Kiya is 13 weeks old. I was wondering, when is the safest time to expose her to swimming in river water, or lake water? She has had all of her basic shots, (distemper, parvo, rabies, lime, type 2, kennel cough) but l am not supposed to take her to public places because her last round of shots will not be given till 16 weeks old. So what is the safest age to expose her to that type of water that will have some form of bacteria in it?

The typical vaccinations are not going to do anything to protect her from the bacteria that might be in the water.  Vaccinations are mostly for viruses, not bacteria.  

That said, it shouldn't be a problem bringing her to water.  As always, things like giardia, coccidia, and other parasites are always a risk, but that risk is not specific to a certain age range or exposure area: every dog can get these parasites at any time.  Some might say it is in some ways good for them to get them earlier than late, assuming of course that getting them is sort of inevitable.  

I think from a purely health perspective and considering the risks that all puppies are exposed to, I wouldn't say taking her for a swim in a lake is any more risky than taking her for a walk down the sidewalk, if things like parvo etc. are your concern.

Any exposure to water brings risk of giardia, coccidia...etc., but pretty much any dog is gonna get them at some point, they are not really dangerous at all, and they are easily treatable.  Also of note, these are not bacteria nor viruses but parasites, mostly protozoan types. You can't really prevent them , but you sure can treat them and get rid of them.

Just my thoughts.  

P.s.  Puppies swimming are amazing, I hope yours loves it as much as mine does.

Yeah, I let Sheba swim in a nasty river around the same age. She didn't get sick and she had a BLAST!! Baby girl was a natural swimmer and it helped build trust and helped with our bond.

Kennedy got sick from a river type thing at the dog part about a year ago. If they are going to get sick, they get sick.

I say go for it!!

Your post is very informational and I am very appreciative for the time and thought you put into your advice. She has not been on sidewalks yet, I keep her home and off of public "floors" and grounds. Parvo is a huge fear of mine, so the river or lake water does scare me the bejesus out of me..just like taking her to visit friends

Kelsey, how old was Kennedy? Would parvo be in water too?

I don't think parvo is in the water, but don't quote me on that. You could always google it and see what you come up with.

Kennedy was over a year old, it was just a bacteria thing. A week and a half on antibiotics and she was back to normal . Any dog can get sick from standing water; it just so happens that the river is where all the dogs pee; sooo it was only a matter of time, honestly.

I recently read up on leptospirosis and that can be carried in water. It's a bacterial infection that dogs get vaccinated for, so it's something to keep in mind. Maybe you can check up on incidence in your area.

As for the other stuff, you should be fine at 16 weeks. One of my huskies got giardia from her water bowl; we left it outside, and I figure some deer contaminated it. But treatment cleared it up nicely.

16 weeks sounds fine to me. I let Juneau swim around that age! We were at a local dog park with a swimming pool. She didn't get sick. She enjoyed it!