Walks with puppy before jabs...

[Theonewiththreechildren]

I got some really useful information from you all a few weeks ago and the exciting news is that I am collecting my puppy next week!

I have done a lot of reading up and booked a trainer to come to our house to help me with training before pup can go to classes.

The thing is, I would like to take pup for walks with me (I would obviously carry her until she's vaccinated) as part of her socialisation and also because my mum will be coming to stay for a week with her dog and it seems a little unfair for us to go for a walk and not take pup.

This is my long winded way of asking, if she needs to go to the toilet what do I do? Obviously I can't put her down on the ground before she's vaccinated but I would also rather she didn't go on me or in her puppy bag! I was planning on taking a bag with puppy pads or paper, poo bags etc. Does that sounds sensible or daft? Interested to know what others did please?

TIA

Blimey op that sounds a palaver. I didn't take mine until after jabs. If you want your pup to socialise could you invite your friends with vaccinated dogs to your house for a play in the garden?

...or take your pup to your friends houses?

You're right, it does seem like a palaver. Hence posting here for better ideas

It wasn't just for socialisation with other dogs (although I do plan to visit friends with dogs for that reason) it was also to familiarise her with different places. One of our favourite places to walk is the local woods which on a calm day is very peaceful but on a windy day is a very different place due to the wind blowing through the trees etc. So I'm hoping she might get to experience both from the safety of my arms. Also there are a lot of sheep and cows in the fields at the moment so I wanted her to see some before she's in a position to be able to chase after them

We took our pup out loads before his jabs took effect (and the protocol followed by our vet meant he wasn't 'safe' until he was 14 weeks old). He never once needed to go when he was outside - in fact it took several more weeks after that before he deigned to wee/poo anywhere other than our garden - he'd hold on and cross his legs while we were out and rush into the garden as soon as we got home!

Aw cute. Hopefully my pup will be the same. Did you have a 'just in case' plan or not?

Can't advise, but just wanted to say that we get our pup in a few weeks and I was planning on doing exactly the same as you!

I used to carry my lab about before his first jabs and he never needed to pee. No contingency plan because it didn't occur to me that he might need to go.

I just got a puppy and had been wondering the same. However I have learned that it is not at all feasible to carry a large breed pup around for more than a few minutes so it's kind of a non-issue for me now!

I did ask the breeder about it, who insisted I should not put my pup on the ground. At any rate, my pup can hold it for a few hours, so if I could carry her around, it probably wouldn't be an issue.

I took mine out lots when he was very young, mostly in a rucksack worn on my front. He is a lurcher so biggish and couldn't carry him far in my arms. I put an old towel in the bottom just in case but he never made a mess in it. I took him just after he'd been to the toilet in the garden.

We live in central London and I think it was really good to get him used to all the traffic noises, sirens etc. He went from being nervous to loving going out and when he was able to be on the ground I think it made him more confident.

I carried mine everywhere too. Never needed to go while I was carrying him. Went all over the house when we got home though! I have never seen a dog pee while being held- I think they must hold it!

Thank you all for the help and advice, sounds as though I probably won't need to take anything with me. I guess I'll soon find out one way or another

Two things you can do:
puppies can get their very first vaccination from the very young age of six weeks. They will then be re-vaccinated at 2-3 week intervals until receiving a final one at 12-14 weeks.This is generally how we deal with puppies who go to their homes at a very young age and also with potential guide dog puppies (to allow safe ultra-early socialisation). The reason for this is that maternally derived antibodies as well as an immature immune system can interfere with a vaccine taking effect, so we just have to re-vacc repeatedly to cover them as we cannot say exactly when the maternal antibodies wane or the individual's immune system becomes competent. This will cost you a bit more but allow you to let your puppy out of your arms (which would certainly be valuable for her education!)
Second thing is to walk your puppy (on the ground like a normal dog) in areas where there are likely to be few if any unvaccinated dogs. I think it is really tempting fate to walk puppies in heavy-dog-traffic areas anyway.
Puppy pads are not a great idea anyway as they cause confusion and delay the lightbulb moment of "outside is the place for toileting".

Oh yeah, enjoy!

We carried our puppy in walks
She never did anything when we carried her, phwee