This is one of those things I've always said I wished someone would do, never thinking anyone actually would... And now that they are, it almost bothers me a little! There's a new rent-a-dog company here in LA called Flexpetz. Yeah, rent-a-dog. Its actually a little more responsible than it sounds. Its essentially a pet timeshare. You have an annual membership fee along with the fees for when you have the dog. You have to take a one-hour class, and all the dogs are rescue and re-homed dogs. Its also pretty expensive, so I suppose all those things help weed out problems. You have to take a dog at least twice a month. I guess for the dog, having multiple homes is better than no home. I used to foster dogs, and I always found it easier than you'd expect to give the dog back, I guess because I knew from the beginning that would be happening. So maybe it'd be the same with a flexpet? The website is a little generic with stock photos of pets, so it feels a little impersonal. I haven't decided whether or not I'll look into it. Maybe. Dunno. Now I just wonder how long before someone starts a rent-a-kid so I can get players autographs at baseball games instead of those "youre just gonna sell it" scowls.

Flexpetz