For students who love dogs, college might seem like the perfect time to buy or adopt an animal. It’s a time for stretching limits, learning about the world, and developing independence. With a dog comes enormous responsibility, however, and a careless or premature commitment to a pet can be tragic. Fortunately, there are many ways to devote yourself to school and still be surrounded by wagging tails. Before you think about getting a dog, do some research and learn how to avoid some common traps.

The Good

Many college students are passionate people who are filled with limitless energy. These are good traits if you’re going to raise a dog, but they’re only the beginning. Only a few students have the personality, resources, and time to properly care for a dog, but in these cases, the right college student and the right dog are a match made in heaven.

Katie Flory, the volunteer manager at the Maryland SPCA, was a 19 year-old college student when she adopted her first dog, a Rottweiler named Hailey. Flory, however, had some advantages that many college students do not: “I wasn’t working full time. I was at home a lot and I was able to spend time with her.” Flory took her commitment to Hailey very seriously. “Being a college student without a lot of money, vet care is a big issue. One thing I did that I recommend to other young people with dogs is to get a ‘Hailey credit card.’  That card is specifically for her, and I always have it in case something unexpected comes up. Not only is it good for the dog, it also helps teach responsibility and build good credit.”

Vanessa Kim, the office manager at the Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS), also adopted a dog while she was in college. “Caring for a dog is a really big commitment. Puppies are especially difficult. It’s cute, but then you get it home and it’s barking at night, having accidents, and needing to go out... it’s very difficult.” Kim and her roommates worked together to raise the dog, “…because all of our schedules were hectic. You can’t ignore it for eight hours and expect to have a trained dog in the end.”

Some students decide to foster dogs rather than adopt or purchase them. Sally Jennings from Recycled Love, an organization that finds homes for hard-to-place dogs that might otherwise be euthanized, depends on college students. “College students usually make great foster parents. I do get nervous when they want to adopt though. A girlfriend comes along and doesn’t like the color of the dog, or the student moves to Timbuktu...” Jennings’ voice trails off, as if she’s seen too many dogs lose what should have been their forever home.

The Bad

Caring for a dog can be difficult, even in the best of times. It’s easy to think that a $10 bag of food and a few walks in the park will make for a happy dog, but reality is very different. Expenses for a healthy dog — including food, medical checkups, preventive tick and heartworm medications, and grooming — can average out to a few hundred dollars a month. That cost will skyrocket if your dog gets into your chocolate stash or is diagnosed with a chronic disease. Dogs need to be walked at least three times a day, which isn’t much fun when it’s raining or there’s a foot of snow on the ground. A bored dog might entertain himself by chewing shoes, furniture, or even kitchen cabinets. Inexpensive apartments are difficult to find, especially with dogs larger than 30 pounds. Most important, a commitment to a dog is for 10-15 years, which means you and your new friend will be spending many summer vacations and post-college years together.

Unfortunately, as every rescue organization knows, any of these reasons could lead a well-intentioned student to give up a dog. If you cannot care for your pet, you should try to find a friend or family member who can adopt the dog. You can also contact local organizations like the Maryland SPCA, BARCS, or Recycled Love, to see if your pet problems can be resolved. “Our goal is to learn about that person’s situation, what is going on with the animal, and try to find how we can help them,” said Flory, of the SPCA. “It’s more of a social work approach.”

In his book, The Dogs Who Found Me, Ken Foster wrote of an irresponsible college student who had bred a neglected dog, sold the sickly puppies, and moved away. One of the puppies found her way back to the neighborhood, where Foster intervened and saved her life.

Foster is a college professor who has become an advocate for homeless dogs. “I’ve known a few successful dog owners who were college students, but they were rare. Being a student requires time and energy and dedication. You need to commit yourself completely and give up your schedule to your studies. Dogs require the same kind of commitment, so it is difficult to do both. People abandon their pets all the time — and it is one of the reasons that I urge students to consider their schedule and their volatile housing situation before getting a dog of their own. Better to help out at the shelter — you get to play with dogs, but you don’t have to make a commitment that might later be broken.”

It’s best to take Foster’s advice and volunteer. Your love and passion helps rescue organizations to save dogs’ lives. Almost every dog shelter runs on an extremely tight budget, and you can make a genuine difference. Volunteering fits with student schedules, provides quality time with dogs that desperately need attention, and helps you to learn if you are ready to make a 10-15 year commitment to an animal.

The Answer

“Probably 30-40 percent of volunteers at the SPCA either can’t have a pet or left a pet with their family,” said Flory, “so they come here to volunteer. It’s absolutely a successful way for them to help animals and be with animals but not necessarily have an animal in their home. Dog deputies, nursery nannies, and cat coddlers are the volunteer positions that college students want the most. A dog deputy is responsible for socializing dogs, walking them, showing them to potential adopters, and helping with training. Nursery nannies do the same things, but with kittens and puppies.”

Due to an intense training program, each BARCS volunteer is required to dedicate at least two hours, every other week, for six months. It’s a strict requirement, but BARCS Volunteer Coordinator Jane Kelly finds that most volunteers stay longer than the six-month minimum. “The training is important, not just for the volunteers but for the dogs,” said Kelly. “We’re not dealing with your ordinary, well-behaved, trained household pets. A lot of our dogs are strays off the streets, or dogs that have been turned in because they’re unmanageable. A lot of people think you can just grab a leash and go, but it’s not like that. Once you go through the training, though, it’s a very rewarding experience for both the volunteers and the dogs.”

If a six-month commitment working with troubled dogs isn’t daunting to you, then you might be a good foster parent. “All our dogs go into foster homes, and we have to rely on a lot of college students for fostering,” said Jennings, of Recycled Love. “College students are loaded with energy, and a lot of our dogs need people with energy. The students spend lots of time with the dogs, but it’s not a huge responsibility. MICA [Maryland Institute College of Art] kids are wonderful, because they can take dogs to class.”

Colleges with liberal pet policies are a blessing for some students. According to the MICA website, the college “recognizes that companion animals such as dogs can offer inspiration, comfort, and personal enjoyment not only to their owners but also to many others in the campus community.” Students are expected to be responsible for their dogs, and must remove a dog from campus if asked.

A few schools outside of Maryland are providing opportunities for dog lovers. In 2004, Stephens College in Columbia, Mo., began offering a limited number of dorm rooms to students with pets, including dogs up to 40 pounds. The program was so successful that it has been expanded to two dorms. Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Fla., is also exploring pet-friendly housing; if certain criteria are met, dogs up to 40 pounds may live with a student on campus.

Some parents and students at a recent Howard County dog show described how they’ve balanced school and dogs. One student made dog-friendly living arrangements with family friends who own an apartment in the city where she’ll be attending school. Another took courses online, which allowed her to spend time with her dogs. A third student attended classes at roughly the same time every day, which helped establish a stable schedule for his dog. It is important to note, though, that all three students had the understanding and support of their families, and they were all experienced dog handlers long before they started college.

When you love dogs, it’s difficult to come home after a long day when there’s not a wagging tail waiting for you. For many college students, volunteering with homeless animals becomes a life-altering way to make a lot of lonely tails wag. As Jane Kelly at BARCS said, “A very good way to figure out if you’re ready to adopt a dog is to see if you can honor a commitment to volunteer with a shelter. If you can commit to shelter dogs for six months or a year, then you might be ready for your own dog.”