Should I get a dog when I retire? 8

Retirement Stats, Studies, and Stuff

By Mariella Vigneux, MBA, ACC
Certified Professional Coach

My partner, Mark, wants to get a dog when he retires.  He’s not pushing the idea, but I know he’d love to get a puppy.  We had a black lab for 12 years, lovely Maggie, the best dog you could ever imagine. I know the heartwarming, laughter-filled days of dog ownership.  Yet, my gut clenches whenever Mark talks of getting another one.  My head is filled with all the negatives.

I’ll try to be objective here, though – to look at both the positives and negatives of getting a dog in retirement.

Pat Sable’s paper titled The Pet Connection: An Attachment Perspective concluded that it’s no longer myth or conjecture: pets bring huge positive benefits to their “human parents”:

 Our pets, especially dogs and cats, provide proximity, and prompt positive feelings such as joy and laughter that make people feel less alone and lonely; in other words, they furnish a component of attachment that promotes well-being and security, as well as affording opportunities for caregiving and commitment.

 It must be true, for about 35% of Canadian households have a dog, and 38% have a cat. (Ipsos Reid)

Fit as a fiddle in only 140 minutes a day

Today it’s raining – freezing sleet – and our country roads are thick with mud.  A dog means dog walks. Usually two a day. A study on the benefits elderly people gain from interaction with dogs detailed the time spent per day on dog walks:

Elderly dog owners with a backyard spend an average of 100 minutes per day walking their dogs, whereas elderly dog owners without a backyard spend an average of 140 minutes.

These walks provide great health benefits.  All that bending to scoop the poop keeps us limber and strong.  Pets can be very good for our health, as indicated in a New York Times article titled Pets of the Golden Years:

The growing belief that pets are not just good, but good for you, may make ownership more appealing to retirees. Some studies find that pet ownership can help reduce blood pressure, triglycerides and cholesterol while increasing one-year survival rates after a heart attack, according to Alan Beck, a researcher who is the director of the Center for the Human-Animal Bond at Purdue University.

Another study, shows that older pet owners gain a physical advantage from interacting with their pets:

…surveys carried out since the 1980s, both at home and abroad, showed that pet owners had a lower risk of falling ill, suffered less from cardio-vascular diseases, were happier overall, and felt unwell less often.

Squirrel Damage

People can be injured by their pets.  It’s hard to hold back a dog once she’s spotted a squirrel.  Western Carolina University professor Mr. Herzog, as quoted in the same New York Times article, said that we don’t hear…

“…about the 85,000 or so people a year, many of them older, who go to emergency rooms with broken bones each year because of their pets.”

A friend of mine has taken to wearing long-sleeved tops to hide the scrapes she regularly gets from being dragged on the ground by her 1-year-old, feisty, male golden retriever.  This is their third golden retriever, but who knew this one would grow so big?  Who knew he’d have attitude? Who knew her husband’s back would give out, leaving her with full dog duties?

It’s not just dogs that cause injuries.  My mother-in-law was recently bitten by her cat.  Fortunately, she didn’t develop an infection.  We have two cats, one of which likes to lead the way down the stairs.  Some dark morning I fear I won’t see her.

Like a kid who never grows up

When deciding whether or not to have a baby, I took into account that I could end up raising the baby as a single parent, for whatever reason.  It just made sense to consider that possibility. I figured I’d have to want a baby enough to be willing and able to take that on.  The same is true when considering getting a dog… for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part.   And so the questions arise: would I outlive my dog and could I stand the grief of losing another Maggie?  Would my dog outlive us and who would care for her when we’re gone?

On a happier note, just like kids, one of the great things that dogs can give us, and what is fundamental in retirement, is routine.  You can set your watch by a dog’s routine.  Our Maggie would wake and sleep at set times, sit by her food bowl to remind us it was meal time, watch out the window for Mark to return from work each day, and come to remind me it was walk time.

On the flip side, my practical side asks: what happens to spontaneous adventures (without the dog), impromptu trips, and outings that you suddenly want to extend?  Dogs worry. They don’t like changes to their routine.  They are like two-year-old children, but they don’t grow up.  Having to arrange good care for Maggie when we went away was the hardest aspect of dog ownership for me.

The thing about dogs is that they monitor your every move.  It’s the ever present constant companion, always there, aware of your every move, in case it means it’s time to play, time to go for a walk, or time for a snack.  That’s a good thing, if you’re wanting to feel needed, loved, and the centre of the universe; it’s maybe not so good when you’ve reached the empty nest, retirement stage and are looking to spread your own wings. I can remember whenever I made a small noise in my home office upstairs – say, dropping my pencil – Maggie would tear out the dog door downstairs, run to the end of the driveway, and bark like mad at nothing, a dog defending her castle.  Oh, I’m not ready to take on another child!  Although I highly recommend that young couples get and train a dog.  If you can train a dog – using positive reinforcements, consistency, and limit setting – you’ve acquired the basic skill set you need for raising children.

You can’t beat a dog’s devotion

The human-animal relationship helps keep us happy and connected to the world around us.  I became a more understanding, giving, and tolerant person as I grew to know and love Maggie.  She gave me insight into the emotional lives of animals and an appreciation for the way dogs live so well – always in the moment, eager, looking for the next exceptional scent.  She got me out in nature, out talking to dog lovers and children, out in all seasons.

People who retire can feel lonely, having lost their friends from work.  Dogs give them a renewed sense of purpose, as well as a mechanism for connecting with new people.  Best of all, dogs know how to love you up.  I will never forget Maggie’s endearing eyes – caramel coloured, intent – locked on mine, conveying messages of earnest adoration.  And her tail wagging, tongue ready with great, wet kisses for all occasions.

Not only do dogs make people feel needed and loved, they distract them from distressing events and calm them when agitated.

But they cause some of that distress and agitation too.  They get lost, injured, and sick; they bark, don’t come when called, jump up on people, and pull on the leash – despite ongoing training.  They leave mud and fur on the seats in the car, wet rub marks on the couch, and gouges in the pine flooring.  We’re told that bad dog behaviour is the owner’s fault.  True.  I believe that if you don’t give a dog what it needs you’ll have a badly behaved dog.  But, I’m not perfect and I’m not a dog trainer.

For every positive there is a negative

So, let’s look at the positives and negatives of getting a dog in retirement.

Positives:

• Unconditional love
• Companionship
• Laughter
• Health benefits
• Modelling of good living – in the moment and eager
• Safety and security
• Stress relief
• Caring for something beyond yourself
• Routine
• Meeting other people
• Getting out places
• Acquiring the basic baby-raising skill set

Negatives:

• The difficulty of finding good care when you’re away
• Twice daily walks
• The constant companion – every move monitored
• Being tied to the dog’s routine
• Travel limitations
• It’s like having a child, one that doesn’t grow up
• Chance of injury
• Costs – annual average cost to own a dog in Canada is $2,601.
• Grief if the dog dies
• Our physical restrictions as we age
• You can’t count on your partner to care for the pet
• You may die before your dog

If I were an easy-going, mud-loving, devil-may-care type, I’d say, “Sure, let’s get another puppy.  Let’s get two!”  And that would be fun.  It really would be.  But… Mark’s second hip operation is pending.  I’ll need surgery on my feet someday.  And trying to be a dog trainer and mother again is maybe too much for me… at least at this point in the deliberations.

And what does Mark say?  “Love conquers all.”  Hmmm… Maybe retirement isn’t as simple as it appears.