# Going Outside Before All Shots/Vet Checks?



## Tetley's Mom (Dec 1, 2008)

One thing I have not been able to dig up in my pre-puppy reading has been about taking the puppy out and about while he/she is going though all the vet checks. I am hoping you all can help.

Say I get a puppy and the next day she goes to the vet, gets all her shots and checks as required at 8 weeks. What happens before she goes back for her next two appointments (vet said every 3-4 weeks) for the other shots and checks? Can she go outside on walks, to Petsmart, be involved in group puppy training, etc? 

Also, what if there is a pet sitter/walker that comes in and she has been around other dogs. Can she infect my pup?

Thanks!


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## Sherush (Jan 12, 2008)

Here is what we did with Jesse (we got him at 8 weeks on January 3rd, 2008), my position with GSD is socialization is more important at that age. Jesse on day one socialized with my sister-in-law's lab cross (who is healthy) and all extended family members, he was taken to the vets on day 4 (earliest time I could get) got his first set of shots, at 9 weeks was taken to Petsmart for a seminar and there were about 20 puppies there that he got to meet and greet with, he started puppy education at 10 weeks of age for 8 weeks at Petsmart. We also walked him around neighbourhood and kept him away from all poos on ground if we saw any. We would let him meet and greet any dog when I ascertained from owner their dog was healthy and friendly. Jesse had no illnesses and he is friendly and well socialized - cause we take him everywhere and to meet all people of all nations and ages, animals, places and things, I even handed him over to the neighbourhood kids to play with, he is patient and tolerant of kids.


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## littledmc17 (Apr 9, 2008)

I took Brady everywhere 
I think its personal preference.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

Lucy was playing with a dog who had just come from a pet shop and had kennel cough (wasn't aware until later) before she got all of her shots. A couple weeks later, Lucy is infected with kennel cough and a week after that it turns into pneumonia. $3000+ in vet bills later and after almost losing a puppy about a month after I got her, I def learned my lesson. Please be very careful.


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## gmcenroe (Oct 23, 2007)

I socialized my puppy with known healthy dogs from 8 weeks on and took her for walks on the path around our neighborhood away from poops. She already had 2 sets of 5 way vaccinations before we took her home. I had her vaccinated with last set of 5 way vaccination and rabies vaccination later. She was fine throughout. I kept her away from dog parks and strange dogs. 

It is hard to keep them confined to the house for that first month when they have so much energy. 

Glenn


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

I think walks and getting outside and netting people are vital for pups that age. I think petco and dog parks are definite things to avoid. Socialization with other dogs is extremely important too but please be absolutely 100% sure the dog is up to date on shots and healthy. If you're not absolutely sure, from personal experience, it's best not taking the chance.


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## Tetley's Mom (Dec 1, 2008)

OK, thanks everybody. I felt there were conflicting opinions with this and I am so glad I asked. I certainly want to keep the pup safe while not neglecting his socialization. Maybe I will schedule "socialization hour" in my community for the first month or so with dogs that I know are healthy. There are only 16 houses, so it shouldn't be too overwhelming. Thanks again!


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

I think socialization hour is a great idea!









Since you are in NC, you can figure parvo is pretty ubiquitous and it doesn't require either direct dog to dog contact, or even obvious contact with another dog's poop. So for that reason, I'd be careful anywhere public and I would avoid Petsmart/Petco at all costs. 

I would also recommend carrying your puppy when you go the vet clinic and not letting him on the grass outside the clinic. You would not believe how germy those two places can be. 

Going to visit people you know at their houses is a great option! Do be sure to ask people if they've ever had a dog with parvo though. I had a dog catch it while playing the backyard of a friend, where I later found out a parvo dog had lived almost a year previously. It's that contagious!







Sorry to be so paranoid. I know a lot of people don't bother with any of these precautions and do great, but once you've experienced parvo, suddenly it all makes sense. 

I would also make an effort to invite people over to your house to visit, with dogs, and just people for general socialization. Also you can ask around about other unconventional places you can go - non-pet related businesses etc. I still wouldn't put my pup on the ground anywhere I didn't know was safe, but they would be good places to meet people.


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## Smith3 (May 12, 2008)

i guess my question would be, how long after the dog starts its vaccinations can it "start" to be socialized where it "could" get parvo?

I guess if it gets its first DHPP (?), do you need to wait for the 2nd?


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Somewhat depends on when the series starts. I typically won't take a puppy anywhere I feel is sketchy until they are at least 12 weeks old and have had three shots. We do them at 6,9, and 12. 

The issue with the immunity is that there's this fairly long period in puppy development where the maternal antibodies the puppy got via nursing are no longer strong enough to protect against disease, but they are still strong enough to screw up the vaccine. So you can easily have a vaccinated puppy with inadequate immunity. Once they've had a couple shots and it's been longer since they were weaned, then there's a better chance they actually have some immunity to parvo. You still want to keep them away from dogs who could have kennel cough and other nasties though. But at least those things aren't as contagious. You have to actually encounter the other dog, versus just getting it from sniffing the grass. 

