The risk with mixing new puppies and older dogs is that your puppy won't have yet had his full treatment of shots, which in NZ at least takes up to about 14 weeks (so probably about 6 weeks after you get her). New puppies shouldn't mix with older dogs as they might have kennel cough or something else. Canadian puppy vaccination systems might be different however, so check with your vet.
That shouldn't just be a concern of your breeder, it should be a concern for you. You might not be able to have your neighbour's dog over for a month or so after you get your puppy.
There's no other valid reason for not mixing two dogs together, as long as the older dog is well socialised and appropriate for playing with a young small dog. Indeed, most dog trainers will recommend that you should socialise your puppy with lots of different dogs, including older ones, once it's been properly vaccinated.
If it was me, as long as the vet didn't tell you not to mix the dogs, I'd just tell the breeder that you've agreed with your neighbours to keep the dogs apart and then ignore it. What are they going to do? Take you to court?
In Canada, the vaccination schedule is a little quicker. Puppies generally receive their full course by twelve weeks here.
The odd thing is, we'd mentioned our neighbours' dog several times. I asked outright if we should keep the dogs separate until ours received her vaccines. I was told that as long as we knew the neighbours' dog was up-to-date with her shots, it was fine.
During our visit Saturday, they seemed very positive about the puppy socializing with another dog. Had they told us of their safety concerns, we could have assured them that the two dogs would always be supervised when playing together. But they didn't give us a chance. They just cut us off. Thus far, they haven't returned any of Drama King's phone calls.
That shouldn't just be a concern of your breeder, it should be a concern for you. You might not be able to have your neighbour's dog over for a month or so after you get your puppy.
There's no other valid reason for not mixing two dogs together, as long as the older dog is well socialised and appropriate for playing with a young small dog. Indeed, most dog trainers will recommend that you should socialise your puppy with lots of different dogs, including older ones, once it's been properly vaccinated.
If it was me, as long as the vet didn't tell you not to mix the dogs, I'd just tell the breeder that you've agreed with your neighbours to keep the dogs apart and then ignore it. What are they going to do? Take you to court?
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The odd thing is, we'd mentioned our neighbours' dog several times. I asked outright if we should keep the dogs separate until ours received her vaccines. I was told that as long as we knew the neighbours' dog was up-to-date with her shots, it was fine.
During our visit Saturday, they seemed very positive about the puppy socializing with another dog. Had they told us of their safety concerns, we could have assured them that the two dogs would always be supervised when playing together. But they didn't give us a chance. They just cut us off. Thus far, they haven't returned any of Drama King's phone calls.
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