# Puppy needs a walk...how risky is parvo?



## pennysmomma (Jul 25, 2012)

Hi everyone...need some advice. Penny is 11.5 weeks old and we've had her for almost 3 weeks now. She's been a biter since day 1 and she's also SUPER hyper. Which is all normal...bc shes a puppy. So we've bought her a bunch of chew toys, try to exercise her a couple times a day (throwing frisbee and toys around outside) but it doesn't seem to be enough. The hyperactivity I can deal with...the crazy biting I really can't. My hands and legs are full of cuts and my kids are at the point where they're scared to be around her. We hv a trainer who comes out once a week and he's showing is how to work with her but it's not really helping. She's a tough little puppy...and doesn't respond to a firm NO...or the loud yelp. We just stop playing with her when she gets like that...which is all the time now. If she's awake and has access to a human body part she's biting it.
So my question is, how risky do u all feel a walk would be at this point? I just feel like getting her tired and releasing all that energy will help a lot. But she's not fully vaccinated so I don't know what to do. Risk of illness vs an unhappy home...help.


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## adrino (Mar 31, 2012)

This biting phase will go eventually but you just gotta keep yelping  and walking out of the room and stopping the fun. Also try to keep soft toys around so when the nipping happens you can replace your body parts with the toy. Others folded the skin between the teeth so she/he would bite on their own flesh. We must have been lucky, we barely had any biting with Elza. But later on she was a bit nippy on walks. 
It takes a lot of patience and consistency plus you have to make sure the fun ends when it happens. Try to treat the right behaviour at the right time. 
Maybe wear long sleeves in the meantime? 

Kids should be a no no for your vizsla and it has to be you as an adult to make sure that she doesn't get the chance to hurt them. You could put a cheap leash on her all the time and control her with that when it's necessary or even better, make her follow you everywhere. That would tire her out. Loads of short training sessions throughout the day will tire her brain.

About the shots. I'm in the UK, so Elza only had 2 sets of shots. First at 8 weeks then second 2 weeks later. The Vet said we can take her out a week after the second shot. We were out after the 5th day. It made a huge difference but I would have not risked taking her out earlier than that. Loads of foxes and many dogs around where we live...

Hope this helps! Be patient and it will pay off but till then just yelp!  

Oh just remembered, you could also give her a time out when she's really out of control. In her crate or another place where she can be closed in just for a short time to calm her down.


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Our vet let us take Miles on walks in our neighborhood, small dog parks, and quiet on leash beaches after 2 vaccines. We waited for lagoons, trails, and off leash beaches until 3rd vaccine. He said the benefits of socialization outweigh the risk of Parvo after 2 shots. We don't know what we would have done if we had waited! Miles is an energetic boy and we were much happier taking him out and about. We also started bringing him to restaurants after 2 vaccines for socialization.


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## pippa31 (Aug 2, 2011)

We have a pretty liberal vet and she said take Pippa out (who was also a nipper) AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. We had her out and about by 12 weeks for sure. We had her around dogs we trusted (and we knew were vaccinated) and in more rural places for hiking, etc. It was a life-saver for us, and looking back, I wish we had done more off-leash when she was younger ~ hindsight is a wonderful thing :

I also found that the more I was trying to "teach" her something - sit, stay, "find it", etc., the more tired she would become. After a 15-20 minute training session, she would often then sleep for 2 hours. I used a trainer AND the book, "The Power Of Positive Dog Training" by Pat Miller to help me figure out how to train new concepts.

The biting phase is a horrible phase. I agree that crate time (to give you and your family a break) is not a bad thing. I found that I often needed the break, to be honest. It does get better and is finished usually by 20 weeks.

Good luck!


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## pennysmomma (Jul 25, 2012)

Thank you all for the great advice. I think I'll need to re-read this thread daily to keep it all fresh. And to remind myself that this phase will indeed pass! 
You guys mentioned crate time...I'm wondering if it's "ok" to keep her in there even when shes crying and barking. She screams bloody murder in the crate...which is why we only use it when we leave the house. And the longest has been about an hour bc I know she's going nuts in there. Should she have designated "crate time" everyday and how long? 

Also any tips for leash biting? When I've tried walking her in the yard it becomes tug of war 

Thanks!!!


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## pennysmomma (Jul 25, 2012)

Also want to add she gets her second shots on the 8th. I'm going to re-address the issue of walks with the vet. We're all getting cabin fever, especially Penny


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## Phoebejane (May 10, 2012)

Hi pennysmomma I know how you feel but I promise it does get easier with the nipping.. I never took Harry out before he was fully vaccinated but I invited neighbours/friends dogs (who I knew were up to date with jabs etc) round to play in our garden and it helped socialise him and teach him doggy manners also it tuckered him out... I also attached a bell to Harrys collar so I always knew where he was as I have small children, my daughter donated a giant lion that was bigger than him so when he went on the nipping rampage I gave him that lol I owe alot to that lion best idea my three year old had lol oh and bones bones and more bones good luck


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## amitai (Jun 14, 2012)

I had the same dilemma with my pup and decided to take her out after her second set of shots (of three). 

