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    “I Remind Myself They Need A Break From Me, Too”: Dog Owners Are Sharing How They Alleviate "Dog Parent Guilt" We All Feel Whenever We Have To Leave Our Pups At Home

    I won't admit how many times I've canceled plans so my dog won't be lonely.

    Whenever I leave the house to go out with friends, I spend the first hour chatting, laughing, and genuinely enjoying the moment — until I randomly start to hear "In the Arms of the Angel" play in my head and I imagine my dog at home all alone, looking depressed and forgotten like the dogs in those commercials. Before I know it, I'm overcome with guilt and driving back home.

    Even as I write this, my dog is curled up next to me. I'm lucky enough to work from home and have the blessing of hanging out with him all day, but I can't take him with me everywhere I go when I do have to leave. I always make sure he isn't hungry or needs to go outside before I leave, but I still feel that dog owner guilt emotionally even though logically I know his needs are met.

    author's dog with caption, "my dog (cannoli)" "I'm supposed to leave THIS face???"
    Kelsie Hammond

    I know I'm not the only one who goes through this. While I was recently scrolling through the r/dogs subreddit, I found a thread where u/whitemamba24xx asked, "How do you leave your dog and not feel massive guilt?"

    Some dog owners gave the advice to solve their lonely dog problem by adding another dog into the mix. It's pretty solid advice because your dog is less likely to be ~lonely~ if they're not ~alone~:

    "I got my dog a dog."

    —u/cuter_than_thee

    "I have two dogs, and they keep each other company."

    —u/FreetheVs

    "Another dog! It was a bit sad watching our girl sleep or wander around while we were at work and perk up anytime anything happened outside. We let her pick out a brother, and they have such an amazing friendship. When we’re not home, they play and do zoomies all over the place, then they flop down and either nap snuggled up together or in their own space. They’re like Bonnie and Clyde, and it’s so fun to watch…when they’re not getting into trouble."

    —u/blklab16

    Getting another dog could be a helpful idea in the long term if you're able to patiently put in all the time needed to get them acclimated to their new space before you start leaving them at home. However, another dog might not be realistic for everyone considering it's a very expensive and time consuming choice to make, not just something you can do willy nilly.