Once in a while, people like to go to the beach to enjoy them.
People go to tan their bodies, to relax, swim, surf, or just take beach walks.
What if you got a furry friend who you’d like to enjoy the beach with you especially when they are extremely young?
It is important to know if the beach is safe for young puppies to be in.
This writing is aimed to describe two scenarios:
- When your pup has gotten vaccinations shots.
- When your pup hasn’t gotten their vaccination shots yet.
These are the factors on whether you can bring your pup to the beach if they have gotten their vaccination shots:
First of all, your pup must be gotten all the vaccinations they need at that point in their young lives.
They are advised to have a two-week wait after the last vaccination their puppy gets.
This means they tend to be around four months when they can safely go to the beach.
This does not mean they are completely safe at four months; it is still very important to be extra careful when at the beach and try your best to observe the measures below.
Precautionary measures for your dog/puppy
Measures one can take when taking the little pup to the beach:
Prevent your puppy from eating sand
They may want to eat sand because they are very intrigued by it.
You should not allow them to eat the sand because it may end up clogging their digestive tract and make them sick.
Prevent your puppy from drinking the salty ocean water
It is not exactly a fatal mistake but can end up disrupting the fluid retention process of your puppy.
And the water is too salty anyway.
Carry a short leash for your dog
This helps prevents the owner from losing their puppy.
This is because they will be fascinated by very many things at the beach and you will need to be able to control them or else, they will end up running away.
Always keep your puppy in your sight
As we have said, they tend to see a lot of new things and new people and may wander off without your knowledge. Getting them in a large crowd on the beach is no easy job.
Keep them away from the ocean
This is because of the tides which could easily carry your puppy away because most of them cannot swim and if they can, the tides may overpower them and lead to drowning.
This is what you need to consider if you would like to bring your puppy to the beach without having gotten vaccination shots.
What if your little puppy has not gotten vaccination shots?
First of all, stop and reconsider your option.
Vaccinations are meant to protect your little pup from all sorts of diseases so you should take them to get their shots.
It is not safe for them at the beach because they can pick up all sorts of viruses from surfaces and other unvaccinated or sick dogs.
The biggest risk for unvaccinated puppies is the high risk at which they can catch extremely fatal diseases.
They can either catch the diseases by interacting with other dogs that could either be sick with the virus or carriers of the virus.
So, can they go to the beach with their owners without being vaccinated?
The answer is a straight no.
This puts them at a high risk of getting a disease known as parvo which is short for parvovirus.
This disease is very fatal and is known to commonly affect unvaccinated puppies.
It is highly infectious among dogs meaning that your puppy can easily get it without even trying.
So, does this mean so long as you keep them away from other dogs, it will be okay? No.
Parvovirus is extremely fatal and does not ally get transmitted through other dogs.
An infected dog’s feces tend to be contaminated and have the virus.
The virus tends to remain in the feces thus spreading the virus using feces.
The contaminated feces tend to stay on beach sand and the virus in them remains viable for almost seven years in the sand.
This is such a long time to infect puppies that have not gotten vaccination shots.
Learn More:
What is the importance of vaccination shots?
- They prevent your puppy from getting diseases or from being carriers of particular diseases which could end up spreading to the owner and their family.
- They prevent your puppy from getting deadly and highly infectious diseases that could prove fatal.
- It helps to save money shortly because it is easier to vaccinate your puppy than to pay the costs of treating serious illnesses in the future.
What are the important vaccinations your puppy is supposed to get?
There are usually two main vaccinations that your puppy is supposed to get; the C3 and the C5 vaccinations.
They both protect against parvo, all hepatitis diseases, and distemper.
The C5 has one more disease that it protects against; kennel cough.
The vaccinations are given in a time frame of a few weeks as shown below:
1. 6-8 weeks
The first vaccination for your puppy should be given at 6- 8 weeks.
This is when the C3 vaccination shots should be given.
If you just got your puppy especially with no paperwork, it is important to get them the vaccination if you have no confirmation on whether your puppy got the vaccinations.
At this time, it is too early to even take your little pup outdoors.
2. 10-12 weeks
The second vaccination shots should be off C5 which has extra protection against the kennel cough, unlike the C3 vaccination.
From here, it is not advisable to take your puppy to the beach just yet.
It is, however, okay to start taking short walks outdoors with your little puppy because they have gotten some of their vaccination shots.
3. 14-16 weeks
Here, your puppy is going to get the last shot of vaccinations.
They can either be c5 or c3 depending on how you get advice from the vet.
It is important to wait two weeks before deciding to take your puppy to the beach.
Conclusion
Your puppy must get vaccination shots before going to the beach to avoid catching fatal diseases from the beach sand or other infected dogs.
