RVing with multiple pets

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debtise

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Apr 18, 2016
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I'm new to this board and new to RVing. I did tent when I was growing up with my family.  Now, after 25 yrs of marriage, my husband being disabled and I having been unemployed for over a year, we are about to lose our home to foreclosure.  We have no children,  but do have 7 dogs,  a rabbit, cat and conure (bird). My concerns are a) the doxie wants to rip the cat a new one and b) we are over the limit of animals for most campgrounds.  We range from a Yorkie to German Shepherd.  We gave our word to rescue these animals & provide for them, which was fine when I was working,  but now I am trying to get disability and we need to take this show on the road. Does anyone have advice? We NEED to make this work in our 1999 Winnebago. Thank you!
 
debtise said:
Does anyone have advice?

At the risk of sounding cold-get rid of the animals. You seem to be in a situation where you are struggling to be able to take care of yourselves let alone 10 animals. Giving proper care to 10 animals is not cheap, and it isn't fair to keep them cooped up in an RV either. I can't see how 7 dogs could get enough exercise living in an RV. It's enough work to keep one or two exercised properly. I know you probably love your animals, but ask if what you are asking of them is the correct thing for THEM, not your feelings.
 
kdbgoat said:
At the risk of sounding cold-get rid of the animals. You seem to be in a situation where you are struggling to be able to take care of yourselves let alone 10 animals. Giving proper care to 10 animals is not cheap, and it isn't fair to keep them cooped up in an RV either. I can't see how 7 dogs could get enough exercise living in an RV. It's enough work to keep one or two exercised properly. I know you probably love your animals, but ask if what you are asking of them is the correct thing for THEM, not your feelings.
My thoughts exactly. There is no solution living in an RV that will solve your problems. Way too many animals.
 
Agree with first two replies and I am also at risk for sounding cold.
I think your priorities are mixed up.
All the money used to feed and maintain these animals could have made a few house payments.
Not to mention you still have the Recreational Vehicle. :-\
 
We have two dogs (long story), and we came to the realization that they've limited our travel options the last several years. Some campgrounds and some hotels have a 1-pet limit. We can't fly together, and my wife recently flew to the UK alone, leaving me to look after the dogs. We're very attached to our dogs, but have talked about not replacing them when they're gone.

FWIW until recently we had two aquariums of fish that Chris (my other half) nurtured and bred. When we left town, we had to ask a neighbor to take care of the fish. Prior to our last trip, Chris worked with a pet store to have the fish adopted.

Tough decisions.
 
As a JRT rescue volunteer for over a decade, I can tell you the rescue should happily take them back. Granted they may grumble, but they will take them back. For the rescue we dealt with, it was part of the adoption contract.

Put your energy and attention on your husband as he needs it now. You served the dogs well all these years. Its your (plural) turn now.
 
Debtise-
I am sitting in my king sized bed with a South African Boerboel by my side, (she is a mastiff puppy), and a Great Dane on the other side of HER. I will not mention the four chihuahuas that are discretly hiding under the covers...
There is NO WAY I would get rid of my animals. They are part and parcel of me, my life, and my world. THEY have motivated me to get a 37' coach, and we are putting hardwood floors in it specifically so THEY will be accommodated. They are my FAMILY... You don't just say, "gee, guys... You are going to have to go back to the pound because you are expendable. " Oh, HEL no!'
All due respect to the folks who have answered "Get rid of them"... I honestly don't believe you are dog people. Dogs are HEALING... Your husband will absolutely benefit from them. Oh. My. Goodness...
My guys are my family. They are what makes me get up in the morning... Because of THEM, I have a PURPOSE in life. I GET it.
Do you have a crate to separate the cat from your dogs?  Short of asking The Dog Whisperer (Cesar Milan) out to whip your K9's into shape.... I don't know what to tell you.
When I first started out in my home with 5 dogs, I couldn't afford food. I went to the ASPCA, and they gave me food every month. And bowls and other things, cat litter and food and you name it. They would much prefer your KEEPING the animals as opposed to 'disposing' of them. I couldn't/wouldn't EVER do it. Nope. Shoot... Take my left arm and leg, just leave me my companions.
 
TheNorseWitch said:
Debtise-
I am sitting in my king sized bed with a South African Boerboel by my side, (she is a mastiff puppy), and a Great Dane on the other side of HER. I will not mention the four chihuahuas that are discretly hiding under the covers...
There is NO WAY I would get rid of my animals. They are part and parcel of me, my life, and my world. THEY have motivated me to get a 37' coach, and we are putting hardwood floors in it specifically so THEY will be accommodated. They are my FAMILY... You don't just say, "gee, guys... You are going to have to go back to the pound because you are expendable. " Oh, HEL no!'
All due respect to the folks who have answered "Get rid of them"... I honestly don't believe you are dog people. Dogs are HEALING... Your husband will absolutely benefit from them. Oh. My. Goodness...
My guys are my family. They are what makes me get up in the morning... Because of THEM, I have a PURPOSE in life. I GET it.
Do you have a crate to separate the cat from your dogs?  Short of asking The Dog Whisperer (Cesar Milan) out to whip your K9's into shape.... I don't know what to tell you.
When I first started out in my home with 5 dogs, I couldn't afford food. I went to the ASPCA, and they gave me food every month. And bowls and other things, cat litter and food and you name it. They would much prefer your KEEPING the animals as opposed to 'disposing' of them. I couldn't/wouldn't EVER do it. Nope. Shoot... Take my left arm and leg, just leave me my companions.
Pets are wonderful companions except when you cannot afford them. Then it is time to rearrange your priorities. No one is asking the NorseWitch to abandon her animals since it sounds like she can afford them. But clearly the OP cannot afford their animals and they need to solve the problem the right way. Putting them all in a motorhome is not any answer.
 
