How to Survive Your Freshman Year by Mark Bernstein

Author:Mark Bernstein
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781933512617
Publisher: Hundreds of Heads Books

ANIMAL HOUSE?

HAVING A PET IN COLLEGE

A lot of us have grown up having a pet at home. But before you bring a dog, cat, hamster, lizard, goldfish, or another animal to your house or your dorm room, here are some things to consider:

• If you live at home: Consult you family first. As a college student you will have many new responsibilities and due to your class schedule you might not be able to take care of your pet all by yourself. As long as everyone’s ok with it – and there are no allergies! – then you should be good to go.

• If you live in the Residence Halls: Odds are, that your university does NOT allow pets in the Residence Halls. Some residence halls may allow a small fish tank, but remember – even a fish needs daily care and that takes time from your daily schedule. Of course service animals or pets as emotional support are generally ok, but written permission from staff may still be required.

You should also ask your roommates to make sure they will be ok with you having a pet and that they don’t have any allergies. You have to consider that your pet might be noisy and disturb others in the residence hall. You may want to have a back-up plan if something goes wrong and you can’t keep your pet due to barking, damage to the room, etc.

• If you live off-campus: Always check with your landlord first. He may ask for an extra pet deposit or monthly pet rent to cover potential damage and clean-up-related expenses. Some or all of it may be returned – or this might simply be an extra fee that you won’t get back. There also might be breed restrictions that you have to be aware of. And each state has its own laws regarding the number of pets in a household. Finally, you probably want to check with your roommates to make sure there won’t be any conflicts.

• General rules about caring for a pet: So let’s say you can bring an animal into your family/household. You still need to make sure that you have the time and ability to truly take care of your new family member. If you live in an apartment, your dog will most likely have to be walked several times a day. Exercise and having plenty of room to play and run is important for every pet. If you plan to live in a house, it would be great if there was a fenced backyard so that your pet can have access to the outdoors without you having to worry about your pet running on the street and potentially harming itself.

Having a pet is like having another family member in the household, and pets get sick just like humans do. It is important to take the responsibility to take care of your pet as well as you can, even when you have papers or projects due or if it is in the middle of your final exams.

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