I already know this would be stupid.....

[NewMaltese]

As per title, I know it's not doable, but we have been offered an 11wo pup, which is completely perfect for us. BUT we are going abroad for 2 weeks soon, and altho my 20yo DS will be at home, I know that it wouldn't be fair to the pup to settle it in then bugger off for 2 weeks 😪
We also have a Maltese dog, who'd be at home with my son.

Pls tell me I'm right so I can stop trying to overthink it to come up with ways around it 😭

Ah, difficult decision. If it wasn't for the holiday would you go ahead? How soon is the holiday, could you ask the breeder to hold on to oupnfor a little longer?

Would 98% go ahead if not for the holiday.
Hol is last week of june and first week july

I would go ahead if DS was on board and responsible.

Were you looking for a pup? Would DS continue toilet training and settling in pup? Does he have to work while you’re away?

offered an 11wo pup, which is completely perfect for us.

Why were you offered it? Why is it 11 weeks old? How reputable is the breeder?

Those are the most important questions, the rest of it is secondary.

But it would be incredibly reckless to introduce a new puppy to your existing dog whilst you were away though. Dogs really should have stability when a new family member is introduced. I don't think a good breeder (my response to everything) would give a puppy to a new family if they knew half the family wouldn't be there for the first two weeks AND there was an existing dog - so does the breeder know your circumstances?

Was looking for a pup.
Hobby breeder, but definitely family pet, which hasn't prev had pups. Would get it midweek, so 12wo, and would be 18w when holiday is booked.

@NewMaltese personally, I don't think a breeder with an eleven week old pup is someone I would buy a dog from.

But assuming the parents are fully health tested, and you've problem vetted the breeder/they vetted you, then go ahead - as I think you're probably going to anyway😊

(Although if it's that litter current on the KC website in Doncaster, you'd be mad to go there given how inbred the pups are and lack of health tests....)

No, it's not Doncaster - but can you let me know who they are so I can avoid them? PM if you'd prefer?

Hobby breeder means backyard breeder. Making money from family pets. Not choosing sire and dam carefully and likely not having the breed specific health tests required. If you want a specific breed then contact the breed club.

It's not uncommon for small/toy breeds to stay with the dam until 12 weeks, and it's worth asking the breeders if they'll keep the puppy for a few weeks more - when we got our first puppy, the breeder kept her 3-ish weeks extra so that the DC were back at school after the holidays.

Hobby breeders vary hugely in how good they are. Some will have prior experience of breeding puppies (or will have an experienced friend available to guide them through), will look for a health-tested and compatible stud, and put a lot of effort into vetting puppy buyers. Others have no idea what they're doing. It's up to the person looking for a puppy to do their due diligence.

Thank you. Yes, agreed, hobby breeder doesn't mean they're any worse than any professional/pedigree breeder.

Additionally, I'm guessing all are looking for a profit either way.

Is your son working? My teenage dd is managing wonderfully with our pup and doing almost all of the training and toileting etc as he is “her dog” although we have obviously accepted him as a family pet and take ultimate responsibility. But if your son isn’t working I can’t see why a 20 year old couldn’t manage to carry on with puppy basics at 18 weeks they will likely be quite settled in?

Well yes it can do. They don’t have the expertise or willingness to get breed specific tests done and choose best matches for parents. It is purely for cash. A decent breeder cares about the health and welfare of the pups they breed and wants to produce the best examples of the breed that they can.

No, I know, but it doesn't have to mean that they're dodgy or don't care, was what i was saying - yes, they absolutely can be awful, tho

No, he's a student, so could be at home. My brain was forgetting an 18wo pup isn't the same intensity as a 11wo one 🥰

Why can’t they hold on to the pup for a little longer?

its not ideal, but by the time you go away, the pup should be pretty much settled in & will still be with human it's been living with fur 6 weeks.

if you trust your DS to look after the pup well, what exactly are you worried about?

presumably he won't be having parties & loads of strangers (to the pup) there all the time??

So have the pup’s parents actually had all the pre- mating health checks required ie heart/hips/eyes/brain malformation etc depending on breed requirements? And why is this pup not taken by 11wo?

A 'little' longer?? 2 month!!

besides I'd want to have had it home before it's 5 months old!!

But isn’t it just the 2-week holiday that’s the issue?

Holiday not until end of June/into July

As I said, my brain wasn't computing that it wouldn't be a tiny pup by the time of the holiday

It wouldn't be just a little longer - it'd be an extra 8 weeks. Which would be pointless

Hobby breeders can be wonderful and caring towards their chosen breed. I really don't get the narrative of MN that all hobby breeders are bad or just in for the cash. The UK desperately needs a larger genetic pool for dog breeding. The raise in genetic mutation, higher COI and adding ever more conditions to be tested for says it all.

Have you asked your son if he would look after both dogs ? You are assuming he won't manage he will be part of the dogs household so the pup will know him, and be fine.