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Will my dog get stressed going back and forth between homes?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Dachshund miniature | Male | neutered | 3 years and 8 months old | 17 lbs

My dog Pepper was given to me from a homeless man. He knew it was not good to have him on the streets. I remained friends with the man and he visits when he can, not often. Pepper has been with me for 3 1/2 yrs. More than he lived with his original owner. Last time he took Pepper to stay with him for which wound up being a month. Pepper seemed confused when he returned. The man wants to take him again for awhile, says he's Still his dog. is it bad emotionally for Pepper? To go back & forth?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Daniel Fonza, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on March 26th, 2018

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. This can certainly be a confusing situation for Pepper, which may explain why he was confused when he returned the last time. If Pepper is going to a bad environment, I would try and talk this over with his previous owner and ensure him that Pepper is much better off in the environment he has been in the longest. Unfortunately, if he gave you temporary care of his dog, technically Pepper still is his dog. You could also ask the man if you could adopt Pepper from him and pay him an "adoption fee" and make it so that if you adopt Pepper, he no longer has ownership and is no longer allowed to take Pepper for visitation. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

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1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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