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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

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Original poster

New puppy and TTC

34 replies

EastDulwichWife · 02/08/2017 10:16

We're in love with a dog whose litter is due in October. We've done a lot of research and, between us, one is always at home during the day so we're in a good place to bite the bullet.

We have no children, but I'm due to have my IUD removed in September.

Be honest - is this timing ridiculous? Or will TTC take so long that there's no point panicking and we should just do it? Supposing it takes a few months TC, we'd have a 10-12 month old pup and a newborn.

Views please?!

OP posts:

Mrscropley · 02/08/2017 10:17

Get the puppy!! All that crying, poo and mess will be good practice for when you have a dc!!

SpartacusSaiman · 02/08/2017 10:21

Personally i wouldnt.

It could take a while to conceive but it could be really quick.

I would not want to spend my early weeks pregnant cleaning up dog poo, having to train a dog etc.

You could be really ill in early pregnancy or completely fine. Its very hard to predict.

But i would not get puppy as worst case scenario is the puppy needs to be rehomed.

pinkbraces · 02/08/2017 10:25

Please don't. There have been a number of threads lately when people are looking to rehome puppies and young dogs because they can't cope.
Dogs need walks, time and attention even when your baby needs you. Imagine having to walk your dog when your OH is out all day, baby won't go in pram/sling/or a million other reasons. Dog is the one put aside

Mrscropley · 02/08/2017 10:27

We got 2 puppies in Dec 2013 and had ds in Sept 2014. They are great friends and never had any jealously or behaviour issues between them all.

If you really want a dog I would say better before dc than waiting..

MissHavishamsleftdaffodil · 02/08/2017 10:30

I'd say really not a good idea too. I've seen too many threads where the dog is the light of a couple's life until the baby turns up or starts crawling, and then the once beloved dog gets its heart broken as its disposed of. Please don't do that to a dog.

puppyl0ve · 02/08/2017 10:31

We have just got a puppy and were planning to start TTC in October.

Now that we have him I think we will wait as having a puppy is so full on!! That being said, we absolutely love having him and we're more than happy to wait a bit longer to start TTC. I think it's great practice and I really want our future kids to have a dog but would never get a puppy at the same time as having young children. Not to say you can't do it, but I think it would be difficult to give it the attention it needs.

MissHavishamsleftdaffodil · 02/08/2017 10:33

Sorry, just may help you to think too: a 10-12 month old dog is mid teenager stage, and you'll be heavily pregnant through some of the earlier teenaged stage. I'm living with a teenaged dog at the moment, it needs a lot of training, a lot of exercise, they're all over the place and very full on. Again, risking that you're going to struggle to handle that and a newborn and the dog will be the loser.

Original poster

EastDulwichWife · 02/08/2017 10:39

Thanks so much! I had a feeling it would be too much but LOVE this little girl so much. I fear you're all right - it will be super tough. I'll have a chat with DH about postponing the puppy for a few more years..!

OP posts:

Judashascomeintosomemoney · 02/08/2017 10:40

I have recently seen two friends go through the puppy stages with their lovely pooches. One, though the usual puppiness has been full on, has been fairly straight forward, the other not so much. She's an experienced dog owner but her puppy- we now know- has unusual food allergies and the months of constant uncontrollable pooing and vomiting, clearing it up every day, the mental stress of trying everything to get the puppy to put on weight, the worry that it's affecting his bonding with the other dogs and how it's affected their ability to properly socialise him with humans and other dogs, on top of all the usual puppy stuff like full on constant play, separation issues, chewing, sleeping and house training has left her an exhausted shell tbh. He's well on the way to being a 'normal' dog now but its been months. He was from a good breeder, normal litter, no other puppies had the same issue and there was no indication of it til they'd had him a few weeks i.e. They couldn't have predicted it. There's no way she could have coped if she'd been pregnant too. I personally wouldn't even think about doing it. I'd do one at a time and wait till one or the other was over the two ish mark.

