Puppy on holiday ??

[BaconAndAvocado]

We'll be getting our Newboy at the end of August.

Having been told it probably wouldn't be until around December, we are all extremely surprised and excited!

However, I've booked a week in a cottage in the New Forest (which does allow dogs) in October when the pup will be 16 weeks old.

Is taking him on holiday going to be ok? I have family who will look after him if not although would definitely prefer to have him with us.

We took ours away at 5 months old. He was really well behaved BUT our holiday was very, very limited and I don't think I'd do it again, in all honesty. It wasn't hard, just restricted in a way I never really thought about.

Firstly, I would check your cottage allows puppies as many say the dog has to be over 12 months old to try and avoid accidents and destructive behaviour like chewing.

If he IS allowed to come, things to keep in mind are:

• you won't be able to leave him in the cottage unattended.
• he won't be able to walk further than about 20-30 minutes at a time at that age, but may also be too big to be carried in a sling.
• lots of places (restaurants, cafés) don't allow dogs inside so you'll be limited in where you can go.
• many attractions aren't dog-friendly - so you'll have to split up so someone can stay with the dog.
• what will you do if the puppy has an accident on soft-furnishings or chews something in the property?

It could work find but be aware it won't be anything like a normal holiday. Puppies need to sleep around 18-20 hours a day and if they don't get that, they can be an absolute disaster

We bring our pup home start of September and have a holiday booked for mid October. She will be 13 weeks but we are so excited to go! It’s only for 3 days :)

We’re just back from a week away with our 18 week old pup, likewise booked before we knew we would have her. Yes it limited what we could do in terms of length of walks etc but having her with us really added to the fun of the holiday. She ate out with us (just had to choose carefully and do some research) and she was really good, lying under the chairs etc. She came cycling (we hired a dog trailer), and she slept in her crate at night so no risk of harm to the cottage. The crate came with us folded in the car. I would say don’t worry about it ( I did beforehand) but be prepared. It felt like travelling with a baby! We had a travel water bottle and treat bag with us at all times, her toys, her crate and lots of spare towels. It was hot so was a constant worry that she would be too hot, at least you won’t have that to worry about in October!

Thanks all.
Yes I think the limited walking times and where we'll be allowed to go with the pup (restaurants etc) are probably the biggest concerns.

I hadn't actioned in the potential damage caused to the cottage!

I guess that for my first 2 concerns I will have to do lots of research.

Just make sure you check with the owner or holiday company re. the age :)

Will do
Thanks icedcoffees

We went to New Forest with our puppy when he was that age. It was great. Very dog-friendly place

Just got back from a week in a cottage with 2 x 5 month old puppies.
We’d been before with older dogs so knew they would be safe enough, but I did miss going on the longer walks, and the ridiculous heat really restricted what we could do & at what times.
Take books !