by Nancy Houser

Created on: November 18, 2008   Last Updated: January 16, 2009

Knowing when to bring a dog inside, as compared to leaving them outside, depends on many things. At the top of the list should be something as simple as common sense, yet statistics show us that the majority of intelligence of the human race is not evolving for the betterment of man nor beast. Not a new thing, depending on common sense for a rational decision, such as bringing the family dog inside the home, has been in a quandary as far back as the late 1600s, signified by Voltaire's statement, "common sense is not so common", a statement which has become an issue to this very day.

It would stand to reason one would bring the family dog inside when the elements of weather would do them harm, especially if it is a small fragile dog, a pet with illness, an elderly dog, or a small puppy. But many dog owners place their dogs continuously outside from the moment it arrives on the property, citing reasons of it being too large to bring inside, too aggressive or destructive to be an inside dog, inability to house-train the dog or puppy, considered an outside breed, or a hunting dog which is considered by the owner better without extra social involvement. The reasons are numerous, and truth be known that when the dog is left outside all night, the problem with keeping it off the bed or fighting for bedcovers during the night never becomes an issue.

Yet there are special times when even the most die-hard owners have to bring their pets inside instead of leaving them with a sentence of solitary confinement for life. It is recognized that all domesticated pets still retain its ancestral lineages, in the fact that all varieties of breeds will naturally seek out a cold place from the heat and a warm place from the cold elements-even without human intervention. If they have the natural instinct to do this, their owners should be more than able to provide the same levels of protection out of love and caring.

LEAVING THE DOG OUTSIDE CAUSES RISK ISSUES

If left outside during the majority of times and left unattended, the outside dog may develop two opposite behaviors. One is they will be overly-friendly to all approaching strangers, desperate for human companionship, as they instinctively need this sort of relationship with humans. Another issue is they may become overly territorial, protecting their surroundings through excess barking, biting, or other aggressive behavior to all who invade their territory.

By bringing the outside dog inside occasionally, they will learn who and

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