SparklingRaspberry · 02/08/2017 11:13

Please don't it's not fair on the puppy

At that age they'll still be very demanding and with a newborn or pregnancy they won't get the attention they deserve.

Floralnomad · 02/08/2017 11:18

I disagree , especially with the view that the dog won't get the attention it deserves . You can never tell what is going to happen in your life , and there is never a perfect time to do anything be that getting a dog or having a baby , you can only plan so much . Who knows what happens tomorrow , you never know what is around the corner .

Eleventybillionfucks · 02/08/2017 11:21

Honestly dogs are like children in every way
Some pups are easygoing easy learners who are a joy constantly and some dogs struggle to pick up the basics after a few weeks it all varies and differs between each dog
My pup is 7 months old and she is a delight to have she learned everything she needed to after the first two weeks we had her and apart from her dietary problems shes an absolute joy.
BUT me and DH on the otherhand didnt get any sleep in the first two weeks while she was settling in and learning all this stuff and she produces so much more poop than we anticipated which means more trips to the park as she's one of those pups that wont go in the garden for poos it was seriously hard work and the lack of sleep was unreal. I could never cope with it if i was in the early stages of PG and it would have ended badly. So no leave getting a dog till you have a baby and get the baby all settled and sorted first or get the dog first and wait for the baby
Dogs are brilliant for giving you an insight into life with children

SpartacusSaiman · 02/08/2017 11:23

Things happen that we dont expected. No one can plan for them

But the OP is planning a baby. Thats expected so you can plan for that.

Dogs sometimes get rehomes and its completely not the owners fault. Sometimes its due to poor planning.

OP you keep saying you love the mother, what do you love? Because there is no gaurentee to the puppy will be anything like its mother.

Wolfiefan · 02/08/2017 11:25

Nobody can tell how long it will take to get pg. It could be a couple of months or two years and still trying.
I wouldn't want a dog under two around a baby or young child. I would want secure recall and dog to be generally well trained. You can't push a pushchair or have a baby in a sling whilst being dragged down the road.
Also be careful of falling in love. Focus on the amount of exercise and grooming and training you're prepared to do. Ensure both parents are fully health tested (different tests depending on breed) Don't rush it.

ConstanceCraving · 02/08/2017 11:30

What breed is the puppy OP?

Wolfiefan · 02/08/2017 11:57

Asking the breed and if parents were health tested seems to have killed the thread!

AppalachianWalzing · 02/08/2017 12:16

It's v timely reading this as I've been wondering the same thing recently. Had a miscarriage a few months ago and it made me realise that my 'plan' - wait till we have a house, two children and the youngest is at least 5 - was a bit rigid and not everything can be planned. We would love a rescue dog, my main concerns are ensuring a dog would be a good fit with a baby.

For us, my husband usually works from home two or three days a week so would be available for morning and lunchtime walks, but it feels like it would be a lot of disruption - getting used to a new home and routine, then a baby and a totally different routine on maternity leave, then a different one again. I also have no idea how long it will take to get pregnant again, but can see how unsettling it could be for the dog if it happened instantly.

Not to detail, but I ask what age people think is the minimum a child should be before getting a dog? I used to have strong views on waiting till children were older but realistically that may meanwaiting ten years which seems like a v long time!

Wolfiefan · 02/08/2017 12:22

I would not get a dog until any children were at least school age. That way you can manage walks and training and be sure your child isn't going to clamber all over the dog. (That's not to say I think you shouldn't keep a dog if you have one and then start a family!)

Original poster

EastDulwichWife · 02/08/2017 14:24

@Wolfiefan - your questions didn't kill the thread, my husband and I went out for lunch.

She's a cockapoo, who is health tested and PRA cleared, as is the stud. I'm familiar with the breeder and the breed because my mother had one from her last litter and he's a lovely soul. There's is absolutely no planning for allergies and food intolerances as a few have mentioned - only the general planning that comes with the breed. When my mother is away we step in to look after the pup and have found him relatively easy to train, healthy, and with good recall. The amount of exercise and grooming he requires fits in with what we're able to provide.

