Majority of workers would ‘pull a sickie’ to look after their lockdown pet

With three-quarters of those surveyed having got a dog in lockdown, a new report reveals that most owners would pull a sickie from work in order to care for their pet.

The poll of 900 people by leading UK separation anxiety expert and author Julie Naismith also found that as many as 54% of dog owners would even consider quitting their job if their employer didn’t allow them to take their pet to work with them.

More than 80% of those surveyed said that they were looking into the option of sending their furry friend to doggy day care while they work, however, a quarter said that this would be too expensive for them.

Julie Naismith commented, “Honesty is the best policy. I’m hoping there are some understanding bosses out there who would appreciate that caring for a beloved part of the family is vital and a frank conversation about this would be better than fibbing.”

She added, “The thing is, some dogs are really going to struggle. Being alone doesn’t come naturally to dogs. We’ve spent 30,000 years selecting dogs for their desire to be with humans. No wonder so many get upset when we leave. We’ve seen two things happen over the last year – either puppies who never learned how to be alone or adult dogs who used to be fine forgot how to be alone.

“The good news is though that we can still teach these dogs how to handle being alone. Even though you might be in a panic about this you can train your dog to be comfortable when you leave.”

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