We (my girlfriend and I) just bought a husky and we had wanted and were going to bring him home at 8 weeks. Then the breeder started acting weird because all of the others who bought dogs out of the same litter wanted their dogs by 6.5 weeks so the breeder wanted us to take the dog then. That would've been all good except we will be leaving town for a wedding and will be gone for about a week. So in the end we will be getting the dog at around 6.5 weeks will have him for a week but then will be gone for about five days (we were supposed to pick him up on our way back from 'vacation').

Does anyone have any advice for how to deal with a puppy that is younger than 8 weeks and who we can't see for 5 days? We have a puppy sitter to be with him almost all of the time but has anyone had an experience having to leave a young puppy with someone else at that age? Any advice?

Sorry if my post sounds all jumbled. It's a jumbled situation to say the least.

Honestly if your not attached to the dog yet. And havnt put money down yet i would bail on the breeder.. That isnt a good breeder. Before 8 weeks is way to early for a pup. Even if 6.5 was ok she should be willing to hold the puppy for you for a few extra weeks... I had the same situation with koda. All the pups were gone at 7 week except koda and his sister that they were keeping. She held onto him for me cause i was going on vacation and didnt want to be away for those first few crucial days. But if your already attached and have a sitter you should be ok. Just not a good breeder

We are attached and have money down and would like the pup quicker than later (the pup will be an emotional support animal) so at this time we would rather just get the pup than deal with the idea of having to wait or fight for our money back. That being said the breeder after some convincing said that if he was going to keep a puppy then we could leave ours but since he was so sketchy earlier and the whole debacle we just felt it would be best to get the puppy now.

Honestly, if the breeder is willing/able to hold the pup it will be MUCH better in the long run, especially if the pup is going to be an emotional support dog. Pups that leave their littermates too early will have way more issues with mouthiness because they aren't learning that important bite inhibition. Yes, it *is* possible to work with them on it, but other dogs teach it way more effectively than a human.

Dang, y'all basically said what I was going to. I'll still jump in, I've been away for a good while
There are good reasons pups are supposed to stay until 8 weeks, like Samantha said, if you're looking for an emotional support animals (especially right away) taking the pup early won't really help you there. With any puppy there will be lots of hair pulling, trust me lol, but behaviors like mouthing are much harder to break with a pup that was taken from their littermates before learning good bite inhibition. If you're looking for an emotional support animal, honestly, I would reccomend a dog that's a bit older, though I don't know your situation so I won't pretend to know what's best for you.
Can we ask where you are getting your pup from?
Also, on another note, you said you're going on vacation right after you get the pup? With any puppy, going to a new home is very stressful (they are being taken away from everything they've ever known, put in a while new environment with total strangers.) If you're going to be home for a week, then be gone the next, you are going to have a very stressed, anxious puppy- it's not fair to him. So if you really don't want to find a new breeder, I would let the breeder keep the pup until you can come home and give the dog the consistancy and care that he needs.

The whole vacation thing was bred out of a bad situation but we can't get out of that either especially since it is based around my soon to be sister-in-laws wedding. He will be home with my roommates so those will be consistent people in his life at least for the next year or so and if he stays with the breeder at this point from the information I have he will not be with his litter-mates anyway since they will already be with another owner who wanted them by 6.5 weeks. Plus I'd then have a pissed off breeder which could create another bad situation if we need something from him, especially if he is in a crappy situation too. It's a bad situation and I don't want people here to think I don't know that.



On the ESA side, he'll be the type of ESA without going into specifics that should be raised as a puppy rather than an adult dog.

We had the same thing happen. the other people were in such a hurry to get their pups he wanted us to pick ours up as well. We talked him into giving us a few extra weeks. I do not know if this is the reason we are the only owners from that litter that actually like our dog or not but I do believe the extra few weeks we got play a roll in it.

I agree 100% with Eric and Rhia...

Any "breeder" who tries to give pups away before 8 weeks is not a good breeder.
I would ask the breeder to hold him until you get back. Then run far away from this breeder.
Most breeders will keep their pups till 10 weeks or so. That way they make sure they all have good socializations skills.

I know if I was a pup, I wouldn't want to be taken away from my mom or littermates at such a young age.

Then you'll be gone for awhile...that's a little too much for a young pup to take...but that's just my opinion.

Honestly while not ideal the same thing kinda happened with my lab, but she was 8 weeks old when we got her. We had planned and paid for a vacation at OBX and when we found her litter we didn't do the math as to her go home day lol. She was home for about 10 days and then stayed with my husbands Aunt and her 2 labs for 8 days, I was heartbroken but kids and hubby wouldn't let me miss the vacay lol. Good thing was that the Aunt started training her lol! For me it worked out, but 6.5 is so young.

If you're wanting the dog for service work, it is even more important to get a puppy who has been properly socialized. If you need the dog while in crisis, the dog being too busy mouthing your leg or barking at another dog isn't going to be ideal.

By the time we leave for the vacation, our puppy (Walter) will be close to 8 weeks old. While not ideal, he will be staying in his home (he won't be leaving our house or staying at an unfamiliar place), and he will have people he is familiar with watching over him. Unfortunately we can't cancel the trip because it is a family wedding.

I agree with those saying the breeder should keep the puppies at least for 8 weeks (that was the original plan); however, we have no choice but to take Walter at 6.5 weeks because everyone else is taking their puppy that early and the breeder won't keep ours alone. We are attached to him, and have a non-refundable deposit. Thus, while everyone's comments on all aspects are informational, this is a situation where we can't choose to leave him with the breeder. We are going to make the best of a less than ideal situation, and since we are 100% dedicated to giving our puppy the best home possible, we are going to do everything we can to make him a happy, healthy puppy.

Thanks for the input, and we look forward to sharing and learning while Walter grows!

We brought home our first Husky Yogi at 5 1/2 weeks because the breeder was in a bind and had to leave her home quickly.  I admit it was too early to leave the mom and litter, but we made the best of it.  My husband and I both worked so my sister stayed with him almost all day (luckily she did not work at that time).  He mostly slept in her lap while she sat on the floor.  At that young age he still needed to be near a warm body (mom and litter mate substitute) most of the time.  Although he never learned to keep his teeth off our hands (something a few more weeks with Mom and siblings might have helped) after 13 1/2 years on this Earth everyone who knew him admitted he was one of the best dogs they ever met.  We are trying to do it differently with our new puppy Merlin.  We got him at 9 weeks -- but he still loves to chew on my hands!  I'm sure Walter will be a great dog, just give him tons of love.

It'll be stressful but it can be done, as long as your roommates and you agree on his training before hand. They can't do it one way with him and then you get home and do it another, that will confuse him. The whole point of keeping him with mom longer is that she will teach him bite inhibition as well, not just the other puppies. But if the breeder isn't willing to keep him, that's not something you can change. Good luck to you!

I hope I don't get burned for this because there's more knowledgable people than myself but if your worried about mouthy behavior and the pup not learning enough from mom/litter mates couldn't they try and organize some doggy dates for socialization and puppy education? Obviously the big concern with that is keeping the puppy from being exposed to any illnesses but is there a "safe" way they can do that so their dog learns good dog behavior? I know it cannot replace the mom and litter but it seems like the next best thing for bite inhibition ect.