How to Leave Your Dog Alone While You’re on Vacation? (4 Tips)

If you are heading on a simple camping trip, you can take your dog on vacation and not worry about their well-being while you relax and enjoy your time. However, if you want to head to a different state or country and stay in a hotel or vacation home, you will likely need to leave your beloved pooch behind. The thought of leaving your dog alone while on vacation is probably scary.

Your pooch cannot take care of themselves while you are away. How would they eat or use the restroom? Your home would probably get ruined and your pooch could get injured. So, how do you leave your dog alone while you are on vacation without risking their safety or the integrity of your house? There are a few options to consider.

The 4 Best Ways to Leave Your Dog For a Vacation:

1. Hire a Dog Sitter

If your pooch is used to spending time at home alone while you are away at work every day, you can hire a dog sitter to stay at your house from evening to morning, until you return from vacation. The dog sitter can help maintain your dog’s regular schedule by feeding them at the same time every night and morning, walking them every day, and keeping them company as you would. Your dog sitter can still work or enjoy a social life throughout the day, making the job of caring for your dog convenient for everyone.

2. Collaborate With Your Neighbors

If you cannot find a dog sitter to stay with your dog every night or your dog is not used to staying at home alone, reach out to your neighbors and see if you can get them to share caretaker responsibilities while you are on vacation. One neighbor can stay with your dog during the day, while another keeps the dog at night. If enough neighbors are involved, one person can take your dog for each day during your vacation so nobody is put out too much, while ensuring that your pooch is never alone. You can return the favor when they go on vacation or offer thanks with homemade cookies upon your return.

3. Get Family Members Involved

If you are worried about leaving your dog with people they are not familiar with, turn to close friends and family members who have spent time with the dog. They can provide your pooch with a source of comfort and stability while you are away on vacation. Maybe your dog can be at a sibling’s home that they have visited before. A close friend who is thinking about getting a dog might want to dog sit for you to get an idea of what it would be like to own one of their own. It never hurts to ask around and see who might be up for the challenge of caring for your furry family member during your vacation.

4. Preparing Your Pooch for Your Departure

One of the biggest challenges of leaving a dog alone while going on vacation is preparing them for your departure. Your dog may just assume that you have left for work or to run errands when you leave, but they may become confused and feel stressed out if you do not return before bedtime that night. To prepare your pooch for your vacation, have them spend the night with the person who will be watching them or have the dog sitter come spend a night in your home with you.

This will get your dog used to being with their caretaker and allow them to experience situations that are not common in their everyday life. You can also provide your dog with an old shirt that smells like you and their favorite treats and toys before you leave, to ensure their comfort while you are away. Video chatting with your dog’s caretaker while on vacation will allow you to see and communicate with your dog so they know that you are still around.

Final Comments

We highly discourage leaving your dog alone without any supervision or outside care while you go on vacation. You never know what might happen! But that does not mean that someone must be there watching your dog’s every move when you can’t be. Having someone watch your dog overnight or in intervals throughout the day should be enough.

Hopefully, these ideas will help you put together a caretaking plan before it is time to head off on your trip. If you have any ideas, tips, or tricks that pertain to leaving a dog behind while going on vacation, we want to hear them! Just leave your thoughts in our comments section.

Featured Image Credit: Alexey Stiop, Shutterstock