Will it be okay to bring my puppy to an out-of-town trip (e.g. beach/hiking trail)?

[brave_heart]

This is an hypothetical question since I don't have my puppy yet, just planning ahead.

Later this summer I'm welcoming my first puppy home. About one week after her arrival, I will have two friends (with no dogs/pets) visiting me, something we planned long before the puppy came into the picture. I would love to spend some quality time with these friends, maybe going to the shore or on a hiking trail for a 1 day trip out of town (say 9am-5pm). They'll be at my place for 10 days.

Of course my priority is making sure the puppy is safe, so I won't do it if you advise against. Is there a way in which a 1-day trip could work? I know she shouldn't interact with other dogs before full vaccination, and shouldn't walk too long. I could bring her in the car in her crate, and then have her in a dog backpack on my shoulders as we walk. I could bring some toys and take many breaks. But I don't know.... I don't want her to have a negative experience and become less adventurous.

What are your thoughts?

[Edit: Why downvote? I'm just an inexperienced, prospective owner asking for advice in good faith... cut me some slack]

 

[karenmonique]

@brave_heart Personally, I wouldn’t do it for a plethora of reasons, some you mention yourself:

1) not fully vaccinated. She could get super sick in her normal setting, let alone a hiking trail or beach, where there are many more dogs on average and many other dangers your puppy wouldn’t be protected against. One of which is ticks, which I’m assuming you also won’t be able to protect her against.

2) depending on how young the puppy will be, they‘ll simply be too small/weak for any big exhaustion. Puppies should be sleeping 16-20h a day. I don’t see how a one day trip works in that case, even with being carried around, which is a lot more exhausting than you might think. Both my dogs are under 5kg but after half an hour those 5kg can feel like 50kg, let alone on a hike

3) too much all at once. I’m assuming you’ve heard of the 3-3-3 rule? Your puppy needs time to settle and realize where and what his new home is, after leaving everything they‘ve known so far behind all at once. Ripping them out of that new environment after just a week sounds a little harsh for a puppy, in my opinion.

4) the trip wouldn’t be as fun with a needy puppy anyway, trust me. You’ll need all the energy you can get. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that after the first week with your pup you yourself won’t feel up for any big activities, but that’s just my experience. I was so tired and exhausted, I barely left the apartment, let alone had the time and energy for any trips.

 

[rami_1]

@karenmonique Fully agree with this. The trip isn't a good idea, and it's very likely you won't have the energy or motivation to do the trip anyway. Having a puppy, particularly in those first few days and couple weeks, is completely mentally and physically exhausting.

 

[brave_heart]

@karenmonique Thank you! Yes, this makes total sense to me. I guess I just needed to hear it from someone else

What is the 3-3-3 rule?

Also, roughly how old do you think the puppy should be before doing something like a 1-day trip? 6 months?

 

[karenmonique]

@brave_heart Girl, imma be real, mine is 6 months and I barely leave the house still. Me personally, I don’t think I’d plan trips like this until the dog is fully grown; so depending on the breed size 1-2 years old. And I don’t mean going on vacation with a dog, where you can have at least a semblance of a routine, but 1-day trips that are exhausting in their own right.

Trust me, you’ll have many battles to fight with your puppy - and they can be super rewarding don’t get me wrong but they‘ll also eat at you - you don’t want to add the extra stress.

As for the 3-3-3 rule is relatively simplified:
3 days to decompress
3 weeks for learning the new routines
3 months until they finally start to feel at home

Those are the three „big“ points in time where you’ll see behavior changes in the dog since their actual personality will start to show after 3 months.

 

[brave_heart]

@karenmonique Gotcha, thank you for the tips!

 

[karenmonique]

@brave_heart Happy to help

 

[leahfaith]

@karenmonique Agree with all of this. Also wanted to add, do these places even allow dogs. I live at the beach and most of our beaches don’t allow dogs in season.

