Puppies need to be socialized at an early point in their life in order to grow into a well-adjusted adult. One of the best ways of doing this is to take your puppy to the dog park.
However, there are many dangers and risks so picking the right time when puppies can go to the park is essential – I will explain it all here with the short answer first following by some interesting details.
When can I take my puppy to the park? Puppies can go to the dog park around the age of 16 weeks (4 months old). This is providing they have had all of their vaccinations against common canine diseases, with vets recommending going outdoors 2 weeks after the final injections.
However, even if your puppy has had their last set of vaccinations it’s still very important to be cautious at dog parks. There are other dangers aside from disease such as aggression or mating attempts from other dogs.
The good news is that with all of these issues, puppies can go to the dog park providing you are very careful and take the steps to protect them with on-leash walks to start off with. Don’t let them out of your sight!
But let’s talk about shots and vaccinations in a little more depth first.
Can puppies go to the dog park without shots?
But how important exactly are vaccinations and shots for puppies going to the park? Is this a risk you should take, after all, what are the chances of your puppy actually getting ill?
There is a risk which is why it’s so important to understand when puppies can go to the park.
Can unvaccinated puppies go to the dog park? You should not take your puppy to the park before vaccinations and without shots. Dog parks are busy places with lots of different dogs (some unvaccinated) where the risk of potentially fatal parvovirus (parvo) is higher.
So, why exactly is it not safe for unvaccinated puppies to go to the park due to parvo? Well, if your puppy hasn’t had shots, they can easily pick up illnesses and diseases either from the environment or from another dog.
Parvovirus, or parvo is the biggest risk for puppies in an environment like a dog park. It’s a deadly disease that usually strikes unvaccinated puppies and is highly infectious between dogs.
It causes an infectious gastrointestinal (GI) illness in puppies and is usually spread through faeces and is potentially fatal. It can also live in the ground, in bushes, and on grass. Puppies without their shots are particularly prone to getting it.
So, even if you were to take your puppy to a dog park and there were no other dogs running about, there is still a small risk of them getting parvo if they have not had their vaccination shots.
Scary stuff.
In order to protect your puppy from the deadly risk that is parvo and other problematic diseases, it is best for their welfare that they avoid environments like dog parks, streets, and other places with older dogs until they are fully vaccinated.
In most cases, this will be from 8 weeks and onwards (you can see a vaccination schedule lower down the page).
By ensuring your puppy is fully vaccinated with shots before letting them loose in a dog park, you are protecting them from serious diseases such as parvo or anything else they might catch from the environment or any other unvaccinated dog.
Although it might be tempting to take them out before and not wait the appropriate amount of time, these vaccinations will only be effective if the guidance given to you about it is strictly adhered to.
The vaccination process for puppies
There are two main types of vaccination for your puppy which you will have to get throughout the vaccination process – this is the C3 and C5 vaccination.
- The C3 vaccination covers your puppy against hepatitis viruses, distemper and parvovirus.
- The C5 vaccination covers your puppy against all of the above – distemper, parvovirus and hepatitis viruses – as well as kennel cough.
There are three main vaccinations that your puppy needs before being fully protected from diseases, and they need to at a certain age (in weeks) to have them.
6 to 8-week vaccinations
The first vaccination should be the C3 vaccination. Although your puppy should already have had this before they were given to you, this might not have been the case.
If you haven’t been given the paperwork or haven’t been clearly told about whether they’ve been vaccinated, book this in immediately.
Can I take my 8-week-old puppy outside? As this is only their first vaccination and all the shots are not yet complete, I do not recommend you take your 8-week-old puppy outside yet. You should wait until all shots are completed.
Similarly, I would not recommend you take a 9-week-old puppy outdoors as it will still be in the early stages in the vaccinations process.
10 to 12-week vaccinations
The second vaccination should be the C5 vaccination, which not only protects your pop from parvovirus, hepatitis viruses and distemper – but also protects them against kennel cough.
After the second booster you can start toilet training your dog outdoors to dog parks or take them on short walks.
Can I take my 10-week-old puppy outside? After the second set of shots, your 10-week-old puppy can go outside on very short walks. However, it is still advisable to avoid dog parks until they have been given their third and final booster.
14 to 16-week vaccinations (optional)
At this point, you can choose whether or not your puppy can have C3 or C5 for their final booster – although your vet can help to advise you on this decision.
After they’ve had their final booster, you should wait around two weeks until you can safely take them to areas such as a dog park.
Your puppy should now be safe from viruses and diseases that can be picked up from other older dogs… but there are still some other risks associated with dog park environments you should consider.
Are dog parks safe for puppies?
You might be wondering whether dog parks are the safest environment for your young puppy, especially since they are still growing and developing and won’t understand other dogs yet.
Even if your puppy is fully vaccinated, there are a number of factors to consider before letting your puppy run about freely in a park.
So, before you let your puppy off the leash in their first dog park, it is important to consider the following risks.
1. Other adult dogs
At this age, puppies don’t quite have the social skills and understanding that older dogs do. That means they cannot always pick up on the body language in other dogs.
This puts puppies at risk of injury in dog parks, as they can either dog’s that don’t want to be approached, approach them the wrong way, or be targets for aggression themselves.
2. Hazards in the dog park
Unfortunately, not everybody is as thoughtful at the dog park as we are. There are plenty of dangers lurking that could hurt your puppy, for example:
- Broken glass bottles.
- Rotten and discarded food that has been left out in the sun.
- Dog feces.
Puppies like to explore with their mouths and will often eat another dog’s feces, making them ill. They will also eat anything else that they find on the ground in a dog park, so keep them on a short leash at all times.
3. Losing your puppy at the dog park
Another consideration is their lack of recall. Young puppies do not come back when called, so the fright of a larger dog could make them run off, and you possibly lose them.
Keep them as close to you as possible when they are still in the first few months of their lives.
With our puppy Claude, we took him to puppy socialization classes for a few weeks before we even considering taking him to the dog park.
I also don’t think I let him off the leash in a dog park until I was confident enough he had mastered obedience and recalling to me when I called his name out.
Conclusion
In short, we should be asking can puppies go to the park, but more whether if unvaccinated puppies can go visit dog parks – as this is the biggest risk there is aside from being lost or a dog attack.
It’s important to keep your puppy socialised and start that early, but not at the risk of their health. Once they are at the right age to visit a dog park, keep them on the leash until you are confident, they have the skills to be trusted more.
Be sure to talk to your vet if you have any questions, and happy adventures!
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