I've got covid19. What do I do with my puppy?

WentworthPrison · 2020-12-05T03:41:22+00:00

I've just tested positive for Covid19. I live alone and all relatives are extremely clinically vulnerable or care for those that are. All friends work. What on earth do I do with my puppy?

anyoldname76 · 05/12/2020 03:49

Have you got a garden he can go out in?

Rainbowqueeen · 05/12/2020 03:49

Call your vet and ask for ideas. There are organisations that care for pets when women go into refuges. They might know what they are or have some contacts. Or there may be dog minders in the area who would take him
Hope you get sorted and get well soon

Spartak · 05/12/2020 03:53

Try contacting the Cinnamon Trust. They've got a website. They look after pets for elderly people when they go to hospital. Even if they aren't able to help, they may be able to suggest someone who can.

AlCalavicci · 05/12/2020 03:55

Providing you keep well clear of everyone , where a mask and dont touch things ( park gates / benches other peoples dogs etc ) when you are out I can not see the harm in still walking him.
It may be best to keep him on a lead as other people may stroke him.
And also walk him when ir is quiet.

AlCalavicci · 05/12/2020 03:57

This is all of course omly if you feel well enough to walk him .

FlippinNoah · 05/12/2020 04:20

Someone near me who tested positive put a post on our local FB page asking if anyone could walk her dog. She was inundated with offers!

midnightstar66 · 05/12/2020 04:30

I've been isolating since Monday waiting on test results. Dpup has just been going put for a pee and coming straight back in. She's a little bored but we are doing lots of playing and a bit of training, things like kings and lick mats. She's a fair weather dog and the weather has been horrendous so I'd have struggled to get her out anyway. Its not the end of the world if they don't get proper walks for a few days, puppies aren't meant to walk too far anyway. Mine is a very small dog though so gets a good amount of exercise just pottering around, I suppose it would be different with a very large breed. Getting a stranger to walk her isn't really an option.

midnightstar66 · 05/12/2020 04:31

And please don't take the advice just to go out 🙈. I'm not even positive and dd was negative at the same time with same symptoms but am not doing that.

Sobeyondthehills · 05/12/2020 04:53

If you have somewhere the pup can go to the toilet, then lots of active brain games, hiding the treat and getting them to look for it, kong toys.

If you have to take them for a walk, shortest distant to the nearest place, with you wearing a mask. Don't touch anything, toilet and then straight back

EmmaGrundyForPM · 05/12/2020 05:20

How big is your puppy? If he's not a big breed then he will be fine in the garden and then brain games inside.

Is there a local.dog walker you could use? You can hand your puppy over at the door.

ProfessorLayton1 · 05/12/2020 07:11

We had covid when four weeks ago when laytonpup was 10 weeks old. Her vaccination was delayed due to local lockdown as well so we were really looking forward to taking her out for walks.
Please do not go out. Let the pup play in your garden if you have a garden. We did lot of mental games - snuffle mat, hiding food in the used loo roll / baking roll/ did zoom puppy class.
Take care and look after yourself

MissShapesMissStakes · 05/12/2020 07:20

I hope you aren't feeling too bad with it.

Please don't go out! Lots of sniffing games are great for tiring dogs out. Do you have enough space to play ball? You can teach some new tricks.

Obviously that depends on how you are feeling too. I wouldn't worry. As long as pup can get out for toiletting she/he will probably just enjoy you being there and having your attention.

ImAncient · 05/12/2020 07:22

You are not allowed to take dog out!! We weren’t when Dh got covid. Garden games & lots of cuddles.

wetotter · 05/12/2020 07:26

RSPCA and various dog charities have pages on their websites about how to keep your dog happy, healthy and occupied with brain games when s/he can't be taken out.

Follow that advice - and bookmark it, as you never know when future accidents or illnesses (either to yourself or to the dog) leave either of you temporarily housebound

Mybobowler · 05/12/2020 07:36

There was some great advice I heard on the radio back in April, from a behaviourist. She said that dogs can make do perfectly well without walks for a period of time, you just need to provide stimulation in other ways - scent games, retrieval/hide and seek in the garden, that sort of thing. Alternatively, as a PP has said, I'm sure you have neighbours who would be more than happy to take your pup out for a walk, but it may involve a slightly elaborate handover so you don't come into contact with them!

Doublethesarcasm · 05/12/2020 07:48

Lots of games/training to keep pup busy. When I was unable to walk my pup a while back I taught him several tricks without too much strain on myself. Removing socks, sleeves etc, pulling blankets up and down. And of course normal training of recall etc. This stimulates them enough to wear them out.

InTheNightWeWillWish · 05/12/2020 08:00

You can’t take your dog out for a walk but a dog walker can. You should ‘hand over’ your dog somewhere safe but outside, so your garden if you have one or at the front door with you way back. You may have to touch the gate or door. So if handing over in a garden, you might want to open the gate for the dog walker, move out of their way to let them come into the garden, then giving 2m distance close the gate. You might need to have pup on your own lead at this point so they don’t escape. When the gate is closed take your lead off and let the puppy go over to the dog walker. The dog walker would need to use their own lead, only walk your dog. They should walk your pup after they’ve visited all the other dogs and they should wipe sanitise everything after they’ve delivered the pup back to you. If using a neighbour or a volunteer, you should consider if they have their own leads to be able to walk her. We used a dog walker when we were full time in the office. A lot of people on here scoff that why would we get a dog for someone else to take care of them. We still use our dog walker even though we’re at home now. I personally think our dog is so well trained and well mannered because she is handled by multiple people so I think if you can afford it, even one walk every two weeks with a dog walker is great for dogs.