I stil socialize the heck out of them, but I'm very conservative about where they go and whether they can be on the ground when we get there. 

As somebody on here said one time - you can always spot the rescue people because they are carrying a 40lb puppy in their arms while they carefully spread out a blanket over the exam table!









But seriously - once you see how much parvo is out there, you get a lot more careful. I used to spend all day every Saturday at Petsmart doing adoption events and I cannot even tell you how many times I watched owners drag some sick puppy along to Banfield and saw the puppy drop a giant puddle of bloody diarrhea all over the floor of the store. And then you see other owners parading their 6 week old pups through the same aisles later that day.







Not to mention, when they'd clean up the contaminated stuff, they didn't even begin to do adequate sterilization and ultimately end up spreading parvo throughout the store using the same mop. And that's IN the store. Forget those patches of grass outside! 

And sadly, vet clinics aren't much better.


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## bmass01 (Apr 7, 2005)

What about contact with people who may have sick dogs at home? I know I would like to believe all people would wash their hands and such, but with strangers, you just never know.


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

Think we can use our common sense when socializing our young pups. Do it AND make sure it's as safe as we can make it. 

Here's a great article from American Veterinary Society
of Animal Behavior http://www.AVSABonline.org

Click Here!!


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

When I know someone has a parvo puppy at home, I don't let them get anywhere near my pups, and at Petsmart at adoption events I make people use hand sanitizer before handling my dogs because they are typically handling a lot of dogs, many of them just out of shelters.

However, for just general meeting of normal people, I wouldn't worry about that. Yes - person to dog transfer of parvo is possible, but the odds that the person you're talking to a. has a parvo dog at home, and b. is carrying parvo germs on their hands or clothing is extremely small (you know, unless you hang around with a bunch of foster people like me). I'd be much more worried about soil contamination than person contamination. 

As far as common sense in the post above, I would like to agree with that, but seeing what I see in Petsmart, I am forced to conclude that there are A LOT of very kind, very well-meaning people, who love their puppies, but just don't know about diseases like parvo and how contagious they can be.

We had a guy on a thread here who adopted a puppy and had had her a couple weeks, when suddenly she fell ill with parvo and died. The time line was such that she had to have picked it up somewhere since she'd been with him. He had no idea that she could catch it from the ground, or so easily. It was very heartbreaking. 

So, I'm not trying to terrify new puppy owners, just wanting people to be informed so that tragedies like that happen as seldom as possible!


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

i got my puppy at 9 weeks old. he had his first round of shots when i got him. we took him to the Vets the first week we had him for more shots. we picked him up at the airport on Sunday and the following Saturday he was in puppy classes. he had the required shots to start puppy classes.

after we brought our boy home we realized we didn't have any toys or bones for him. we went to Petsmart but i carried my boy. i didn't think it was a good idea to let him walk around in Petsmart. should your puppy be around a sitter/walker, good question. i wouldn't let my puppy be around a sitter/walker untill he had his 2nd round of shots. we took a month off from work when our puppy came so we didn't worry about a sitter/walker. 

i would be very carefull about where i walked my puppy. at 8 weeks old your puppy can't go to far. you have to build your puppy up to distance. also make sure his pads toughen up before going to far. at 10 weeks my boy couldn't walk a mile. one day we were in puppy class and we had to walk home from the class. the class is exactly 1 mile from our house. half way through the walk my pup just flopped down. after we arrived home i noticed he wasn't walking correctly. he was raising his foot every now and then. upon inspection i noticed a little abrasion on his pad. at that point i realized he wasn't use to concrete and asphalt. he was in the back yard or in the woods up untill that point.

i know once we get our puppy's we want to do all sorts of things with them. i think we tend to over look the fact that our puppy's are so young. enjoy your puppy. i can't describe all of the joy and good emotions a puppy can bring. you have to have a puppy to know what i'm talking about. you're going to know what i'm talking about very soon i think. a good place to socialize your pup is from of the super market. there's plenty of people coming in and out of the super market that want to pet a puppy. all kinds of people are coming and going.

good luck with the new pup.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

I just did what I felt was right. Nikon got his first round at 8 weeks from the breeder. I was told that it might not help and I should be careful until at least his second round. I did take him a LOT of places, but mostly non-dog places like my parents house and my grandpas apartment (neither have pets and no one in my family has dogs), or to visit people at my office. I did not take him to the dog park or training club, but we take our dogs to a baseball field and let them run. I took him to the pet store a few times, but always carried him until a few days after his second round of shots. He actually came with me to the North American Sieger Show a few days after I got him, but he mainly stayed in an ex-pen in our vendor tent with the siblings the breeder kept for herself. I made a point of avoiding some acquaintances that volunteer at the animal shelter b/c they had a parvo outbreak a few weeks before I got Nikon. Socialization is VERY important to me but there are ways of doing it without going to the dog park or having the dog run around Petsmart. The breeder also had people handle the puppies from very early on but they were people who aren't exposed to other dogs. When I went to see Nikon at 4 weeks we wore clean, bleached clothes and I dipped our Crocs in bleach water so we had clean shoes.


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