If you have a busy life filled with work and personal commitments, you might wonder whether you have enough time for a pet. Is it fair to bring a pet home with you when you know that you’re going to have very few chances to spend time with them and give them attention, showing you how much you care? Don’t forget that animals are often very sociable and need a lot of care and attention. If they don’t receive this, it can be a problem for you and them. Animals who don’t receive enough attention often become either destructive or depressed. Neither are particularly pleasant. Before we look into how to handle a busy schedule and a pet at the same time, it’s important to understand that this is possible. There are many people who have busy work lives, families and still have a pet waiting for them when they get home. Having a pet can be incredibly beneficial. If you’re single, it can provide you with much-needed companionship. It can also help young children learn responsibility and become an integral part of the household. But, there are a few things that you’ll need to consider before you get a pet when you live a busy life. 

What’s The Right Pet For You?

Not every pet is going to be suitable for you if you have a busy working life. For instance, if you get a dog, you don’t want to get a breed like a lab or a big dog like a husky. Both of these animals require a lot of exercise. If they are forced to stay inside for most of the day, they are going to be miserable and again destructive. A lot of owners are angry when they come home after four, five or even eight hours to find their dog has destroyed a room and made a mess around the house. But what else what you expect? If you leave a dog alone like this, it will be incredibly bored and having nothing to do. Smaller dogs are often better, particularly if your home doesn’t provide much space to roam and run freely. However, they can still get depressed, and even if they aren’t destructive, that doesn’t mean they are happy. One of the solutions might be to get two dogs. That way, the pet will have some companionship through the day, even when you are not there. However, dogs do tend to fight even through playing and if you’re not there to break it up, it can grow out of control. A smaller pet might be a better option or even one that is nocturnal. Snakes tend to sleep through the day and as such require very little attention. So, if you don’t mind late nights, this could be a great pet for you. Or, how about a cat? Here you can get the best of both worlds because cats are both independent and on occasion like attention. A cat is perfectly happy being left alone and as such can be left for a few hours at a time. As such, it might be one of the best pets to get if you constantly find yourself working late at the office. 

Using Tech 

Tech can help you look after your pet even when you are busy. One of the biggest problems for not being there through the day is that you won’t be there to feed your pet. But that issue is solved with automatic feeders. If you want to feed your cat, you can set this up, fill it with food and then it will open at certain times to give the cat it’s meal. This is a great way to avoid your cat devouring their food at the start of the day and getting hungry later. It also gives them the sense that someone is there looking after them. How about play. It is possible to play with a dog without being there. You can get a mobile controlled ball thrower. Some ball throwers you can now buy can be controlled remotely. This means that you don’t have to be in the room or even the house to set them off. Others have cameras so you can see your pet and they might even have a speaker. That way, your dog will be able to hear you talking to them. It’s another clever way that tech has allowed pets to be part of a busy family life. While the tech isn’t quite as advanced as it needs to be it’s starting to get there. 

Letting Someone Else Look After Them 

If you don’t want to leave your pet alone through the day, you might want someone else to look after them for you. There are play of daycare options for animals as well as private dog walkers. You just have to make sure that you pick a company or individual who you can trust. A lot of people who look after pets privately may not have the same standards of care that you do for your animal. The best way to research this is to check reviews online and make sure you ask how the animals are looked after and where they are kept. You certainly don’t want to leave your animal in a place where they will be in a cage all day. 

Making Time

Of course, the most important point is that when you do get home and have a moment to spare you spend it with your pet. It’s easy to forget about your furry friend once you get home after a long day of work. You might just want to relax, crack open a cold one and watch the tube. But you have to remember that your pet has probably been waiting for you all day. Make sure you dedicate an hour or two to them, giving them the exercise and excitement they need to stay happy and healthy.