Hi,

My parents are having a family get together this evening and I don't know what to do for the best. There house is a 15 minute walk from ours. We can either go for a couple of hours and leave harvey home alone (which I don't really want to do) or take him along with us. It won't be hectic with loud music ect and the only thing worrying me is if Harvey was to pee on my mothers carpetHe's 18 weeks old a 98% reliable at home but he has never toileted away from home. My parents have never had a dog and my mum is very houseproud. They love Harvey and I would ask if it was ok to take him not just turn up with him. I think the socialising would be good for Harvey with my neices and nephew's fussing over him but I don't want to be on pins all the time worrying about him piddleing or pinching buffet food....which he is a little monkey for!!:rolleyes: He's a CKCS by the way!

Any thoughts?

Thanks

Hayley x

If he were mine, I would take him along (just after he'd peed in your garden!) let him enjoy half an hour or so of attention and socialising, which will make him tired, then walk him home for another pee and a sleep, while you go back for a couple of hours to enjoy yourself without worrying about him!

Personally, I think 2 hours of fussing from young people is a bit too much for a puppy.  Like young children themselves they don't really know how to call a halt even if there was a way of doing that so can get overraught and fractious.  You can bet your bottom dollar he will pee on the carpet ;) I have seen puppies that have just been toileted, steam in and immediately pee on a lovely unfamiliar carpet which is bound to upset a houseproud woman and could set the tone for your relationship for the whole of 2006 :p.
Two hours alone in the peace of the house, snoozing after a nice playfilled day is a much better prospect for a youngster and it is good practice for those occasions when you really can't take him.
PS just read Val's idea which seems a very good one to me :) but try to stick to washable floor areas ;)

I know you want to take him with you,and if you are anything like me you will  expect people to expect you to bring your new family member along with you.However,you will probaly be on pins and needles the whole time and as isabel said he will more than likely pee or worse do a sloppy poop on the carpet

I had a friend years ago who didnt particularly like dogs,but i was stubborn and went by the motto "love me,love my dogs" which i still go by today :) Anyways,everytime i visited her i could never relax,or sit down for more than 5 minutes as i was always following my dog around watching him,my visits were always stressfull! Ironically we had a fight one day,about my dog,LOL and it ended our friendship,which admittedly was my doing,it didnt really bother me as i dont want friends who dont like dogs!!

No point to my story really other to vent :o Do whatever makes YOU feel comfortable,if you think you can handle it then by all means bring him along,i'm sure he'll have a blast,above all dont let anyone make you feel guilty or uncomfortable about bringing him along,as i said he is now a part of your family and people should make the effort in understanding that.

Geez ya cant half tell that i have issues with this particualr topic :rolleyes:

My parents love my dog but my mother is like your mother, very houseproud - can eat off the floor type (don't know who I take after :D).

When I first started taking my dog to their house I just couldn't relax.  Every few minutes I was taking her outside incase she wanted to pee and in the end she was asking to go out even though she didn't need to go.  It got very confusing and my dad wouldn't leave her alone and wanted to play with her all the time which got her more and more excited (forget kids Isabel, my dad is the worst :D).

Christmas day my parents came and even though my dog is nearly 2 my dad is just the same.  I kept telling him to ignore her everytime she dropped a toy on his lap but he just couldn't resist and she was bouncy the whole time.  When they left at about 7pm, the dog flaked out!

Could you walk round with pup for about 30 minutes then take him home and then walk back to parents.  30 minutes will be enough for him and probably for you too.  The walk will wear him out nicely and hopefully he will be tired and not too excited.

A short visit then home sounds like an ideal compromise. I took Nips down to my very houseproud sister-in-law's house just after Christmas and everything went very well but he's just a few weeks older than Harvey and has genuinely achieved 100% reliability. But only just!!

Even so I was careful to keep letting him out far more often than I would at home and I must say that I spent a lot of the day keeping an eye on him. He was very good with the two small children who were there but I can't say it was the most relaxed of visits since I was conscious of how unpopular any chewing was going to be.

If you take Harvey along for half an hour of being fussed over he'll come home nicely tired out and ready to go zonko while you go back and enjoy the rest of the evening without responsibilities.

Hi,

Well, we walked Harvey up to my parents house and stayed with him for an hour -  I couldn't really relax as he wouldn't wee in their garden and was sniffing around the whole time........home time was when he snatched a ham sandwich off my 82 yr old great Aunt's plate Harvey had a fantastic time and then it was home, wee and bed with a nice stuffed kong while we went back for a couple of hours. We've not long been home and he's fine playing in front of the fire with his toys now

Hayley x

Sounds like everybody had a great time!

Perfect!  That was a socialising opportunity too good to miss!  But you had a couple of hours to relax too.

Sounds like he had great fun - lol at him nicking the sandwich, well done Harvey! Just got back from a few days away with my parents-in-law which was a bit stressful. They do like dogs, just 'in their place', which basically means NOT on the sofa. Try telling that to my 3!! Mind you, they were happy to have the Yankee on their laps as they had one some years back, it's just the Cavs they objected too - hmph!! :-)

Glad it went so well and it sounds like everyone had a good time.  Can just picture the norty (but irresistible) Harvey making off with that sandwich though! ;)