German Shepherd Puppy Walking.

by Fidel
(Chicago )

My Puppy 9 Weeks Old

I have a German Shepherd Puppy. He's 9 Weeks Old Right Now. He barely as three shot's. I want to know if i can take him out for a short walk only around my block so he can get to know where he lives.

I took him today and it seemed fine he was all excited. His healthy and Jumpy =]. Is it safe for me to take him out for walks? Write back A.s.a.p.



Hi Fidel
I'd strongly recommend that you don't take your puppy out in the streets, or to parks, or anywhere else that other dogs visit until he's had his three sets of vaccinations (that's going to be around 14 weeks for your puppy).

One set of shots, especially the first set, don't necessarily provide protection from the contagious dog illnesses that puppies are very prone to catching. These illnesses have an incubation period and symptoms may not show up for a week or two if your pup has caught anything.

Please, don't let him walk on the ground, or sniff around, where other dogs have gone. There's plenty of time for that later on, once his protection is complete.

If you want to expose him to more people, places and situations, that's a good thing. Socialization is very important, but limit it to visits to people and places where you know that no unvaccinated or sick dogs have been - like a friend or relatives house maybe.

You can find out more about puppy vaccinations on my Puppy Shots page, and information on the symptoms and treatment of the most common dog diseases on my Dog Illnesses page.

Your puppy is an absolute cutie! Best of luck with him.