When Can Puppies Go Outside?

Puppies should be at least 8 weeks old when they leave their breeder to start their new life (and smaller breeds often leave their mums later). At this age they are still too young to be fully vaccinated, but there is no doubt there are some serious and sometimes life-threatening diseases out there that a puppy needs to be protected from.

Safety vs socialisation

A new owner’s priority is keeping their new arrival safe and healthy. However, most people also know that in these early weeks, their puppy is in an important (and short) developmental phase where socialisation and habituation are also important to help them grow up confident, social, without fears and phobias. This can also reduce the chance of many potential future behaviour problems.

This is a time when you are trying to positively introduce your pup to all the people, animals, places, experiences and interactions that will be a part of their new life. This balance between health, safety and socialisation is often a tricky one for new owners – as you can’t neglect either – but they can sometimes seem to be in conflict. The good news is that with some careful management and a little ingenuity, they don’t have to be.

Keep reading to find out the ideal puppy timeline for when they can go out into the big wide world, and how to ensure they’re getting enough enrichment, socialisation and experiences before they are fully vaccinated.

When can puppies go outside to public areas?

Similarly, when you pick up your puppy from the breeder or rehoming centre, remember to ask what vaccinations they have already had (and check that their mother was also vaccinated) so your vet can continue this protocol, and let you know exactly when it is safe to really start to get your puppy out and about. If your vet doesn’t have this information, they may have to start from the very beginning again.

Toilet training when my puppy can’t go outside

Probably the first thing you will be thinking about when wondering “when can my puppy go outside?” is toilet training.

As long as your garden is well-fenced so no other dogs can get access to it – and you know the vaccination history of any dogs that do go in your garden (such as your own dogs or family dogs) and know they are fully protected and not carrying any disease, then you can look on your garden as an extension of your house. So, this is a place where your puppy is safe, even though they are not fully vaccinated.

This means that you can use your garden for toilet training as well as for play and enjoying time together.

If this isn’t possible and other dogs can and do have access to any outdoor space you have, you will have to toilet train your puppy inside using puppy pads by the door. However, this is not ideal as you will have to start all over again when your puppy is fully vaccinated.

How can I exercise my puppy if they can’t go for walks?

Make the most of all the ‘safe outdoor spaces’ you have around the house – such as back and front gardens or patios. They get to walk on different surfaces, see what is going on outside the back door, hear the sounds of the world around them, and begin to get a hint of all the fascinating smells that the great outdoors has to offer.

Play games in your garden, spend time outside together letting your puppy explore and investigate, or just hang out in the sunshine. You can set up a puppy pen so you can both relax too.

Puppies are full of energy, but they tire very easily when exploring the garden – and playing with you will be more than enough exercise for them when they are very young.

Don't underestimate how much exercise your baby puppy will get in the house however – just wandering around with you and playing games and with enrichment toys. At this time of their life, they are using a lot of energy growing (hence why they need 20 hours of sleep a day!) and aren’t physically developed enough to do much exercise.

How can I socialise a puppy if they can’t go out?

1. Acclimatise your puppy to outdoor spaces

Firstly, use any road-facing outdoor space you have (like a driveway) to let your puppy experience as much as you can - such as watching passers-by, traffic, delivery people, local wildlife such as birds, and all the things that they can experience from within a ‘dog free’ (and so as much as possible, ‘disease-free’) area. If other dogs have access to your driveway, make sure you hold your puppy in your arms while you do this and if this area is not fenced off your pup should be securely on a lead.

2. Introduce your puppy to new noises

Don’t underestimate the power of sound within your own home too – you can quietly play road traffic noises or even videos of fireworks quietly in the background. Then, as long as your puppy is relaxed and unbothered by the sounds, you can increase the volume a little. Do this in short bursts at different times of the day and have the sounds coming from different places. Don’t play these sounds too loudly however as dogs have far more sensitive hearing than we do.

3. Carry or hold your puppy on outings

Go on lots of outings to a variety of places where you can carry or hold your puppy so they can see, hear, smell and experience all the things their new life holds from relative safety. The more things a puppy encounters in a positive way in these early weeks, the better for their future development and behaviour.

These outings can be anywhere from the park to watch people and other dogs, to standing in the street and watching traffic from a distance, to going to the pub, to sitting outside coffee shops, to short trips on public transport, going to the beach or woods, or just out for a drive… Anything you can think of that is going to be part of your dog’s future life - and where you can hold and carry them throughout.

Remember that they are not protected from disease so make sure they don’t put their paws on the floor or on furniture while you are out and about.

4. Make sure admirers keep their distance

Yes, you’ll feel like the bad guy but there are two very important reasons for ensuring that people admire them from a distance:

1. There is a slight possibility of transference if these people have been in contact with a dog who is carrying any of the diseases routinely vaccinated against.
2. All your socialisation needs to be positive, and for a young puppy having strange people touching and stroking them can be worrying or even frightening - especially when they are being held and can’t retreat if they feel they need to. Imagine if someone held on to you and prevented you from moving while total strangers stroked your hair and tried to hug you. Both scary and creepy!

It’s far better these first experiences with strangers are totally ‘hands off’ ones. This means your puppy can gain confidence with new people from a safe distance – and begins to trust you not to put them in worrying situations.

By doing all of these things, you are kickstarting your puppy’s socialisation before they are fully vaccinated, and getting them used to many of the sights, sounds, smells and experiences of the great outdoors. This means that when your vet gives them the all-clear and you can begin to walk them outdoors, lots of things will already be familiar to them.

Now you know when you can take your puppy outside! Want more puppy advice and tips? Read our guide on what to expect from your puppy’s first visit to the vet, next.

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