Having a dog in law school Forum

[20160810]

OK so I know a 3L who is not only the owner of a GIANT Burmese Mountain dog but also a single mother to a 5 year old boy. OH yeah, she's graduating in May at the top of her class at Northeastern.

Yes it's possible to have a dog. Your life doesn't end when you're in school.

Fascinating choice for a debut post. In any event though, you're right. Of course you can own a dog in law school. Law school is just grad school. You'll do a lot of work, but there's enough time for other stuff. It never ceases to amaze me what 0Ls think law school will suddenly render them too busy to do. I can't wait for a thread where someone asks if they'll have time to go poop during 1L.

[2L2011]

There is enough littlebitches in lawschool as is, why add to it?

[girlonfire]

Wait...

WILL I HAVE TIME TO POOP AS AN 1L??


i hope so.

[SherlockHolmes]

Wait...

WILL I HAVE TIME TO POOP AS AN 1L??


i hope so.

I wouldn't bank on it. If I were you I would invest in a colostomy bag.

[2L2011]

Or just pull a "Lisa Nowack"


http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,250415,00.html
-(link provided for any of you youngsters still in undergrad who might not remember this story from when the earth was young)

Wait...

WILL I HAVE TIME TO POOP AS AN 1L??


i hope so.

I wouldn't bank on it. If I were you I would invest in a colostomy bag.

[Stephx52]

[czelede]

Hey I'm just about to start at Cardozo for May. I'm moving from LA to NYC and I will most likely live on my own in a studio. I've always wanted a dog, and I was thinking since I'll be by myself in NYC, why not get a dog. So I have a question for you dog owners, would it be a good idea to get a dog in my 1L, or law school in general? would it pose too much of a burden? and what about having a dog in the city?

Thanks in advance!

I think this might depend on the type and size of the dog you get. A lot of studios (especially in NYC) may not be enough space for a medium sized dog to feel comfortable.

My dog is actually a huge part of the reason why I'm very reticent about the idea of attending law school in NYC. Housing is $$$ for the space you get. I know plenty of people in NYC have dogs, but I would prefer to live there with one when I have the monetary means for it.

If you have an extremely small dog, however, a studio might be enough space.

[paratactical]

Hey I'm just about to start at Cardozo for May. I'm moving from LA to NYC and I will most likely live on my own in a studio. I've always wanted a dog, and I was thinking since I'll be by myself in NYC, why not get a dog. So I have a question for you dog owners, would it be a good idea to get a dog in my 1L, or law school in general? would it pose too much of a burden? and what about having a dog in the city?

Thanks in advance!

I think this might depend on the type and size of the dog you get. A lot of studios (especially in NYC) may not be enough space for a medium sized dog to feel comfortable.

My dog is actually a huge part of the reason why I'm very reticent about the idea of attending law school in NYC. Housing is $$$ for the space you get. I know plenty of people in NYC have dogs, but I would prefer to live there with one when I have the monetary means for it.

If you have an extremely small dog, however, a studio might be enough space.

You just have to watch out about finding a space. You might have to live far away from schools or pay extra deposits. It will be much harder to find an apartment with a dog than without, especially in NYC.

[bmathers]

i own 2 dogs right now: a border collie / black lab and a whippet. there's no way in hell i can not bring them with me. they have been such a huge part of my life for the last 2 years.

i have no idea how i'm going to make this work. but i'm going to.

Hey, how did it work with your BC/Lab mix? I am starting 1L this fall and I have a border collie/lab mix that is absolutely coming with me. He's probably 5-6 y/o (he's a rescue, former stray, so we don't know for sure) and has energy if you want to do something, but does not NEED to spend 1+ hrs at the dog park everyday anymore (taking him to a dog park on the weekends, then walks during the week will do).

Right now he is home from 7-3 or 4 everyday (I work), so if I am at class 9-5 everyday, that should be no problem. Are the evenings/nights THAT demanding that I can't take 1 or two 30 min chunks to take him for a walk? I'm strongly considering UTennessee because I hear that Knoxville is a VERY dog-friendly city (this is a HUUGGEE plus/detail) and it's a decent school with big time hoops and football programs. I figure that I'll probably just have to spend much of the little free time I have taking care of him, which is fair game. Here's to hoping I can find either a house with a fenced-in yard, an apt with a dog park, and/or a dog park with a bench and table. Killing two birds with one stone would be nice.

Thanks

[bmathers]

FYI, Rover.com can be a huge help for this. I looked in a few cities where I am applying for law school, and daycare prices were around $15-$20. That's very manageable for a time or two a week to take the edge off.

[totesTheGoat]

Are the evenings/nights THAT demanding that I can't take 1 or two 30 min chunks to take him for a walk?

No.

The hardest part of having a dog in law school is going to be finding a campus apartment that will let you have the dog. If you're confident that you can pull that part off, you'll be fine.

You will be busy, but it's a flexible busy. Law school a bunch of tasks that are in priority order, but don't really need done at a specific time (except for class). If you want to go home after your last class and study at home, you can (I do that). If you want to stay on campus from 9-5 and go home at 5, you can. If you want to go home for lunch and take your dog for a walk between classes, you can.

The difficulty of law school tends to be stress based and time-management based. It's not really a "I was required to be on campus from 7:30a-11p today" type of issue.

[RedGiant]

FYI, Rover.com can be a huge help for this. I looked in a few cities where I am applying for law school, and daycare prices were around $15-$20. That's very manageable for a time or two a week to take the edge off.

I have a dog (well, puppy), and it's not an exaggeration to say that my classmates and even kids who go to my school that I don't know well fight for the ability to take care of her (for free). She's pretty cute (insta tigger_doodle). I have optimized my upperclass schedule to be home as much as possible (and it definitely cuts into my school time), but it's totally doable. I would have had a hard time in 1L, but as a 3L, loving it. She's the best distraction ever and she definitely raises my mood when school gets me a bit down.

I do occasionally put her in daycare, but I have a sweet babysitting gig where I study to offset the cost.

[SilvermanBarPrep]

Law school itself is going to be a huge adjustment. I'd put off getting a dog at least until you're acclimated to your new life. Of all times to get a dog, this doesn't seem like the best one.

--Sean

[bourbonandlawbooks]

I will be entering law school with a young German Shepherd Dog. Fortunately, I will be living in a town home with a fenced backyard, so she will never have to be caged for hours at a time. She is also extremely low key for a GSD, so I lucked out in that respect! Though I know nothing of the 1L experience (yet), something to consider is the added expense of a pet deposit/increased rent for the keeping of a pet in an apartment. It can get pretty steep; you may decide it is an additional expense you don't want to take on.

[rcharter1978]

Or just pull a "Lisa Nowack"


http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,250415,00.html
-(link provided for any of you youngsters still in undergrad who might not remember this story from when the earth was young)

Wait...

WILL I HAVE TIME TO POOP AS AN 1L??


i hope so.

I wouldn't bank on it. If I were you I would invest in a colostomy bag.

But what, with the cost of adult diapers these days....the colostomy bag is just the better choice.

[rcharter1978]

It sounds like most everything has been covered, but I would caution to make sure you have a healthy dog. My dog had a cancer diagnosis and died in my last year of law school, right before my last set of finals. I liked her a lot, but had pretty much just rescued her from a bad situation, so I wasn't nearly as attached as some of you are to your dogs. But even then, it was really difficult to deal with. There is nothing you can do to prevent a cancer diagnosis, but just do what you can to make sure your dog is as healthy as possible. And I guess just know that you may have to deal with something terrible at the worst possible time.