New puppy - when can we take her outside?

FabSascha

I'd very much appreciate some advice please: We're getting a new puppy and i keep reading conflicting advice about when we can take her out. I realise she won't be able to go fully out (as in to the park, mingling with other dogs etc) until a couple of weeks after her 12 week jab, but how about out when being carried? How quickly will we be able to do that? As I understand that taking her out will be a risk whatever happens, but then surely we're putting her at risk as soon as we pick her up?! Any advice/opinions/suggestions about how to take her out safely until she's fully vaccinated would be appreciated, thanks

easy

Well she has to go out into your garden as soon as you get her, surely? Otherwise you won't get her housetrained.

How old will she be when you get her home? I wouldn't take her out socially visiting anyone with other dogs until after the Jabs, but if you were just carrying her, and not letting her sniff round where other dogs have been, nor be sniffed at by other dogs you should be OK.

Bear in mind tho that a very young Puppy needs time to get used to a new home/surroundings/routine, and will sleep a lot, so I wouldn't worry about going out and about for at least 3 weeks after moving her in.

Personally, I prefer to leave them with Mum until after the jabs are done anyway.

picklepick

Definitely take her out with you carrying her. For me, the benefits of early socialisation far outweigh the health risks.

Carry her whilst walking along a busy road, I know loads of dogs who are uneccesarily terrified of buses, lorries etc. Get her used to your car if you have one. Standing outside a supermarket entrance is a great place for her to meet loads of different people at once and learn how to react to strangers and noises. Obviously, I wouldnt let her near other dogs until shes had her jabs and don't put her on the ground where other dogs will have been. If you know your garden has been dog free then thats fine for her to be outside.

sarabe

You shouldn't take any undue risks as far as your pup's health is concerned but one of the biggest risks to your pup's future wellbeing is to isolate her from other dogs for several weeks.

If you have family and friends with healthy inoculated dogs who are good with pups then definately invite them round or get an invite to theirs.

You may be lucky enough to have a good puppy training school in your area that offers safe socialising opportunities for pre inoculated puppies.


Look here http://www.apdt.co.uk/local_dog_trainers.asp or ask for recommendations from other dog owners and phone around before you get puppy to see what they offer.

FabSascha

Thank you so much for your replies! My partner and I have resigned to the idea that for the first few weeks she'll need to potty on puppy pads as whilst we've got a decent garden, it's shared and therefore accessable by other dogs and various cats (there are a lot of cats in our neighbourhood) which leads me to another question, are cats a risk to dogs? As in, if my puppy came into contact with a cat that wasn't immunised, would this prove a risk?

I definitely want to get her socialised as early on as possible, so I'll look into seeking some pre-jab classes.

Thanks again

FabSascha

Sorry, forgot to add that she'll be 8 weeks when I take her home.

suki1964

If you have a shared garden, unless its fenced and the only dogs that use it are inoculated your pup cant use it until at least 7 days after the last injection

Im pretty sure I had my lads jags at 8 weeks and 10 weeks - Go check your vets and ask what their programme is

Still you can possibly go to puppy class and you must carry your dog everywhere you can possibly think of for now. And at different times of the day - daylight and night-time. Dont forget to take into shops as well - pets at home, local shops ( most don't object to a wee pup carried) etc. And car trips if you use a car - or public transport. Even if you think you wont ever use a bus/tube/train (whatever is in your area) its a good idea to make short trips on them now so pup gets used to everything he may come across later in life (not much fun trying to coax a frightened full sized dog onto a bus)

I think its around 10 weeks old their natural fear reflex kicks in so those first two weeks are vital for socialising as much as possible


Just to add, out first lad we only had a shared garden which wasnt fenced. He was 14 weeks old before all his innoculations had been given because he had such a bad start in life. Four weeks he had got used to peeing and pooing in the flat ( on paper). That week he was allowed out I took off work and had him totally toilet trained by the end of it. Hard work, getting up in the night, out every two hours - but it paid off

FabSascha

Thanks for your reply. I'm definitely eager to establish a good routine for her (I've already called her Ava so I'll say that from now on!) and I'd like to take her out and about to get her familiar with things, but what concerns me is the fact that if I go to a shop or similiar and she shows signs of needing the toilet, if she's not vaccinated I can't just allow her to go on the grass or pavement just in case another dog has been there, can I? So it's a bit of a catch-22. What do you think? As she's very small so we've got her a bag to sit in whilst we carry her around - so I'm assuming I should line that with towels etc for when she goes and can't control it....I really am very new to dog care but very keen to get it right! Doesn't help me feeling rather clueless though I've got lots of books but they all tell me conflicting information!

devildog

Although I agree that socialising is oh so important I wouldn't take a puppy out until all it's vaccinations have been completed.
Parvovirus is a particularly nasty disease and although the main source of infection is through infected faeces the virus can also be spread via shoes/clothing.
Why take the risk??

FabSascha

That's a good point; so should I then worry about walking it into the home do you think? I really don't want to take any chances.

devildog

You are almost in a catch 22 position. Ideally the pup should be allowed to go into your garden straight away to learn where to do it's business but as it is a shared garden this may prove to be difficult.I guess you have to let common sense prevail a bit so the questions I would be asking myself are
1. Do the other dogs that share the garden also roam the streets?
2.To your knowledge have any of them been into boarding kennels recently?
3.Are you in an area that has had/or currently has much parvovirus?(vets would know)

Like with most things there will always be a risk and all you can realistically do is take reasonable steps to minimse it. Unfortunately people see a puppy and want to pet it(who wouldn't ) or let their dog play with it(without consideration for the puppies health)