I was reading up on parvo for someone getting a baby puppy soon. She lives where unvaxed (never vaxed) adult dogs have always been and still are often on her property.

I was refreshing my memory about parvo, maternal antibodies, the Dodds protocol (which will probably be the one followed), adult dog parvo-carriers (not affected but shedding the virus), and so on.

I was reading this, too: http://www.vetinfo.com/dparvo.html#b

I'm hoping the puppy experts will post about how they manage potty, walks, and so on, during the vulnerable periods.

I already know about carrying the puppy from the car to the vet's exam table, but not much more.

Any advice?

I believe most maternal antibodies last until the pups are approx 8 weeks of age.

I NEVER put a pup on the floor in a vets office. I carry them in from my truck & back out until I can't carry them anymore...usually about 6-7 months old. In fact I would insist that they clean/disinfect the table in front of me before I would put my pup on it. Also have them disinfect the scale if it is separate from the table. Yep, I'm a bitch when it comes to the welfare of my dogs. I don't take any risks that I don't have to.

I would stay away from ANY heavily traffic areas..this includes dogs & wildlife areas. I have a fenced yard & a 10x20 kennel..but if I didn't I'd keep the pup in areas closest to the house. Most wildlife will mostly pass thru the yard a bit farther away from the house. Make sure there is no reason for them to come near the house,....like feeding critters, trash etc. Stay away from sidewalk areas...as most dogs are walked there to potty.

Also, if you don't have a kennel, if possible create a small fenced area (4 ft high) with metal fence posts & chicken wire or something like that to have a 'safe' area for the pup to play in...using one area within that for a potty area.

I tend to go to places that most folks don't take their dogs to start socialization work but if I have to be in an area that I think there have been dogs... I carry my pups until I can't pick them up anymore, like out onto the center of the sport fields that I use to work & run my dogs some of the time. Very few people use the center of the field. They walk their dogs around the perimeter of the fields.

Search around for out of the way places to walk your pup. Pups shouldn't go on long walks,especially on paved areas anyway.

It goes without saying that you don't let any dogs approach your puppy EVER.

And the area that you fence off, would you make sure it had been well exposed to sun (a sterilizer), and now make shade over it once it's fenced?

Yes, I would also 'clean up' the yard area if I suspected possible contamination from stray dogs & wildlife.

My kennel is in the center of my fenced yard (& gets lots of sun all day)...where puppies get to play. I did have part of it covered with a kennel cover at one time. No pups here right now & it is off. I would say that if you are not going to be able to be right with the pup outside...then they should be in a totally protected area with a cover. But that's just me. I have woods around me & lots of wildlife & hawks.

I would also want a cover over a free puppy yard...due to the ability of hawks & eagles(if in the area) to take a young pup.I would never leave a pup

I was wondering what you would do Anne if there was no grass - I have two areas, well 3 actually where I can use to put my kennel or expen - under the redwood trees - on the cement in front of my house or on my deck - which I can hose down if the puppy pooped there - there is no grass in my yard - only duff from the trees or the paved places.

The racoons and skunks come up on the decks sometimes and that means close to my house.

I hear you about covering it from eagles and hawks - they are very strong and there are some Golden Eagles but that's a rare sighting.

And the place to potty: should it be sun-soaked for old parvo (and giardia and all that)? (The puppy wouldn't be there alone, of course.)

Anne, the ex-pen .... on the clean deck? (Again, of course, not alone.)

It sounds very much to me like no spaces there for the puppy alone, but then he won't be anyway.

bump to current

The cement area would be fine...but I would wash it down with a bleach & water solution let it sit for a bit & then re hose it & then allow it to dry in the sun. Or get a kennel sanitizing solution from one of the pet supply stores. Many kennels are set up with cement flooring.

I would have another place in the yard that gets alot of sun to use for a potty area. If need be, due to wildlife & stray non vaccinated dogs, I would fence it if you need to keep the critter etc out of it.

I don't think you can disinfect wood as well as cement. But I could be wrong. I you can, then I stand corrected. But if the deck is the only place you have...then I would be very sure that you can disinfect it well.

I also would not want to see a puppy pretty much 'living' on a hard surface like cement. To me that's going to be hard on their skeletal system. But that's just me....I know breeders do it...but I don't think it is the best thing to do.

Another thing you might consider as a potty area, if you have no grass area....is fencing off an area of 'duff' as you call it & put down several inches of washed pea gravel. You can pick up poop & you can hose down the pee & disinfect the gravel with a bleach solution. I would bleach solution the duff area before laying down the gravel. You will have to periodically replenish the gravel. I have used washed pea gravel in my kennel for almost 8 years.

All good advice Anne - in my case the puppy won't be on cement for any length of time - the cement here would fry an egg in the summer. I am just trying to figure out the safest place for him to poop.

I must find out where I can get pea gravel - on my list of things to do.

I have a place that gets a lot of very direct son to put a smaller kennel on and I can use that for his potty area - thanks for making me think this through.

I wonder if the decks would be OK due to the sun that hits them - they too get too hot for the pets and I have rugs on them so the animals can curl up and not burn their feet.

The good thing (I think ) about where I live is that there has always been dogs here and none ever got sick with anything other than Lymes disease - which I prevent by using revolution and checking the animals every night for ticks.

My word doc is getting many pages in it of great info .. appreciated

"My word doc is getting many pages in it of great info .. appreciated"

Well, don't let it become the mega-document from hell that you avoid like the plague!