What Do I Do with My Pets While I’m in Inpatient Care?

It can be difficult to do decide what to do with your pets while you attend an inpatient program for rehab. Fortunately, there are many different options available to you.

Boarding Services

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse¹, “Drug abuse puts a lot of stress on parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents––anyone who is part of the home.” Unfortunately, this can mean your pets as well.

Taking them to a kennel or a boarding facility while you are away in rehab can seem like a stressful choice, but remember that they will be taken care of much in the same way that you will: by professionals who know how to safely and dependably provide whatever type of care is necessary.

If you decide to board your pets while you are in rehab, they will often be much safer and better attended to than if you just had someone look in on them occasionally.

Staying with Loved Ones

See if one of your loved ones will watch your pets.

That said, you may just decide to have your pets stay with a friend or family member during your rehab. If you know people you can rely on to take care of your pets and who will not become a subject of concern for you, it can be perfectly beneficial to have your furry friends stay with your human ones.

You can even call your loved ones from rehab to ask how your pets are doing or ask them to visit you and bring pictures. This could lighten your mood considerably while you attend rehab.

Pet Sitting Services

If you do not have friends or family members you know can look in on your pet, call a pet sitting service to come and check on them. This usually works best for the kinds of pets that need minimal care, such as fish or turtles, but if you know your pet needs constant attention, you may want to choose another option.

Pet-friendly Rehab

As stated by the NIDA², “Treatment approaches and individual programs continue to evolve and diversify,” which makes all rehab centers slightly different from one another. Still, the benefits of pet therapy along with the popularity of luxury rehab centers as of late have created a market for pet-friendly facilities that offer residential services to people in recovery and their pets.

This could be a possible option for you, especially if you can pay for the service and you have no other option for your pet’s care at this time. Still, many rehab centers do not offer this choice, so it is important to be prepared for different possibilities.

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References

1. National Institute on Drug Abuse. Drug Use Hurts Families. NIDA Archives. Accessed July 2026. https://archives.drugabuse.gov/blog/post/drug-use-hurts-families
2. National Institute on Drug Abuse. Treatment. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health. Accessed July 2026. https://nida.nih.gov/research-topics/treatment