Puppies go through various stages of development as they become adults.
The goal of any pet owner or breeder should be to make the most of each sensitive stage, providing the puppy with age-appropriate learning and social opportunities.
Between 4 and 8+ weeks, puppies learn best how to interact with other dogs.
Between 5 and 10+ weeks, they are experts interacting with humans.
Between 5 and 16 weeks, they are better able to investigate new environments and stimuli. In fact, a puppy that was not given a wide range of socialization opportunities at the age of 10 weeks may develop fear of the unknown.
How Does a Puppy Learn Skills from Other Dogs?
Before approximately 8 1/2 weeks of age, puppies are learning skills primarily from other dogs. It is beneficial and therefore preferable during this period for the puppy to remain with its parents and litter brothers. The more you socialize your puppy with other dogs, the more equipped he will be to adapt to a new world - his world.
Responsible breeders keep new litters for at least 8 1/2 weeks and sometimes longer if they plan to start training and socializing before sending the pups to their new homes.
The biggest advantage of leaving your puppy with the breeder until he is at least 8 1/2 weeks old is to allow him social development with other dogs.
Other ways for puppies to socialize (those who received timely basic vaccinations and other preventive health care) include play dates with other puppies and the puppy nursery or kindergarten.
An adult dog in the family can also be a great teacher to a new puppy. Just make sure the adult dog is well behaved, or else your puppy will learn the bad habits of the older pet.
It is not a predetermined result that a puppy that does not receive the right experiences at the right stages of development turns into a dog with behavioral problems. But why take the risk?
Why not try to do everything right, right off the bat, with your new furry pet?
I cannot guarantee that you will end up with a perfect pet. But I can promise you that your efforts will accomplish two things:
You can reduce the risk of your dog developing behavior problems.
Plus, you can dramatically increase your chances of sharing your life with an educated and trusted canine companion.
Your Responsibility Once the Puppy Comes Home: Socialization and More Socialization
In the first two months with you, your puppy should:
Learn to accept that you are going to be manipulated and let yourself be touched by all parts of the body.
Get to know as many healthy and safe people, animals, situations, places and sounds and shows as possible.
Be encouraged to investigate their environment, with supervision.
Being exposed to many toys, games, surfaces, and other stimuli. Take car rides with you to new unfamiliar surroundings.
One of the most important challenges in socializing your puppy is minimizing the fear you feel while exposing him to a wide range of unfamiliar stimuli he will face in his new life with you. This means that you must recognize and understand the puppy's fear.
How to Recognize Puppy's Fears and What to Do With Them
Your puppy may act a little surprised when he meets a different person, something new or unknown.This is fine as long as you recover quickly, remain incognito, and are willing to continue the adventure. This indicates that it adapts to strange stimuli without any problem.However, if it doesn't recover after a few minutes, something is wrong.
And certainly if your puppy is very upset he starts crying, peeing or pooping out of fear, or trying to find a place to hide, this is not normal. It is also never acceptable to teach him to be strong by deliberately scaring him. This will only make the problem worse.
Research shows that puppies can inherit fear trends that can be observed at the age of 5 weeks. And without proper intervention, puppies who are anxious by 3 months will become worried and anxious adults.
The sooner you recognize and seek help for fear-related behaviors in your puppy, the better the result. I recommend that you talk to your holistic vet, a responsible breeder, and / or an animal behavior specialist about how to help a fearful or anxious puppy.
Please do not make the mistake of assuming that if you continue to expose yourself to fear, it will eventually go away. In fact, the opposite will happen, and then both you and your puppy will end up dealing with a long-term, intractable problem.
When Should You Train / Domesticate Your Puppy?
Among the many things your puppy needs to learn in its first months of life is that the place to relieve itself is outdoors.
The age to start training your puppy is around 8 1/2 weeks. Before 8 weeks of age, most puppies have not yet developed the neurological control to contain elimination - they have no choice but to relieve themselves when they feel the urge, wherever they are at the time.
At 8 1/2 weeks, your puppy will be of the right age to select his preferred surface (eg grass, sidewalk, or other outdoor substrate) and take action.
A dog in 8 1/2 weeks is capable of making a mental connection between odor, the surface where it relieves itself and the act of elimination. And nature created it so that at that age your puppy realizes that he can control the time and place where he must relieve himself. It's okay to start your puppy's domestication / training process right after it's home, but chances are you won't fully understand the process until 8 1/2 weeks old.
The training goal actually becomes 2 goals:
• Teach your puppy to relieve himself in the right place
• Teach you to stop wanting to relieve yourself until you get to your right place
Not all 8 1/2 week old puppies are created equal. Some puppies will quickly learn this indication.Others will take more time, effort, and patience.
You should anticipate and prepare for the occasional accident as your puppy learns this important but difficult skill.
Remember - your new puppy is much more than just an adorable energy ball. It is also a furry sponge, capable of absorbing everything it can show you in order to adjust to your new life with you.
Pay close attention to those first six months of your puppy's life.
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