Meet DD8's tiny new puppy - too small for the fort & wdw kennels?

[Dancemom03]

After begging for several years and saving her allowance, first communion & birthday money DD8 finally got the puppy she's been pleading for. She's a four month old papillion and I have to admit I'm charmed - she's an awesome little creature and fun to have around.

So, now comes the question... she's still very timid, especially around our large collie who tends to be very active & VERY vocal. I had planned on putting them together in a local kennel but am now rethinking it. If left alone with DD19's collie in a kennel I'm afraid she'll be traumatized or trampled after two weeks. I can get her a seperate kennel run but there'll still be lots of other dogs around her and she isn't taking that too well just yet. Doesn't bark or howl at all, or whines a little but shakes a lot. I swore I wasn't going to own one of those tiny timid yappy dogs and don't want to do anything to encourage the tiny timid behavior inadvertantly.

We're driving from MD while Dh is flying. We'll be staying at BC for 7 nights, then DH flies home while the girls and I will tent camp at the fort for another 6 nights before driving back. I'm thinking I could take my little two pound purse puppy along but wondering if that's more of a pain than it seems given that it's a tent and not MH. What do you think?

 

[auntie]

During times when our entire family vacations together, we've had a friend of my daughter who is 22, come and stay in the house. This way the dog has company..get's walked a few times a day, the mail gets taken in, that sort of thing. Of course now she is working full time, so it may be more difficult to get someone to stay in with the dog. I'm checking into it now for an August trip we have planned. I didn't pay her too much more than it would have to cost to board the dog in the vet for the week...plus I didn't have to worry about cancelling the mail, or any of that.
I see you mentioned you have a 19 year old daughter...maybe she might have a friend willing to house/dog sit?....

 

[Dancemom03]

I thought of a house sitter but it conflicts with Otakon week here and that's a huge annual event for her & friends, so no luck finding somebody to come stay - whoever isn't in FL that week will be at Otakon figuring out how many college kids can fit in one king room.
DD31 used to live here but bought a house last year and finally moved back out again (though left all his stuff on the floor like he plans to be back any day).
Our other house/dog-sitter joined the navy and leaves for training three days into our trip - nuclear sub operator - I shudder thinking of him on duty one day "hey, what's this button do?"

The collie is friendly - but still a collie and can be especially annoying to folks who aren't used to herding dogs so nobody is anxious to volunteer to handle her.

I could probably farm the puppy out to someone to watch but the friends I'd normally ask are meeting us in wdw b/c they'll already be there for dance nationals so I thought maybe I could take her along to kennel there perhaps if neccessary. Is it a pain? What are the FW & park kennels like on the inside?

 

[medic9016]

Since you are tent camping that rules out The Fort. I was just reading the Release and Indemnity Agreement I signed in May for another question. It states pets are not allowed in pop-up trailers or tents. I'm not a big fan of kennels. I would also try to find a pet sitter if possible.

 

[Dancemom03]

Wow thanks for catching that, I just assumed that if you paid for pet loop they'd be welcome. It never even occurred to me that it'd be different for tents, though thinking about it, I guess it makes sense.

We do wdw like other people go to the beach. We're not commando style and we planned to just hang around the fort, maybe enjoy a little outlet shopping, or SW while at FW those last six nights. At the BC we'll sit around SAB, eat, and socialize more than head to the parks to ride so popping by to feed, walk, take dog out to play for a few hours, or whatever before returning to the kennels overnight was what I'd considered for the first week. If I can't have her at the fort either though, that's more challenging.

Maybe I'll just board her at our vet's office and cut a few days off the beginning & end of the trip. I knew I should have stood strong and waited for the next litter when the breeder called...

 

[drafthorsecrazy]

Wow thanks for catching that, I just assumed that if you paid for pet loop they'd be welcome. It never even occurred to me that it'd be different for tents, though thinking about it, I guess it makes sense.

We do wdw like other people go to the beach. We're not commando style and we planned to just hang around the fort, maybe enjoy a little outlet shopping, or SW while at FW those last six nights. At the BC we'll sit around SAB, eat, and socialize more than head to the parks to ride so popping by to feed, walk, take dog out to play for a few hours, or whatever before returning to the kennels overnight was what I'd considered for the first week. If I can't have her at the fort either though, that's more challenging.

Maybe I'll just board her at our vet's office and cut a few days off the beginning & end of the trip. I knew I should have stood strong and waited for the next litter when the breeder called...

I could be wrong but I'm thinking you can board your pet and take her back to your site while you are there. You may not leave the animal alone at a tent site. Anyone have personal knowledge ??

 

[medic9016]

I could be wrong but I'm thinking you can board your pet and take her back to your site while you are there. You may not leave the animal alone at a tent site. Anyone have personal knowledge ??

I just called The Fort and asked. I was told pets are not allowed in tents at all. If I call back in an hour and talk to a different person, I may get a different answer.