 

[gabbythanks]

@brave_heart I usually err on the side of adventure with pups but in this case I would really encourage you to reschedule either your puppy’s arrival date or your friends’ visit. It really is like bringing a little baby home. A week in you’re going to be going through the first throes of potty training, letting puppy out every hour, mini walks, multiple feeds, very likely sleepless nights and most definitely interrupted nights. It’s not the best situation for a friend visit. I would definitely not plan a day long trip with a new fur baby this early - besides the safety issues it’s just not going to be fun. Wait until you’re both sleeping through the night or close to it, she’s had at least 2 rounds of her core vaccines (full is better at around 4 months), and you’ve established her walking and car riding stamina. You may have a dog who gets violently sick in cars or is reactive to trails. Unless your friends are ok coming to visit as puppy nannies (in which case, score!!!!) they may not enjoy the trip as much either - you’ll be tied up at home, tired, and most of our attention will be claimed by your pup.

It’s all worth it by the way. A few months from now she will be an amazing adventure buddy.

 

[brave_heart]

@gabbythanks Thank you, I really appreciate the advice! Yeah, I'm considering finding them an AirBnB, but I'll ask whether they want to be nannies for a while

So would 4 months be old enough for some adventure?

 

[gabbythanks]

@brave_heart Depending on the breed/mix/stamina, it’s a good chance. My 4 month old husky has been outrunning me since around 3 months old. He can easily handle a 6-8 mile trail walk and weekend-long trips now. I’m not sure how smaller breeds would do, I’ve always had high stamina working dogs, but if you start with shorter walks and build up you’ll quickly see her range.

Talk to your vet about the right vaccines too - mine recommends additional ones for “adventure lifestyles” to keep him safe (lepto, Lyme, bordetella) and I got him on the fastest safe intervals for DHPP/rabies so we could explore more earlier.

 

[brave_heart]

@gabbythanks Okay, great, thank you! I’m most likely getting a corgi, so as a herding dog hopefully she’ll have plenty of energy

 

[tomm57]

@brave_heart This threw me off, you know what week you’re getting your puppy but not what breed?

 

[brave_heart]

@tomm57 lol of course I know, I said “most likely” because we haven’t finalized an agreement with the breeder and there’s always a chance things don’t go through!

 

[tomm57]

@brave_heart Ah gotcha, I am the type to hedge when I say something that isn’t set it stone too.

 

[brave_heart]

@tomm57 Yeah don’t want to get my hopes up too much, but I can’t resist planning for all eventualities

 

[journeyforever]

@brave_heart I have taken my cockapoo out for (1-hour) hikes since he was around 4 months... he sleeps for the entire day when we get home... if he's woken up during those sleeps before hes ready, land shark time!

 

[peaceloving]

@brave_heart You maybe could but almost definitely not.

Assuming your puppy is 8-10 weeks old when you bring them home, they’ll need to go out to pee every hour or so. On this trip you’ll need there to be somewhere safe to pee every hour. Safe in this context means “where other dogs haven’t peed/pooed” which is not at a beach/hiking area unfortunately.

There is a very high chance that your puppy is going to puke in the car. Puppies don’t have fully developed inner ears, and it makes them more susceptible to motion sickness. My last dog didn’t ever have an issue, my current one pukes all the time. Not really the fun trip you might be hoping for.

I’d wait until you know your pup is reliably comfortable in the car, and is fully vaccinated. If it’s a large breed dog, I’d wait until they were grown enough to safely walk the entire time you plan to be there, because by the time puppy is old enough for the first two points, they’d be too big to carry around for that long (e.g. my golden retriever puppy is just under 4 months -yay for almost being fully vaccinated!- and she can go in the car without puking if we time it well with meals, and she’s already over 25 lbs and is exhausting to carry). A little dog you could put in a backpack maybe 4 months would be reasonable, assuming you’ve worked out the car.

 

[kens]

@brave_heart The day after my pup was cleared to touch grass we went camping for the weekend. He did great. A month after that he had his first hotel overnight stay. Each dog is different and as long as you are good in the vaccine front I see no reason you can’t try and do trips. Just keep in mind they can’t exercise as much as a fully developed dog.

 

[brave_heart]

@kens So cleared to touch grass = fully vaccinated, so about 4 months old right?