Morag from Manama

Fool-heartedly; I expected to take pleasure in luxuriating in bed during the holidays, having opted on a Bahrain stress-free ‘stay-cation’.

Benefiting from a daily long lie-in and smugly not setting the alarm on my phone for the regular school morning 5.45am start, was at the top of my list.

How could I have been so naïve? I had not taken into account one major factor … other people’s dogs!

Dogs are pack animals and if you leave your pet behind at home with only someone-else’s maid popping in to let it out in the morning then returning in the evening to pop it back inside, your dog will suffer from anxiety, stress, boredom and abandonment from their pack – which is your family!

Unless you have a wonderful maid that lives in your home, knows your pet and can cope with caring for your family pet then, take my advice, it’s kinder to book your dog into kennels.

The first morning of the holidays, our own dog had been spooked by something and was going crazy. So, I ventured downstairs to investigate whilst grumbling to myself at 5am.

I could hear yelping and barking from outside and assumed it was some wild dogs playing up in the wasteland behind our compound.

When the disturbance continued for hours, I eventually went outside to see what on earth was going on?

I was met with a couple of other neighbours who had discovered one of the dogs in our compound crying, barking and desperately trying to get to us from behind its gate.

We discovered her family had travelled and arranged for someone to let the dog in and out daily.

What they didn’t realise was how despondent their dog would feel at being left alone for the majority of the day and night.

It’s not the first time this has happened. I recall our dear Australian neighbours from a previous posting, happily heading home to Adelaide for one of the school holidays and leaving their manic Beagle behind.

The poor pooch was barking incessantly having been abandoned outside in the baking sun for days on end whilst the maid was nowhere to be seen.

Our lovely Aussie neighbours felt slighted with us for contacting them during their relaxing vacation to let them know we were scaling their security gate and bringing their beloved pet home with us. We waited for a thank you but, like their maid, it never appeared!

In Bahrain we are fortunate to have a number of well-run kennels where pets will be well cared for and have company. Some kennels even offer training, grooming and a daily swim if you check into Delmon Kennels in Barbar, for example.

Your pooch can have their own vacation whilst you enjoy yours … and you’ll keep the neighbours happy too.