 

[4mickey2]

puppies normally do not have all their vaccines until they are at least 6 months old or older. i can't remember exactly. but, beware of kennels there are many dogs that come and go and anyone of them can carry a disease (like kennel cough) which could be fatal too your young pup.

i don't like to take young ones to pet stores or dog parks because not all dogs are vaccinated and any can be a carrier.

i would be happy to watch your pups (but, i don't think you want to bring them to wisc)

ask friends, neighbors, the folks at your vet and even your groomer. you never know if one of them would sit for your pup(s). good luck and congrats on the baby.

 

[BradyBz12]

I'd be super cautious with such a young (and small) pup. Whatever happens to a puppy in those first 6 mos. follows them for their entire lives, and even mildly traumatic events can have HUGE, lasting effects. Dogs that age still go through fear periods, and if those don't go well, you could end up with some issues that will take a long time to correct - if it's even possible.

Speaking from experience here. I've been doing border collie rescue for about 8 years and have seen the results of this first hand over and over. We get loads of "adolescent" dogs into rescue that didn't have solid puppyhoods, and now have behavior problems which lead to them being given up and take an enormous amount of time and effort to fix - if they can be fixed.

I've also seen it right here in my home - we adopted a border collie pup at 7 mos who had less than a stellar start in life, and we've been working to fix a lot of those issues for years now. He's 7 years old now and has made enormous progress over the years, but some of those issues will never go away completely.

If she's already a shy pup, the most important thing for her at this age is to have as many GOOD, pleasant experiences with as many things out in the world as you can possibly muster (people of all kinds - especially kids - other dogs, cats...), and as few bad ones as you can prevent (ideally none).

I would think being kenneled someplace strange would be extremely difficult and stressful for her. If you can't leave her with someone you trust, I would opt for kenneling her somewhere she knows and is comfortable with. If you can do this with your vet or somewhere local, I'd also recommend a few trial runs - even just bringing her in to meet people and walk around a few times (brings loads of delicious treats and have the staff hand them out to her). Anything you can do to increase her comfort level when you leave her there.

It may be some extra work up front, but coming home to a happy pup vs one that's completely freaked out and has acquired some new, fear-based behaviors (which are never good) are more than worth it.

Oh, and when it comes to boarding...
Since she is so small, make sure wherever you're boarding, if they allow the dogs to play together, they keep the dogs separated by size and play style. You don't need her getting plowed over by a bigger, more enthusiastic pup, and end up with a dog-reactive dog. (got one - not fun)

That probably means not having her share a kennel with the collie too. Even if the collie is a pretty calm dog, the puppy is still very new, and so tiny.... if it were me I just wouldn't want to take the chance that something could happen by accident.

PP's comment about vaccines is important too. Many kennels will not board dogs without a full set of vaccines, including Bordatella, and she may be too young for that. Check with your vet - you also don't want to risk overloading her system with too many vaccines, or too many all at once. (That can lead to some seriously bad, potentially lasting, health issues.)

HTH and good luck!!

ETA- just dawned on me that you mentioned the dog came from a breeder. Any chance the breeder would be willing to board her for you?

 

[Dancemom03]

I'm pretty sure the vet said the shots she gets in two weeks are the last ones. So far, we've been really careful with her and limited exposure to strange surfaces - also other dogs with just a few exceptions. We try to take her out with us as much as possible so she goes on school runs, to the bank, lacrosse, and even yard sales in an effort to expose her to the van and people.

We didn't get her until she was already 13 weeks old and she didn't cry at night or seem to miss her former home. I thought that was a really good sign. She wasn't the timid puppy in the litter, or the smallest, and she's usually wagging her tail, happy to say hello or be held. She's gotten better in the past week with our collie too - she'll watch her play fetch or run in the house but has learned to duck around the corner, onto a lap, or out of the way as the hairy mammoth begins running back towards her.
Obviously she knows she's tiny and the world must seem enormous to her from her perspective just eight inches from the floor.

She may be perfectly normal for a toy breed and perhaps those little eyes just look like she's afraid b/c I'm not used to the breed yet. Either way, I agree that lots of socialization is the way to prevent her from growing into one of those scared little yappy dogs.

My brother came by the other day and, while he was holding her, offered to babysit while we're away. I didn't want to ask him b/c they had to put down their aging golden in March and were still grieving.
I'm thinking that would work - still a bit hesitant after he said he'd put her in bed with them though. She's teething, so anytime we're not watching her, she's in the crate where I know she's safe. I'd hate to have her find something in their adult home to chew on that might hurt her. Not looking forward to how much like my mother I'm gonna sound when I tell him that...

 

[BradyBz12]

We try to take her out with us as much as possible so she goes on school runs, to the bank, lacrosse, and even yard sales in an effort to expose her to the van and people.

