Our IT Consultant, Antonia, looks after all of our network issues alongside providing solutions for our clients. She is our office saviour, as well as being a doggo mum to 2 adorable border collies. Antonia has really benefited from a flexible working schedule. It has meant she can balance spending time with her dogs at home and coming into the office. However, this is not always without its challenges. Unsurprisingly, dogs are unable to determine when not to bark or mount your lap during an important zoom call. Even the best-trained ones! Personally, we love seeing a furry tail pop out whenever we are on a video call, but that might not be the same for everyone! Antonia has given us her best tips for keeping demanding dog’s under-control and always being prepared.
(Disclaimer: the following can be applied to demanding cats, children, partners, or anyone else!)
Flexible working with our IT Consultant
What better way to start your morning other than getting up at 6 am to walk your two crazy border collies before work?
Picture this, your alarm goes off at 6 am and the first thing you see is two excited dogs with wagging tails smother your face because they are desperate to say hello to you. Still half asleep, you get a quick warm, fluffy cuddle before getting out of bed and throwing on your dog walking clothes.
Working from home with dogs has its ups and downs. At lunchtime, I get to teach my furbabies new tricks and get out of the house for a dog walk. On the other hand, they can be very noisy when in meetings and run around like headless chickens (thank you Microsoft and Cisco for noise removal and virtual backgrounds!).
Hopefully, the below tips should help anyone who is new to working from home with dogs:
• Walk, feed, and play with your dogs before your shift starts.
• It’s important to teach your dogs that you are not always available. Otherwise, prepare to be moaned at by your dogs for not giving them enough attention when at your desk.
• Keep your dogs in a routine – it means they know what’s coming next.
• Ensure that they have enough treats and toys to keep them occupied.
• Take a couple of five minutes breaks during the day to give your dogs the attention they deserve (and to let them out to go to the toilet!)