If she doesn't play with other dogs and get some off-lead outside time every day she becomes super sharky and gets the nickname sharkweek.

Between risking the big scary world full of diseases and living miserably with her inside, I made the decision that it was better for all involved for her to receive socialization and exercise.

When Edom gets her outside time, she is tired and happy and cooperative at home; when she doesn't, sharkweek. It was a risk I decided was worth taking...


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## pippa31 (Aug 2, 2011)

I definitely think she should have designated crate time every day. It will allow you a break and for her to rest and get used to thinking of her crate as a safe haven. Case in point: the past couple of weeks we have been having some work done in our house. One of the repair guys LOVES dogs and Pippa can be out and "helping" him. The other is terrified. I can put Pippa in her crate while he's working and everyone is happy 

We started Pippa on a strict crate schedule. Dogs are creatures of habit and they love their routines (as I have learned). We would have her out training,playing, eating, outside, etc. for an hour or so in the morning when we got up. You want to keep your puppy really active before you put them in the crate. Then, we would put her in her crate for an hour or two or so. Then, repeat. Yes, she cried and screamed bloody murder at first. But eventually, over the course of a month or so, it got SO MUCH BETTER. Also, we always put a Kong stuffed with peanut butter and frozen every time she had to go in her crate. We also played some "crate games" as part of the training. This all helped Pippa form a positive association with her crate. It was a ton of work, but with a lot of consistency, it pays off. When I work, she gets a morning off-leash walk for an hour to an hour and a half and then is in her crate from 10-4 with no issues. There are lots of good posts about crate training on the forum.

One other quick thing to add to this long ramble, is that it is important that you are home sometimes when she is in her crate. If you are always putting her in her crate and then leaving, then she associates her crate with you not being around and it becomes an isolation chamber. We learned this the hard way and had to re-teach this.

Finally, with the leash-biting...I would spray some bitter apple on the leash. When she tries to bite it, she will get a mouthful of bitter apple and will hopefully not like it!


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## lilyloo (Jun 20, 2012)

Our puppy is the same age as your pup and we started walking her about a week and a half ago. We have an undeveloped area in our neighborhood (the streets are put in but the houses haven't gone up yet) where we take her. This minimizes the risk of her being exposed to something, as no one else walks their doggies there. 

She has had 2 sets of shots and goes for her 3rd next week. I can't wait to be able to take her to a dog park and playdates. 

She does get socialization with my parent's dog, and loves everyone she meets. I'll have her out front in my yard while I do garden work and everyone that comes up to say hi is her best friend. I do think socialization is very important --- so get that pup out in a controlled environment!

You'll probably find that she won't want to walk longer than 30 minutes or so at a time. Ruby gets tired after that long and starts to stop and sit a lot, we know that then it's time to pick her up and carry her the rest of the way.

As for the biting...it is completely normal, as others have said.


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## johnnywiggla (Sep 30, 2012)

adrino said:


> Loads of short training sessions throughout the day will tire her brain.
> 
> About the shots. I'm in the UK, so Elza only had 2 sets of shots. First at 8 weeks then second 2 weeks later. The Vet said we can take her out a week after the second shot. We were out after the 5th day. It made a huge difference but I would have not risked taking her out earlier than that. Loads of foxes and many dogs around where we live...


Hi All,

I also live in the UK and my vet said to wait 2 weeks after the second injection, is this the case or will 1 week be ok ? Also, what's the best way to mentally tire him out as I'm trying little training sessions and he's only picked up "sit" and doesn't want to do anything else ! He's only just turns 9 today btw, could this be why, he's still too young to train ??

Thanks


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## AKGInspiration (Aug 23, 2012)

You don't want your pup to get Parvo... so why even take the risk? This does NOT mean you can't walk your pup though. it just means you have to avoid the usual dog heavy areas and find some new places to walk. I took mine to remote wooded, nature like areas that were more private. I also would take her to shopping centers with no dog stores. Like grocery stores etc just to walk her around that environment... around people and stairs and carts etc. Good exposure. So you should totally be allowed to walk her you just gotta get creative in where you do the walking till she is old enough for all shots.

Same goes for dog exposure, if you trust the other dog and you know the people and that they are current on all shots and healthy... then they can be around them. Case in point my breeder... and my own personal dogs or friends dogs. This will give her a way to play but with safe clean healthy dogs.