Even if you don’t have a garden, there are lots of brain games you can do inside. Snuffle mats, kongs, toys where they have to work out how to get the treat, start teaching scentwork with a toy (which is great for dogs anyway, regardless of whether you can go out or not). Train them to do fun tricks. Work on your basic training. Teach your dog to leave a ball (so that if you throw the ball under the TV stand, you can pick the ball up without the dog crashing into the TV stand), then do retrieves. If your dog struggles to retrieve a ball or toy and bring it back to you, there are various Internet guides on how to improve fetch. If you have a garden, throw their food around the garden and make them sniff it out. Order a football from amazon and play football with them but you definitely need to teach a good leave it then as you need to make sure pup doesn’t start playing with the kids in the park.

lemonsquashie · 05/12/2020 09:44

@AlCalavicci

Providing you keep well clear of everyone , where a mask and dont touch things ( park gates / benches other peoples dogs etc ) when you are out I can not see the harm in still walking him. It may be best to keep him on a lead as other people may stroke him. And also walk him when ir is quiet.

No, that would not be advisable

Post in a local Facebook group and ask for help or ask a neighbour for help

PollyRoulson · 05/12/2020 11:00

@AlCalavicci

Providing you keep well clear of everyone , where a mask and dont touch things ( park gates / benches other peoples dogs etc ) when you are out I can not see the harm in still walking him. It may be best to keep him on a lead as other people may stroke him. And also walk him when ir is quiet.

Do NOT do this!

Your puppy will be fine if you are well enough to let hm out into the garden (assuming you have one) a chilled two weeks will not hurt any dog.

Hope you get well soon

BenoneBeauty · 05/12/2020 11:03

NHS test and trace offered to get my colleagues dog walked when he was self isolating as he'd been in contact with someone with Covid. He received a call every day to check he was ok, if he needed any shopping and they also offered to take make arrangements to walk his dog. He didn't need them to as his neighbour took his dog every day but great they offered!

Has no one been in contact with you Op?

vanillandhoney · 05/12/2020 13:03

You could ask a local dog walker to take him/her. We're still allowed to walk dogs from positive households as long as that dog is the final dog of the day and we use our own leads etc. But whether your pup will go with a stranger is another matter.

Otherwise just keep them at home. Young puppies should be fine with just some garden time, plus plenty of mental stimulation. You could use this time to get cracking on training - recall, sit, down, stay etc. Feed the puppy from a snuffle mat, licks-mat or kong. Scatter kibble in the grass for him/her to sniff out. The Facebook page "Canine Enrichment" has plenty of great ideas too. You could also order some puzzle feeders off Amazon or similar too.

AvocadosBeforeMortgages · 05/12/2020 14:10

@BenoneBeauty

NHS test and trace offered to get my colleagues dog walked when he was self isolating as he'd been in contact with someone with Covid. He received a call every day to check he was ok, if he needed any shopping and they also offered to take make arrangements to walk his dog. He didn't need them to as his neighbour took his dog every day but great they offered!

Has no one been in contact with you Op?

I'm fascinated - who were they proposing would walk the dog? This is one of the reasons I can't afford to self isolate - my income would drop to zero, I wouldn't get the £500 because I'm not on benefits (not that £500 would cover my most basic of outgoings), and DDog has issues that mean it would be irresponsible to hand him to a well meaning but uninsured, inexperienced volunteer.

Are T&T providing additional funding to cover the cost of a professional dog walker? At £188/fortnight it's not something I can afford if I'm being told not to work. I'm already #ExcludedUK and haven't been able to claim either furlough or SEISS.

Before anyone suggests brain games, from experience I know DDog copes for no more than 48 hours without a walk, even with brain games and access to our (crap, concrete) garden.

wetotter · 05/12/2020 14:15

It'll be the local volunteers group who do things like that, and the council can provide services too.

Other useful things to do with a puppy in lockdown is to teach him/her to key you clean teeth, handle and check ears and clip claws, and to be groomed all over

HerFlowersToLove · 05/12/2020 14:19

Are T&T providing additional funding to cover the cost of a professional dog walker? At £188/fortnight it's not something I can afford if I'm being told not to work. I'm already #ExcludedUK and haven't been able to claim either furlough or SEISS.

Test and Trace put you in touch with the support hubs run by local councils.

vanillandhoney · 05/12/2020 14:26

@HerFlowersToLove

Are T&T providing additional funding to cover the cost of a professional dog walker? At £188/fortnight it's not something I can afford if I'm being told not to work. I'm already #ExcludedUK and haven't been able to claim either furlough or SEISS.

Test and Trace put you in touch with the support hubs run by local councils.

The problem with this, is those people will be volunteers with no real experience of dog walking or dog handling.

I wouldn't let my dog go off with some random volunteer, however well-meaning they were, and I don't blame other people who don't do it either. Professional dog walkers have insurance and qualifications - at least, the good ones do, anyway.

I don't want a random volunteer looking after my dog.