I am a total dog person. If it wasnt for my husband, I would be the crazy dog lady. My two dogs are my babies and it would be very hard to have to give them up. However, if I was in your position, I would most definitely give them up... for their sake.

If you and your husband are disabled and cannot work, youre not likely to be able to take proper care of all your animals. Exercising them in most RV parks means walking them on leashes. All dogs have to be on leashes at all times when outside the RV in any park. Also as you said, most parks limit the number of pets allowed.

I have my two dogs in a 38 ft RV and its tight. Its only going to be worse with the number you have, especially with two of them not getting a long. There isn't much room for your cat to get away from your doxie, so that puts the cat at risk, or the doxie.  That many animals in a very close area also has the potential to cause any number of illnesses and veterinary care is really expensive.

I am sure your animals have bonded with you, and you obviously have with them. But they do develop new bonds with new owners who can give them the care and attention that you can't at this time.
 
Debtise
My heart goes out to you and your FAMILY (which includes your animals) for the situation that you are in. In your post you mentioned that due to your circustances you would be changing your life style by moving into an rv. You didn't mention whether you had a piece of land which you might be able to rent to park the rv on. Because what you would spend on a rv camp ground site may not be much different in price if say you found a site with utilities say outside of city limits which may be a much better accomadation for you and your FAMILY. I truly hope that you can find something that works for you and your FAMILY! Good luck and God Bless.
 
My heart does go out to you.  I am kind of surprised that rescues have given you so many dogs.  Usually the contract will require you to return the dog if the ability to care for them changes.  One,can you even find a place that will let you park with so many pets?  It sounds like you can't.

Two, can you keep them exercised with leashed walks?  You would have to spend an awful lot of time walking every day.

Three,the doxie and cat in such close quarters.  Sounds like a potential for a fight and in such close quarters,other dogs may jump in.  Honestly,the cat deserves to live in peace.

Four,such close crowding is stressful on everyone and increases chance of illness.  How will you pay the vet bills?  Are they all on heart worm preventative now? 

I really do understand loving your pets as family but you have to consider what is best for them and for the humans. 
 
Debtise,
I know where you're coming from and know how agonizing a decision it would be to give up any of your pets. I've always held the belief that if there's a will, there's a way. However, I don't think that fulltiming with all your pets would be feasible, not only because of the tight quarters but also finding a campsite that will allow that many animals. I'm having a hard time finding any that will accept more than 2 pets (we have 3 dogs that we'll be fulltiming with). I hope you and your husband are able to get back on your feet, as well as providing a safe and loving environment for your animals.
 
I know that you are in a really tough situation but sometimes you just have to do the right thing,no matter how painful it will be.It is very difficult to properly care for all your 10 pets and leaving them cooped up in an rv is not fair for them either.I agree with everybody here,it is better to search for a safer and a healthier home for them.
 
Pen and paper.

You need to start writing down the pros and cons and the numerous options to choose from. It's not going to be easy, but you do have multiple solutions to choose from, none of them easy.

I know the heart strings these pets pull on us, they are family and the thought of finding any of them a new home is heart breaking. I was forced to rehome some pets in 2009 while living overseas and it was just awful and tore me to pieces. Seeing pics of them can still bring tears to my eyes.

Later on things improved for me, I moved back to the USA. A little doggie with a tear jerking story ended up in my RV and he's been traveling with me 6 years. He is 6 pounds of high energy and it's a huge challenge for me to get him enough exercise but I manage.

I do know folks that travel with too many pets and basically omit this fact when checking in at campgrounds. They seem to exercise only two at a time, so no one really notices.

One of the challenges you face is getting 7 dogs enough exercise and also keeping 7 dogs reasonably quiet in a campground atmosphere.

My dog can set off a ruckus on his own if he thinks someone is encroaching on his campsite. Multiply that times 7 and the management might notice you have more than 1-2 dogs with you.

It's possible the rescue center where you got these will work with you to get some of your beloved pets into foster homes while you figure out PLAN B. If you can work it out to get a safe haven for them again, it's possible to get them back out of the foster homes. On the other hand, someone may fall in love with your beloved pet(s) and be willing to take one or more of them, providing them a similar loving home that you provided.

A letter about each pet that might be rehomed would be ideal for the new owner. I feel sorry for you having to make such tough decisions under such trying times.

Sometimes a smaller privately owned RV camp will work with you on a monthly basis to have that many pets if you are able to exercise them and keep them more or less quiet. Some have dog runs you can utilize. Some will let you put up fencing around your tiny lot. But honestly trying to exercise 7 dogs while living in an RV is going to be a huge challenge.

Also, the cat doesn't deserve to live in a cage because one dog can't behave, so that is an enormous consideration of rehoming one or the other to keep peace.

Please keep us posted. I am sorry for your troubles.
 
This thread was started in April. The OP hasn't been active since the thread was posted. Probably didn't like the first answer she got.
 
kdbgoat said:
This thread was started in April. The OP hasn't been active since the thread was posted. Probably didn't like the first answer she got.
Or the second or third... :-\

In edit:  the OP may not have seen any replies.
Date Registered: April 17, 2016, 08:45:18 PM
Last Active: April 17, 2016, 09:12:15 PM

Unless being logged in and reading is not considered active, which I am now thinking is the case.
 
The 'Last active' date means the last time they logged in. Without logging in, the forum software has no idea who's browsing here.
 
Derby6 said:
Or the second or third... :-\

In edit:  the OP may not have seen any replies.
Date Registered: April 17, 2016, 08:45:18 PM
Last Active: April 17, 2016, 09:12:15 PM

Unless being logged in and reading is not considered active, which I am now thinking is the case.

It was actually April 18th.
 
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