Why we are selling our dog

Thursday:

This has been a big decision that I've been thinking about for quite a while. Getting up at the crack of dawn this morning did push me over the edge but it wasn't a snap decision at all, it's a very considered one.

Reasons for keeping Thor:

1) He is cute and I like watching TV with him on my lap
2) Jasmine will cry when we sell him

Reasons for selling Thor

1) I have sleep apnoea and being woken an hour and a half early every day is no trivial matter. My husband and I take turns getting up, but we are both woken every time. I am not good at getting back to sleep. I am tired all the time and that makes every day a struggle. I am cranky and not enjoying my life as much as I should. It's not good for my health or my weight. And Tim, usually much more robust that me, is tired all the time too and dreads getting up just as much as I do. He works long hours and doesn't have the luxury of a daytime nap like I do when I get desperate.
2) He was supposed to make me less lonely but he actually increases my isolation. I don't like leaving him alone for long periods but you can't take a dog anywhere. I am at home all the time now instead of out writing in cafes.
3) Walking a dog is good exercise and motivation to get out of the house. But I can't walk to the shops or to the library or to anywhere. He would never cope with being tied up outside, he is frantic if I go inside somewhere even if Tim is with him waiting outside. I'm not even allowed on the school grounds with him any more. We walk in a loop then come back home. He is a reason against joining the gym because he would be home alone another two hours every day, on top of essential trips I already make. Yes he is probably spoilt, but he is very much a people dog and doesn't like being alone.
4) Visiting family four hours away is a huge hassle. We have to either pay a lot of money for a boarding kennel (very expensive here) and then worry about him being outside when he is an inside dog used to the company of humans all day, and nervous about other dogs (or pay twice as much for exclusive pampered inside accommodation), or take him with us. My brother in law has a toddler so I have to watch Thor every second, and my mum is allergic to dogs. She has breast and bone cancer and I want to visit her more often but it is so difficult at the moment.
5) We can't holiday at any of our favourite places, unless we do the boarding kennel thing for week. We usually fly to Queensland to the beach and theme parks but can't do that with a dog. We were planning to find dog-friendly holidays nearer to us but it is just one more thing.
6) We want to travel overseas soon for several months. What do we do then?
7) I hate standing outside in the cold and dark and rain (and in summer no doubt the heat) waiting for him to kill the grass some more.
8) Our kids' rooms are not safe for him to go in due to Lego and other small toys so we have to keep the doors closed all the time and I always have to watch that he doesn't eat anything he shouldn't. Outside he always tries to eat poo. Inside, used tissues are a favourite. Or books.

It isn't any one of these things, I'd be able to deal with one or two. It's all of them together, for not much benefit. We are all fond of him, we have had him for nearly three months after all and he is a very nice little puppy, but Jasmine was the only one really unhappy about the decision to sell him. I feel a bit guilty but I'll find him a good home. It will make my life much easier. And surely he will be happier spending all day with someone who doesn't resent him half the time? I guess I just wasn't ready for the lifestyle change - it was bigger than I expected.

So today I am going to start the process.