It will get better, hang in there


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## johnnywiggla (Sep 30, 2012)

AKGInspiration said:


> You don't want your pup to get Parvo... so why even take the risk? This does NOT mean you can't walk your pup though. it just means you have to avoid the usual dog heavy areas and find some new places to walk. I took mine to remote wooded, nature like areas that were more private. I also would take her to shopping centers with no dog stores. Like grocery stores etc just to walk her around that environment... around people and stairs and carts etc. Good exposure. So you should totally be allowed to walk her you just gotta get creative in where you do the walking till she is old enough for all shots.
> 
> Same goes for dog exposure, if you trust the other dog and you know the people and that they are current on all shots and healthy... then they can be around them. Case in point my breeder... and my own personal dogs or friends dogs. This will give her a way to play but with safe clean healthy dogs.
> 
> It will get better, hang in there


Would you still recommend not taking out (remote places etc) until two weeks after the second injection ?
Most of our shopping centres etc don't let you take dogs in, I was carrying him around Asda today and got kicked out


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

I am in Berkshire. My pup had the normal two jabs plus a third parvo virus at 16wks as this is a high risk area. I was told 2 weeks, but didn't wait as I took him to training classes and I just figured he had some immunity from his 1st set of jabs. Vets have to cover themselves and that is fair enough. you as an owner have to weigh up the advantages of socializing as early as possible or being cautious and waiting the two week.

I am surprised you took your pup into Asda but not surprised they kicked you out health and safety and hygiene,etc. 

Your puppy is never too young to learn, but in very small sessions. Try and find your local obedience classes and take your puppy along to those as it is good socialization as well as being helpful to you. If you can teach you puppy recall with all the other puppies around and he is very excited you will be doing well!!


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## johnnywiggla (Sep 30, 2012)

hotmischief said:


> I am in Berkshire. My pup had the normal two jabs plus a third parvo virus at 16wks as this is a high risk area. I was told 2 weeks, but didn't wait as I took him to training classes and I just figured he had some immunity from his 1st set of jabs. Vets have to cover themselves and that is fair enough. you as an owner have to weigh up the advantages of socializing as early as possible or being cautious and waiting the two week.
> 
> I am surprised you took your pup into Asda but not surprised they kicked you out health and safety and hygiene,etc.
> 
> Your puppy is never too young to learn, but in very small sessions. Try and find your local obedience classes and take your puppy along to those as it is good socialization as well as being helpful to you. If you can teach you puppy recall with all the other puppies around and he is very excited you will be doing well!!


I have contacted several puppy classes and they won't let me attend (not even to stand in the corner with pup in arms) until after he's had his jabs. I thought it would have been a good way to socialise him. 
Sorry. Asda, I was only in the door way not round the shop.


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## SkyyMax (Apr 5, 2012)

We always took pups for a walks 2 weeks _after_ the final vaccination. 
Prior to that they were always exercised on a back yard.
It's better to be on a safe side.


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## AKGInspiration (Aug 23, 2012)

[/quote]

Would you still recommend not taking out (remote places etc) until two weeks after the second injection ?
Most of our shopping centres etc don't let you take dogs in, I was carrying him around Asda today and got kicked out 
[/quote]

I don't mean take them IN the stores.... but go walk around the parking lot, shop fronts etc. The key is to find places that highly reduce the risk but still allow you to get out. So think more "people locations" rather than dog. Even just back country roads will have less chance of dog traffic. I would not take them to actual stores that do allow dogs as that usually means more dogs will be through and leaving their remains around the grounds. Also restaurants that have outside seating would be less populate if you can find a friend to run in to get you a drink or something. You could probably even keep them up off the ground on a chair... but it still gets them outside into the world while you wait for their immune systems to become strong.


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## AKGInspiration (Aug 23, 2012)

I would stay away from public training classes and daycares etc until they are through with ALL their shots. Simply not worth the health risk. How far is your breeder? Any way you can schedule a visit to play with those pups? Maybe she knows of a trusted owner or two near you that you can contact to get the pups together? It's not so much about keeping them away from dogs, but from strange dogs/owners you don't know... and thus don't know their health history. If you have friends with dogs that you trust and they are up to date on shots then go play with them. It is however vital that you get your puppy out into the world at this age to experience stairs, bikes, busses, cars, and all sorts of sounds and smells. Maybe you can go find some places to take a more hiking type walk with your pup? We did a lot of that with Luna when she was little, or took her to friend's houses that had no dogs to socialize etc.


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## johnnywiggla (Sep 30, 2012)

He's been out n about almost every day, something new, new places etc however, always in my arms. And he plays a lot with my families dogs. 
There are outdoor shopping centres with no pet stores there but I assumed to let him walk yet before the second injection would be wrong.


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## jld640 (Sep 29, 2010)

You might ask your vet for low risk suggestions. He/she knows the local area.


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