Those that work with dogs?

Specifically trainers but anyone that works with dogs on a daily basis as their job.

First off, I LOVE my job. I work for great people and I managed to get in at the ground level of something big they are building. I am so excited to be involved and I'm getting learn all the stuff I wanted to learn as part of it.

I've been with the same people for 2 years, the last 12 months full time.
I know I work really long hours, which I'm starting to feel burnt out from but the main thing that is getting to me right now is that it's kind of killed off my interest in training my own dog.

Sure I do some occasionally, I teach the odd trick or drill a bit of her obedience. I've been working her scent discrimination but I've had to because I'm also doing a scent work elective that I need to teach her that skill for.

I'm also doing a Cert III in Pet Styling so at the moment when I have spare time I just want to chill on the couch. Doesn't help that Quinn's fear issues mean that everywhere I take her has an element of management to it.

I really, really want to get a new pup next year. I love Quinn but I can't have her in class because I can't risk a member allowing their dog to approach her and her reacting. I can't take her just anywhere because I have to think about how she is going to handle it.
My boss suggested a just train up our foster Mal to the point of taking her out. But I don't want just general obedience, I want another crazy balls-to-the-wall trick loving, behavior offering maniac.
I don't think he wants me unable to regularly help with the puppy raising through work.

Anyone else find this from working with dogs? I think one of the big problems is my general hours. By the time I account for travel as well I'm pushing 60 hours a week spread over 6 days and by day 7 I'm rushing around trying to play catch up with errands to get ready for the next week.

On one hand I feel like its time to get a dog and get them "right" to have that truely versatile, go everywhere, do anything dog. On the other hand I just look at it and go... "where do I fit that?"

Maybe I'm just venting. ergh.

I definitely get burnt out. I'm not a trainer, I work at a veterinary clinic, but I am still dealing with ill behaved animals all day long. (Well, not all of them are ill behaved....but pretty close.) When I get home after a long day at work, sometimes I don't even want to LOOK at my animals, let alone DO things with them. I can imagine if it were things that I actively had to manage (like the extreme end of DA/HA, reactivity, fearfulness, etc.), I'd probably never do anything with them, because I already put up with that at work, why would I want to put up with it at home, too? LOL

Get a puppy because you want a puppy. Not in the hopes that it will rekindle your dog training drive. Not in the hopes that maybe with a good one, you'll do more things. Because when you still don't feel like training, or the pup does have some issues, you're going to feel even more frustrated. Get a puppy because you WANT a puppy. Because you WANT to socialize/train/build it up. (My .02, and maybe I'm off base.)

Can you have a crazy behavior-offering maniac without a certain amount of reactivity? I'm sure you can get one without the other, I'm just not sure how common that is. I probably need to start a poll...

I know it would be possible. I don't think the 2 really relate, atleast not in the way Quinn struggles with it. All her stuff is crappy fear related stuff.

Thing is I don't want to add another dog to be an extra mouth to feed. It isn't easy. Quinn isn't an "okay, now we're friends and we're fine" dog. She always has a level of unpredictability, especially at home where there are so many triggers. It's going to be a crate and rotate scenario and I know that. So there is no point getting another dog just to have another pet.

I definitely understand that. I found it very true for me when I was managing the barn, and then had to leave and go do stuff with Tristan. On one hand, I could appreciate how nice and well mannered my own horse was after dealing with idiots all day - but on the other hand, I was just so done with horses by the time I got around to taking care of mine.

I didn't really have a dog with which I did stuff when I was working at a training center - mostly I just set around wishing I did have a dog I could train (more than my 14 year old Bedlington wanted to train). But I wouldn't be shocked if I eventually had the same reaction to working my own dogs during my "off" time.

I finally decided that, for me, keeping work and pleasure separate was the best decision, and I got a non-animal related job. And when I leave the lab at the end of the day, I'm thrilled to get home to my own dogs and play (or to go to the barn when Tristan was alive). I know that doesn't wind up being the case for everyone, but it works best for me.

I've wondered that in the past. But I honestly don't know what else I would do. This is all I've wanted to do for so long.

Hopefully next year, with the opening of an actual facility it will make it easier. At the moment we are spread out all over the place, training in one place, grooming in another. No where is set up to be really comfortable.

Next year should be easier to duck out and play in my lunch break or before/after work.

After about a year of working with the SAR/detection dogs daily, I was feeling super burnt out. But most of it had nothing to do with the dogs themselves. After leaving and starting my own thing, I'm finally feeling inspired again. If I have a lot of clients on any given day, I generally don't do much training with my own guys (walks in the neighborhood, short training sessions not consisting of much "new" stuff, etc.), but even on days like today where we had agility class to take, I taught classes, then did like 10 CGC evals, I'm still planning on working some tricks with my guys.

I think it was mostly for me about the place I worked versus the type of work, and working on my own means that I set my schedule and I'm working less hours per week than I was at the center.

I suspect it's the hours and work environment rather than working with dogs specifically. I've been overworked and now I have a very balanced work schedule and environment, and guess when I was 'meh' about my own dogs and how I feel now?

I agree that it all depends on where you're working, and those circumstances, than the actual dogs.

I worked at one shelter for about a year and a half before leaving. Decentish management, but nice co-workers and a nice facility. High turnover of dogs. I was making minimum wage, mind you.

Worked at another shelter for 4 months. Awful management, bad facility, a couple nice co-workers and a lot on the line, as there were many behavioral/medical cases there. I was making a lot of money, mind you.

I've been training dogs for about two years for the same company, and I have been close to burnt out there a few times, but breaks between sessions help and having a new facility does, too! Again, not the dogs or working with them or the people, just the circumstances surrounding the job.

I do a lot more private stuff now and board and trains and absolutely love it because I can make my own schedule very easily.

I agree with this. My work isn't remotely animal related, but after a 50 hour work week at a place I hate, plus 6 hours of commuting, I find it hard to do anything with the dog when I get home, other than snuggle on the couch. And I can't imagine getting a puppy right now.

So maybe a different dog related job with different hours and less stress would make you more excited to work with your own dog and new puppy.