Thanks again for the responses, I really appreciate them.

OP posts:

BiteyShark · 02/08/2017 14:38

OP I found my puppy hard work and have no children. He is now 10 months old and although we are now through the worst of it he still is a demand on my time with wanting to play and be walked and general training which doesn't stop (he's a cocker spaniel). I work full time but work from home a lot and he goes to daycare when I am in the office but even though I am tired I still have to walk, train etc. I have great admiration to all those that have young children and make it work but equally you see threads on here where people have a young dog and child comes along and then they simply don't have the time or energy for the dog.

anchor9 · 02/08/2017 14:52

I've got a 4 month old (human) and am a complete dog person. My dog stayed with my mum and dad when I moved out a few years ago for her benefit due to me being out at work etc.

So I've got a baby now, no job and no dog. I'm so glad I don't have a dog, even my small, well behaved 8yo. It is chaos, despite having a very good but clingy baby, and more to the point I want to give the baby all my undivided attention. So so glad I don't have a dog/that my dog is living a lovely life in the country with my retired mum and her dogs.

CornflakeHomunculus · 02/08/2017 15:19

There are a lot more necessary health tests involved in breeding cockapoos than just PRA.

If the bitch is a cockapoo (presuming a first cross between a cocker and a miniature poodle) she should have had all available health tests for both breeds which is a pretty hefty list.

The bitch should have had her hips scored (with results under the average for both breeds), a current BVA eye test (these are repeated annually) and a current BVA gonioscopy (repeated every three years).

She should also have been DNA tested for prcd-PRA, Familial Nephropathy, Adult Onset Neuropathy, Acral Mutilation Syndrome (if any of the cockers in her breeding were working type), Exercise Induced Collapse, Macrothrombocytopenia, Degenerative Myelopathy, Phosphofructokinase Deficiency, Neonatal Encephalopathy, Osteochondrodysplasia and vWD type 1.

Obviously if the sire is also a cockapoo he should have had all the same tests. If he's one or other breed then he just needs the ones relevant for that breed.

Wolfiefan · 02/08/2017 15:27

Please listen to cornflake. Someone who knows a LOT more than me about health testing. (I only researched the health testing for the breed we got.)
Your mother had one from the last litter? Screams prolific and probably financially driven breeding. Our pup came from a breeder who's been in the breed 30 years and bred three litters. Each time to keep a pup and keep the line going.
Just because the pup you know is pleasant and seems healthy doesn't mean any future pups from this BYB would be.

BLUEsNewSpringWatch · 02/08/2017 15:36

I got a dog when DD (my second DC) turned one year. I found that perfectly manageable.

However there is no way on this earth I could have had newborn DS (my first DC) and a dog. For a number of reasons, such as,

DS was very clingy,
my maternal instincts kicking in for the first time meant I couldn't stand the 'dirt' or 'risk' of an animal in the house, which pre-baby I could never have imagined me being (in fact I'd have laughed at the very idea I could ever be like that). I couldn't even stand the fully house trained rabbits when they were locked in their 'pen' and they had to become outdoor rabbits.
I was too exhausted to have done long walks or any dog training.
the house rabbits hated the crying and dogs can be the same.

I really hadn't expected DC1 to be so very hard or for me to feel the way I did about animals in the house. There are a lot of animals in rescues because people get an animal pre-baby then baby arrives and they can't cope or resent the animal.

Whippetmamma · 02/08/2017 15:38

We got a puppy and then 2 days later found out I was pregnant. Luckily things have worked out amazingly and the pup is great around our LO, obviously it was a lot of hard work training her while pregnant (especially when hg kicked in!) but we managed and made sure she was well sociallised around young children. So it definitely can work if you choose the right breed and REALLY put the work in with training and socialisation.

I wouldn't be without our pup now, however, if I had known I was pregnant at the time we would have waited before getting a dog.

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