of joy to our lives, AND we should remember that they’ll be around after the pandemic is over!