10.5 week puppy unsupervised in garden

[ianw]

Should I be leaving my 10.5 week old puppy in the garden unsupervised?

I can keep an eye on her from the window most of the time, but just caught her carrying a bit of her own poo onto the lawn ....

Thanks
Ian

[GSDOWNER]

No puppy of that age should even be left outside without supervision for a few minutes. It can get into terrible mischief He will eat anything he comes across and could possibly get out of your garden when you are not there. Puppies are great escape artists and will dig themselves out of anywhere.......they are fantastic diggers !

[reikimaster1]

You could live in the middle of the country with no one near you for miles but I am sorry, it does seem a little irresponsible to leave such a young puppy unattended and unsupervised. There are a lot of people out there who would think nothing of snatching the little guy away...... It would only take a second or so, plus as has been said, you never know what mischief it will be getting up to and could eat anything....

[Tedsmum]

Apart from the above, there is a very good chance that such a small pup will feel very isolated and scared at being alone outside.
My pup used to eat stones when my back was turned and that can be potentially fatal in little pups. There are also some garden plants that are toxic, so all in all not a good idea to leave them unsupervised at all.

[ianw]

Mmmm, ok, sounds like I had better supervise. she does seem to like eating/chewing stones, so I'll need to stop that. She wont be happy though, but better safe than happy!

When she is in the garden I can see her for most of the time from the kitchen window, except when she goes behind the shed. Also there is little chance of her being snatched ... the back garden is very secure, and cant be seen from the road at all. The boundary has a mix of thick hedge and solid fence, with chicken wire behind the hedge.

Thanks
Ian

[Caryll]

Originally Posted by ianw

When she is in the garden I can see her for most of the time from the kitchen window, except when she goes behind the shed. Thanks
Ian

Trouble is, if you see her doing anything she shouldn't, by the time you get out to her it may be too late.

The fact you're asking about it says it all. Would you leave a toddler outside unsupervised?
The answer is no.

[zetstaff]

Originally Posted by ianw

Mmmm, ok, sounds like I had better supervise. she does seem to like eating/chewing stones, so I'll need to stop that. She wont be happy though, but better safe than happy!

When she is in the garden I can see her for most of the time from the kitchen window, except when she goes behind the shed. Also there is little chance of her being snatched ... the back garden is very secure, and cant be seen from the road at all. The boundary has a mix of thick hedge and solid fence, with chicken wire behind the hedge.

Thanks
Ian

However secure anyone thinks their garden is, there's always scope for someone to sneak in + steal your bubba

Mine are 2 and 1, I never leave them in the garden so I can't see them + get to them quick even now !!!

[Sophie]

At that age I think my pup was too frightened to go outside by himself! Then again, he's still afraid of the dark
Apart from the safety aspect, you are your pup's Dad. Pups need to be taught what is right and wrong- if it picks up stones, you need to be there straight away to say NO. Same goes with eating poo. It's quite natural for dogs to eat their poo and very common, but once they have started it's very hard to make them stop. I like to watch my dog poo (that sounds weird, but bear with me) so that a) I can see whether it's all good and healthy poop, nothing dodgy in it b) to stop him eating the stuff and c) to pick it up.
Mav is about 4 1/2 months and I will let him out to go to the toilet but will stand near the door, I'll let him out whilst I do little bits and pieces like boil the kettle, put the toaster on etc, but make sure he is within eye and ear shot at all times. If I'm going to be distracted at all, he comes inside, if I'm going for a shower or engrossed on the phone he goes in his crate because I know he's safe there.