College students should not have dogs living with them. There, I said it.
Now, before you grab your pitchforks and torches in defense of your little crusty, white doodle-something named Bella, hear me out.
It is undeniable that owning a dog — or a pet in general — always comes with a set of pros and cons.
From stress relief, a sense of companionship and even inadvertently promoting regular exercise, coming home to a dog can be a wonderful adventure to take on. For many of us, college is our first true experience of independence from our families back home — wherever home might be. Keeping up with and taking care of another living being can teach great lessons of responsibility.
However, having a pet — whether in college or not — comes with a number of hidden and not-so-hidden costs.
Pets are expensive. In 2021, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty of Animals (ASPCA) released an approximated budget for how much dog and cat owners should expect to spend on their respective pets annually. The total was roughly $1,400 spent on dogs and $1,150 for cats. This estimate does not even account for one-time costs such as spaying and neutering, collars, leashes and carriers.
These costs are just for a single year of that animal’s life. Everyone is guilty of the occasional impulse purchase or two, from shoes to video games. Though, pets are not just a one-and-done expense. Forbes estimated that, over an average 12-year lifespan, a large-size dog can rack up costs upwards of $22,000.
Having a “fur baby” is not cheap, much like an actual baby.
University students, no matter the year or level, often fall in the same boat: we are broke. The majority of full-time college students do not work jobs while class is in session, meaning that for more than half of the year, college students are not bringing in any income.
Many college students who are doubling as pet owners could likely be dipping into savings or support from family members to fill their dog’s food bowl. This is especially upsetting because, despite how much we love them, owning a dog is not a necessity to live.
Dogs also demand a steep investment in time. If you live in an apartment where the dog must be kept indoors while you are away, you will typically have to return home multiple times a day — between classes or other commitments — to take the dog outside to do its business.
The reason why dogs are being singled out as one of the worst pets a college student can have is because they are different from all other pets for one reason and one reason alone: their dependency.
Dogs rely on their owners to survive in ways that practically no other common household pet does.
Not to mention, university students are in an utterly unique living situation perpetually moving in and out of new environments for four years. From residence halls to apartments to houses, college students typically do not plant their roots and rest their head under the same roof for longer than eight or nine months — the length of an average school year.
Some might ask, “But what about service animals?”
Service animals are not pets. If you have a service animal for any reason, you are completely welcome to love them just as you would a pet — and you absolutely should love them. There is still a level of care that must be provided for a service animal, same as a regular pet.
Nonetheless, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) implemented by the U.S. Department of Justice, describes service animals as working animals, rather than pets.
Service animals are incredibly expensive to acquire; they have been meticulously trained since puppyhood to perform their jobs, from guiding people who are blind to warning people who are epileptic of an oncoming seizure.
A so-called “normal” dog cannot do that. Hence why service animals and pets are typically differentiated from one another in public places.
All in all, owning a dog comes with both positive and negative aspects. As a college student where these four years can have a massive impact on the trajectory of the rest of your life, caring for a dog is an unnecessary stressor that can easily be avoided by simply waiting just a bit longer before committing a substantial chunk of your waking hours to man’s best friend.
Needless to say, to the fellow student who lives in my apartment complex with two Labrador Retriever puppies, I do not envy you. In fact, I pity you.
Having a "fur baby" ends up costing not just money, but time.
