To think that lockdown is not the time to get a pet

[BeyondMymymymyCorona]

"as I'm home for the next however long, I decided it was a good time to get a puppy"

This is a friend of mine, and I've seen multiple others who have decided now is the time to get a smaller cage/viv-living pet.

The one who just got the puppy is in the shielding group, so not supposed to leave the house at all. How they plan on walking it, I have no idea. Nor how they plan to feed it given they have had so much trouble getting food for themselves.

I realise the animals have to go somewhere if nobody buys them, so I don't know what the answer is. But AIBU to think that - on a household level - now is a bad time to get a new pet?

I think it's a stupid selfish thing to do. What happens to the poor new pet when people go back to work? I despair of people sometimes.

Unfortunately, this could mean that puppies and sold born pre-corona are going to have to remain with their breeders. Potentially causing major overcrowding issues for breeders and bonding issues for puppies, who may not go to their intended homes until they are 20 weeks+ (if they turned 8 weeks at the beginning of lockdown and this goes on for the predicted 12-13 weeks).

@DeathByPuppy also I think if we get to this stage then families are not going to want the puppies anymore as the opportunity for them to integrate and socialise with the family has been missed. In particular if you have children this would be a big risk to take. I would worry that large numbers will have to be put down. It’s very sad.

I can’t see the logic of not allowing people who are already set to pick up their pups to go ahead as that would at least remove some from this situation and those people have been vetted etc.

Sorry, I ballsed up that first sentence. It should say “...puppies born and sold pre-corona are going to have to remain with their breeders.”

Unfortunately, we're living in a time of crisis.

Selling/collecting puppies is something that will have to be dealt with after the crisis has started to abate.

Not ideal, but at the moment human health takes priority.

I agree that it has a lot of problems but the fact remains that collecting a puppy doesn’t constitute essential travel, unfortunately.

I’ve got a 25wk old puppy who is very well socialised (up to now) but is obviously still a work in progress as he is still young, so I do sympathise with responsible breeders and soon-to-be puppy parents. It’s a really difficult one.

If there’s no restriction on collection of puppies then breeders will merrily continue to mate their bitches and have litters throughout this crisis. Restricting collections to litters born pre-corona will be incredibly complicated to enforce, so it’s an ‘it’s ok’ or ‘its not ok’ situation. It’s not ok, so responsible breeders and puppy owners have to adhere to that but there will definitely be consequences.

*If puppies can’t be collected or vaccinated and their breeders are social isolating under lockdown then these dogs could have their entire socialisation period of 0-16 weeks spent without any interaction bar the breeder - no kids,cars,people etc. Are we going to just see hundreds of puppies being put down in a few months time as they have zero socialisation and no vaccinations?

I suspect so.

I also suspect when life resumes back to normal that we will see a huge spike in dogs less than a year old being PTS for severe anxiety and aggression.

I hope that it will cause people to question the state of breeding in this country and question how we treat dogs (and other animals) in this country.

I still maintain that any responsible, decent breeder (which I am in support of) would absolutely have plans in place to look after a possible unsold litter.

If a breeder does not have the space, money, time or ability to look after an unsold litter they have no business breeding.

You are, or rather you should be, responsible for the little lives you bring into the world.

Another awful side effect of Corona virus. It’s mad how it’s affecting every single facet of life.

Now is not a good time to do anything.

Am a bit on that fence with this. I personally would hate to get a puppy now - they will have someone at home 24/7 and therefore are more likely to have separation anxiety later, will miss socialisation etc, so people are so much more likely to end up with a dog wit issues.

That said, these pups are being born anyways and this will be an issue anyway.

For someone in the shielded group though- a real no-no - who’s going to walk it? How will they get food.

People saying small pets/rabbits/etc are ok. They need fresh veg every day. Getting enough for my two guinea pigs when you are meant to limit trips out and there are restrictions on how much you can buy is a constant worry. Also hay and bedding, they use tons. They are not low maintenance!

“You are also not thinking about those of us who have bonded with, prepared for and paid for their dogs!! Yes it's a really bad time and we absolutely know this it's heartbreaking. We need solutions not being told "don't get the dog it's irresponsible" These dogs are already here!”

But there isn’t a solution...

You either cancel or collect it as soon as some of the travel restrictions are lifted knowing that there’s a pretty good chance it won’t end up being the dog you wanted...

I mean most people want a dog that’s enjoyable to own and can mix with people and dogs, won’t react to traffic or bikes or walking past crowds...

Not a dog with behavioural issues that’ll be a constant training project and hard to manage everyday things with.

Now yeah, your puppy could be one of the few that’s really resilient and adjusts... but it’s a big gamble and sadly there isn’t a magical solution that'll solve anything.

I will tell you about my experience: I have 2 cats (6 and 4 year old) and got a puppy before Christmas.
This is my first ever puppy and, frankly, I was clueless and unprepared for him, despite reading a lot of information! I had millions of questions and was seeking help from dog owners, vet. We also have completed group puppy basic obedience course. Plus I took him to puppy socialisation class (where many different puppies play with each other and interact with other people).
In my opinion, if someone thinking of getting a puppy/kitten, they really need to think hard about this decision:

1. If it is you first puppy - will you know how potty, food and sleep train? A lot of puppy advice on internet is way too positive and present in such way that it is not a difficult task. Well... It is! And the 2 most difficult are potty training and recall.
2. Puppy will require things - crate (recommended), 2-3 waterproof beds for crate (yes, they might potty inside crate before fully potty trained), bowls, puppy food (puppy might have allergy and one would have to through many different options), collar, leash, harness, toys (puppy become bored with toys easy, you need to rotate those), treats for training, 1st aid kit - for cuts, scratches, etc. Something for transportation - another crate, booster seat, safety belt, cleaning products as he/she will have accidents). List can go on and it adds to £££.
3. Access to vet services - vaccines are important. As of now, what will you do, if you worry about your puppy/kitten and need reassurance from vet? What if you discover a puppy/kitten has allergy?
4. Socialisation is important to think about! However I believe that it also can be achieved at any time, however the older the puppy, the more difficult it will be. Owner would need to attend adult dog socialisation class in the future.

