Pet Store

[PennyB]

I would personally wish to air on the side of caution. In our pets at home, there are always quite a lot of dogs in there, not for sale... just other owners... and for me I would be too worried about them getting to close, or even jumping up.

I guess some stores are busier than others.

I can imagine its busier at certain times like the weekends so no doubt it does have its quiet periods like any shop

[Cob-Web]

In fact I used to just go out specifically just to socialise the pups.

Get hold of a copy of 'The Perfect Puppy' by Gwen Bailey and make sure as soon as you can you take her to puppy classes to continue socialising her.

At the back of the Gwen Bailey book, there is a list of suggested socialisation opportunities; some of the things are not "easy" to find, so might need to be planned a bit more ,but it is well worth it if you can 

[Colin]

I carried both Jimmy and Misty around with me as soon as I got them at 8 weeks, including trips to PAH. I guess we all have different ideas of risk assessment but I thought the benefits of early socialisation outweighed the minimal risk of them catching anything. I could be wrong but think that parvo and lepto can only be caught by ingesting or licking something infected, rather than being airbourne - so carrying the pup isn't too much of a risk. I wouldn't have thought that carrying a pup around PAH would be any more risky than taking them to the vets.

I appreciate that some of us are more cautious than others though.

[Jan/Billy]

I carried both Jimmy and Misty around with me as soon as I got them at 8 weeks, including trips to PAH. I guess we all have different ideas of risk assessment but I thought the benefits of early socialisation outweighed the minimal risk of them catching anything. I could be wrong but think that parvo and lepto can only be caught by ingesting or licking something infected, rather than being airbourne - so carrying the pup isn't too much of a risk. I wouldn't have thought that carrying a pup around PAH would be any more risky than taking them to the vets.

I appreciate that some of us are more cautious than others though.

Completely agree.

I WOULD take her to pets at home, just carry her, don't put her on the floor.

Some of the issues we have with Billy may be due to the fact we didn't socialise him enough as a pup. If I were to have a pup again I'd be socialising like mad!!!

Billys behaviourist have 5 dogs & has just got a working german shepherd pup   , she took him out before his innoculations were complete , in her opinion the benefits of early socialisation far outweigh the risks.

[Jan/Billy]

In fact I used to just go out specifically just to socialise the pups.

Get hold of a copy of 'The Perfect Puppy' by Gwen Bailey and make sure as soon as you can you take her to puppy classes to continue socialising her.

At the back of the Gwen Bailey book, there is a list of suggested socialisation opportunities; some of the things are not "easy" to find, so might need to be planned a bit more ,but it is well worth it if you can 

We ticked every box on this list, but if i'm honest i don't think we did it enough. I agree it's a great list 

[helenb]

Buy or borrow a good book: Gwen Bailey's "The Perfect Puppy" tells it like it is with a pup    Yes ,they will make a mess, they will bite you, and they will chew your possessions  although some of the behavioural stuff in this book is a bit outdated.

A better one from a behavioural point of view - so you can begin to understand how your pup learns is "The Complete Idiots Guide to Dog Training" by Pamela Dennison which has a section specifically on Puppy socialisation and also crate training (a must, imo  ) There is also an article by her here, all about socialisation 
[/quote]

I have had a look on amazon and I am going to buy both books, you can never have enough information!
I won a crate on ebay yesterday, so it should get delivered in the next few days and I will definitely need help in getting Maddie used to it

[helenb]

Maddie is coming on brilliantly!

Yesterday she woke up a different puppy, full of confidence, she was running around the house playing, and ventured out into the garden without my help. 
I left the door open and she would go out to the toilet by herself and then come back in, I made sure I gavenher plenty of praise!

Today she has discovered grass, plants, stones and soil!    She thinks it's funny to run around the garden biting at the plants and picking up stones in her mouth - I need eyes in the back of my head!

She is so well behaved, she hardly cries at night and at the moment I have a puppy pad for her to use overnight. I am looking forward to seeing how it goes with the crate when it arrives, a visit to a few charity shops are required for some blankets 

Maddie has already been vaccinated for parvo and her next visit to the vets is in about 8 days. I have also insured her in case of any problems in the future.

Thanks everyone for all your help, support and encouragement 

[Claire83]

Hi there Helen,

I too am new to this site.  I couldn't agree more with you all. I recently went to a pet shop "just to have a look" and came out of there pretty disgusted. 
The lady could hardly tell me anything about the pup and wasn't prepared to tell me where it had come from or anything relating to it's background, however it was apparently KC registered!

The thing is you never actually know if these people are telling the truth or not. So my gut instict was to forget about it however lovely the pup was. In the long run you want a pup that is going to be healthy  and happy and not for you to worry about if there will be any problems or defects e.t.c later on.

After waiting a couple of months I've now found a lovely lady who is a kc, licensed breeder who i have managed to find and managed to get a reccomendation from someone about her. The pups aren't due until May but she has been so helpful and even sent me a picture of the Mum.
The best thing is to hold on and wait until that right pup comes along i'm certain it will! My fingers are crossed for you x 

[helenb]

Hi there Helen,

I too am new to this site.  I couldn't agree more with you all. I recently went to a pet shop "just to have a look" and came out of there pretty disgusted. 
The lady could hardly tell me anything about the pup and wasn't prepared to tell me where it had come from or anything relating to it's background, however it was apparently KC registered!

The thing is you never actually know if these people are telling the truth or not. So my gut instict was to forget about it however lovely the pup was. In the long run you want a pup that is going to be healthy  and happy and not for you to worry about if there will be any problems or defects e.t.c later on.

After waiting a couple of months I've now found a lovely lady who is a kc, licensed breeder who i have managed to find and managed to get a reccomendation from someone about her. The pups aren't due until May but she has been so helpful and even sent me a picture of the Mum.
The best thing is to hold on and wait until that right pup comes along i'm certain it will! My fingers are crossed for you x 

Hi Claire

I'm not sure if you have read my latest posts, but my boyfriend surprised me with a puppy - Maddie, who came from one of those pet stores. 
Unfortunately I was too late in telling him about what I had read on these forums, however she is beautiful and coming on famously.

Good luck with your puppy that's due in May! 

[Jane S]

I'll close this thread now. Helen, feel free to start new threads if you need any specific advice as your pup develops