Fantastic! Best thing ever you can do for a pup.

We didn't get her until she was already 13 weeks old and she didn't cry at night or seem to miss her former home. I thought that was a really good sign

If she seems to have gone through a spurt of being more timid, it could be a fear period she's going through. Not the end of the world, just keep up all those good experiences and she'll be just fine!

She's gotten better in the past week with our collie too - she'll watch her play fetch or run in the house but has learned to duck around the corner, onto a lap, or out of the way as the hairy mammoth begins running back towards her.

LOL - I'm sure before long she'll be ruling the roost! Always seems that the smallest dog in the house turns out to have the biggest attitude.

My brother came by the other day and, while he was holding her, offered to babysit while we're away.

Terrific! Sounds like a great solution all around.

a bit hesitant after he said he'd put her in bed with them though. ...Not looking forward to how much like my mother I'm gonna sound when I tell him that...

You should have seen the list of notes we gave my FIL the last time we left our dogs with him. I found that putting everything in context of "to make sure she doesn't ruin YOUR stuff" usually helped. Even still, I'm sure he threw them out the minute we left

Glad you found a good option for the new baby. She's completely adorable. I've always said that if I were to get a smaller dog it would be a Pap. Enjoy her and have a wonderful vacation!!

 

[Dancemom03]

Speaking from experience here. I've been doing border collie rescue for about 8 years and have seen the results of this first hand over and over. We get loads of "adolescent" dogs into rescue that didn't have solid puppyhoods, and now have behavior problems which lead to them being given up and take an enormous amount of time and effort to fix - if they can be fixed.

I've also seen it right here in my home - we adopted a border collie pup at 7 mos who had less than a stellar start in life, and we've been working to fix a lot of those issues for years now. He's 7 years old now and has made enormous progress over the years, but some of those issues will never go away completely.

Just wanted to mention... after experiencing our collie as puppy - and the neighbors border - anybody who can work with them in multiples and not lose patience is close to a god in my book.

Even crated, DD19's collie managed to eat my dining room chair legs as well as the side of her crate. She sits in the living room bay window whenever we're not looking even after training not to AND moving the chair so she has to jump to the nearly four foot high perch, barks incessantly in that annoyingly high pitched collie bark - especially when playing, herds US, and (when outside) stops even in mid-squat at the slightest movement b/c she can't stand to miss ANYTHING that might be happening.

Before we brought her home, people told me that "collies are different". Nobody actually said my five year would never be able to dance freely to wiggles in the living room again or that we wouldn't wrestle around any more b/c the dog wouldn't allow it though.

Thankfully, at four she's settled down and grown out of a lot of her bad habits - not all, but many. She's a positively stunningly beautiful dog and I love her to death but... oh my, that first year...

 

[BradyBz12]

Just wanted to mention... after experiencing our collie as puppy - and the neighbors border - anybody who can work with them in multiples and not lose patience is close to a god in my book.

Nah... just certifiably insane LOL.
A good friend (and the treasurer for our rescue group) currently has 12 dogs.... 10 are hers, 2 are fosters. Of those 12, 10 are border collies. Now THAT is a party!

Before we brought her home, people told me that "collies are different".

that's an understatement to be sure!

Thankfully, at four she's settled down...

Ah - lucky!! BCs don't really tend to settle down until..... well, my oldest is 7 and I'm still waiting!

I love her to death but... oh my, that first year...

Yeah, there's a reason they make them so darned cute.... so you let them live through that first year!

 

[CampingBandit]

She's one cute pup. Good luck and hope everything goes well, safe trip!

 

[tlenzendorf]

Our wonderful Collie mix puppy chewed the drywall in the kitchen thru her kennel(she could JUST fit her snout and sharp little teeth thru the bars). I couldn't figure out what the heck that scraping noise was until we had 4 or 5 holes. She nosed the blanket we used to cover her kennel with at night and then dropped it back down when she heard us coming. Those were not fun times.

 

[BradyBz12]

Oh wow! Reminds me of my favorite "don't let your border collie get bored" story...

Dog was locked in a bathroom most days and was not getting enough exercise/attention overall. One day he ripped every piece of wallpaper he could reach off the wall and pushed it into a nice neat pile in the middle of the room.

Another one - this time a dog I helped bring into rescue . Young, VERY energetic female BC that her foster mom crated in the dining room on their lovely oriental rug. Foster pup figured out how to kick the pan on the bottom of her crate out (past the clip that locks it!) and chewed a hole right in the middle of the rug.

Our own BC pup just could not settle down when she was young until I finally smartened up and started giving her a couple of hours of downtime in her crate during the day. I work from home, and the one thing that made me crazy was when every time I would pick up the office phone and start to talk, she would start banging on the baby gate keeping her in the room with me until she crashed it down, and then run downstairs barking. I had to apologize to a bunch of clients for the interruption.

Ah.... fun times!