That being said, if it is someone's first puppy, I would not suggest to get one. This is my opinion based on my recent experience.

I think it's a stupid idea. I have never owned a dog because l can't commit to the care. ATM we helping walk dogs for elderly neighbors to try and stop them going out. They mainly still going but what can you do. How can you socialise a puppy if it's in lockdown for 6months.
I do feel sorry for the rescue s and would happily take an old cat if l could. At least it wouldn't need walking many times a day

A last minute save means we are hopefully getting our puppy. The owner has found a vet who will do the vaccinations and I have found a vet who will do the booster in a few weeks. So that will be 7 puppies getting their homes and not having to mess around.

A last minute save means we are hopefully getting our puppy. The owner has found a vet who will do the vaccinations and I have found a vet who will do the booster in a few weeks. So that will be 7 puppies getting their homes and not having to mess around.

How are you going to collect a puppy when the KC have specifically said you shouldn't be driving to collect them?

And no vet should be telling you what they'll be able to do in a few weeks time - that's highly irresponsible.

How will you be socialising this puppy when you can only go out once a day and puppies can only be walked for 15-20 minutes at a time?

Hi adaline, I’m in Ireland. The release from our Taoiseach said care of animals was included in definition of essential journeys. Also myself and my DH have been isolating completely since 14th March in anticipation of picking up the puppy. We haven’t left our home or spoken to or seen anyone else. The drive is 30 mins so the same distance to our local shop. The puppy will be put in crate and left beside our car. When the owners go back inside we lift the crate into our car. We have gloves masks and hand sanitiser to do the lift out and in.

We don’t have a limit on how many times we can go out. We just need to stay in a 2km radius for walks. In that radius are sheep and horses and cows, an open takeaway, other people out walking. The puppies have spent their first two months in a family with several children and other dogs and animals on a farm too. We also have a large garden with lots of trees and bushes to explore for the first few weeks before we can get the second booster.

So it’s fine thanks!

It's not a time to get any pigs. Like a PP said, guinea pigs etc need a lot. We've only been home a week and our elderly pigs are already asking for more physical contact with us - standing up waiting to be picked up and so on which they are going to miss when work and school starts again.
We are fortunate in that I saw this coming and bought 3 bags of food and hay and we have a garden which provides plenty of dandelions and grass for them but not everybody is as fortunate. As we foster pigs we always have extra supplies in.

We were going to move some foster pigs on to new homes but we have told the people they were going to that they are no longer available - they would have gone at a younger age but now they are older and are bonding with our own pigs so it'd be mean to move them now.

well done Josie!
I guess if the handover can be done whilst distancing that's doable, same as any other delivery. I know KC say no but if it's in the dog's best interest you have to make the call. I wouldn't judge you!
Socialisation is a problem but if we get ours (big IF) we will be getting a stroller so she can come on a longer walk without touching the ground. Twice daily - once with me and the kids, and then again with husband once he's finished working. It's finding solutions to a shit situation. Boosters might have to wait indeed, there's also flea and worming o deal with but I assume they can be bought still.
Not ideal is it....

Thanks @Supadupa It’s not ideal and I know we are stretching the definition of an essential journey but we have been eating out of our freezer and forgoing supermarket trips so that our one trip is to get the dog and come straight back and it’s the same distance away as the shop. We were due to start IvF on top of getting the pup so I can’t honestly cope with losing both so the compromise we made to ourselves was that we stay at home and completely isolate and have the trip to get the pup as our one journey and outing. We were devastated this morning when we thought vaccinations weren’t going ahead. I hope you manage to figure something out with yours.

Omg don’t do it, I’ve been on the phone all day to my vets, now waiting for medication to arrive in the post, my 7yrs dog isn’t a emergency case so can’t be seen, but in normal times he would of already had the anti sickness injection and wouldn’t be suffering now. The stress of a sick dog and limited vets is no fun, I imagine even worse if a tiny puppy became ill

@Hormonecrazyhell Hope you boy is better soon.

Something like this is my biggest worry at the moment as it's just me and the dog here. That and how I'll cope with her if I'm ill.

Thanks. It’s so worrying isn’t it, ddog is seeming better this evening, finger crossed he keeps in his breakfast tomorrow. If it makes you feel any better my vets assured me he would be seen if he got worse, I would have to tie him up outside and they would take him in. It’s people they’re avoiding, can’t really blame them.

We are not in the position to home any animals , we have two lovely adult cats ( Bro/Sis) from CPL who are settled but the male wouldn't take much to knock his equilibrium off kilter . So it wouldn't be fair on either cat .

But now or Christmas ( the taditional time to not get a pet) would've been ideal in our household .
My DC are young adults (20 and 17)
We have a garden and a micro-chip door

CPL cats are neutered /vaccinated/microchipped if old enough.

So in some households , it would work .

We got a puppy before social distancing and lock down. She can't have her last injections so we're not going out.

We've had loads of time to create train her and she actively chooses to go into it and sleep during the day. She sleeps with us every night and goes 9 ish to 6.30 asleep in bed with us. She was 11 weeks when we got her, was with mum and dad and still had 4 puppies around.

My puppy is confident and happy and gets loads of attention and play time from me dp and two DC. She's curious about the outside world and not anxious. Maybe because she feels so secure and it's not being forced on her.

I do like the pushchair idea! I am going to look into that as I want to take her exploring but keep her safe.