So You Think You Want a Puppy?
 

So you might be thinking to yourself, “I think I might like to get a puppy.”  With the right mindset this can be one of the most rewarding, fun, and fulfilling relationships you can enter into.  Unfortunately, with the wrong approach and without an appreciation of the commitment involved, disaster is looming on the horizon.  Living in today’s throwaway society, puppies generally have a hard time living up to our expectations.  When a puppy (naturally!) chews the couch, pees on the vintage carpet, runs in circles knocking over the table lamps, jumps on visitors or barks constantly, the puppy is no longer so cute and appealing to the unprepared family.  Thus, countless of puppies and dogs end up in shelters every year. 

One of the most important things you can do for your new puppy is to properly socialize him or her.  Socialization is the main key to stable puppy development.  Dogs – just as people – learn life skills through being socialized to people, other dogs, other pets and new environments.  Our job as responsible dog guardians is to make sure that positive socialization starts early, is always positive, and continues throughout the dog’s life.  Many dog families socialize their dogs as puppies, but then stop as the dog gets larger – just when they are becoming socially mature, and need guidance the most – like any “teenager.”  Adolescent dogs between six and eighteen months need continuing socialization to help reinforce life skills, and arguably this is the most important age to be socializing your puppy.

Social interaction with people should start very early.  By eight weeks of age, your puppy should have already met and socialized with well over one hundred people.  Responsible breeders will work hard to reach this goal, and rescues and shelters do their best. 

But it doesn’t stop there.  Socialization with people needs to continue after you get your puppy home, and on into their young adulthood.  The most critical window is before the puppy reaches 16 weeks old, at which point their basic pattern of reacting to the world, and the various strange things in it, is fairly set.  But that doesn’t mean your work is over.  The foundation is built during those first 16 weeks, but – as with any growing child – a puppy’s adult temperament and personality is shaped through ongoing interaction with their world.

In order to set out your puppy’s socialization “plan,” try to see the world through your puppies’ eyes, and you get some idea of the things that you should – positively! – expose your puppy to.  What could be potentially scary or startling?  Wheelchairs, walkers, umbrellas, uniforms, costumes, barking dogs, bicycles, cars whizzing by … the list goes on and on.   Introduce your puppy to as many “new” things as possible, but also remember to keep it light and positive.  Praise your puppy when he or she shows normal curiosity, or even ignores some new distraction.  Consider having a “puppy party”, where everyone in the neighborhood comes over to meet your new puppy.  Barbecues are great for this in the summer, wine tasting and the like work well in the colder months.  Make sure that everyone greets and rewards your puppy before they get a beverage from the fridge or cooler.

When it comes to socializing your puppy with people, men, women, children, the elderly, and all sexes, shapes, sizes and ages need to be viewed in a positive light.  You want your puppy to view all new people as a potential for a positive experience.

Now some people would say “I want my dog to protect my home and my family.  I don’t want them to necessarily love everyone.” This unfortunately is an all too common – and dangerous! – mindset.  First of all, remember they are our companions, not our security system.  Most dogs involved in break-ins end up being seriously injured or killed.  Just having a dog in the house will detour most assailants, in addition to the normal dog behavior of barking.  Failing to socialize your dog out of a misguided sense that they will be better “guard dogs” will only lead to an unfriendly, or worse, aggressive dog, who will bite and intimidate not only strangers, but also your friends and even perhaps your family and children.  In addition, the reality is that most dogs involved in break-ins end up being seriously injured or killed.  In the end, your dog will perform a natural deterrent function just fine with their simple presence.  Failing to socialize your puppy will endanger both your puppy and others.  Properly exposing your puppy to all kinds of people will keep your puppy happy, healthy, and safe.  

The second most important thing is to socialize your puppy with other dogs.  Dogs live in a world filled with other dogs, but they only get to interact with other canines in a very limited way.  Imagine if you only saw other human beings on your morning jog, at the doctors’ office, and at the beauty salon.  You probably wouldn’t have a lot of friends.  More importantly you might not even know how to make friends.

Again, starting early is the key.  Dogs develop most of their social skills in the first sixteen weeks of life.  Spending a few extra weeks around mom and other littermates helps with bite inhibition, a key part of socializing your puppy.  If your puppies’ littermates are not available, then puppy kindergarten or doggie daycare may be a good way for your puppy to get out there and interact positively with other dogs.  And like other forms of socialization, this process should start early and keep going … on through the normal development stages of puppy hood and adolescence.

Your puppy also needs to spend time around older dogs that have been around developing puppies before.  Puppies learn what is appropriate behavior from other older dogs.  After you have had your new puppy home for a few days let them have a sleep over at a friend’s home that has puppy savvy older dogs.  This will give you a much needed nights sleep after a week for 2am potty breaks, and will allow your new puppy to interact with the older dogs. 

One important point about puppy/dog interactions:  What we see is a sweet tumbling bundle of fur hopping over to “say hi” to the older dog.  What the older dog sees is a rude, obnoxious bundle of annoyance that needs to be taught some manners.  Invading personal space is rude, for us and for them.  You think that your puppy is being appropriate, and he is, as far as he needs to be bouncy and annoying to be corrected.  But more often then not, when the older dog lets out a bark, a snap, or a growl, the older dog gets punished, for doing exactly what the puppy needs to learn proper social skills.  These behaviors are ritualized in dogs.  Growls, barks, air snaps are all designed to keep real violence from happening.  It is their way of saying “Whoa, wait a minute Sonny, calm down and act civil.”  With this understanding you can get your puppy around older dogs without worrying about the trials and tribulations, the old timers will pass on appropriate dog to dog social skills for you.  Without this important social information you will have an adolescent dog that is still rude, which may not be accepted with as much patience from other dogs as they may have had as a puppy.

So now you have a puppy that has met every kind of person on the planet, seen them all wearing weird clothes and with weird things sticking out of their heads (umbrellas).  Your dog has had a chance to play with their littermates for an appropriate amount of time, or gone to puppy kindergarten.  Your dog has also been around a few older dogs and learned some basic manners.  Now what do you do?  I can’t stress this enough.  Keep on socializing.  This is the point where dog parks, dog daycare, and doggie play dates all come in handy.  I don’t know how many times I have seen a puppy well socialized and then when I see them six, twelve, eighteen months down the road they are fearful and hesitant.  Socialization is an ongoing process. 

So if you think you have the time and energy to socialize and train a puppy go down to your local shelter, rescue organization, or find a legitimate breeder.  If you have any question about whether you have the time or energy, then you probably don’t.  Consider placing an older dog with a known history in your home, or wait until a time when you can give all that you can to your new puppy.  With proper socialization, positive training, and a realistic outlook on your part, you can have the best companion your puppy can be.

This article barely touches the surface the very important issue of socializing your puppy.  There are a number of great books out there with most advanced and detailed suggestions for socializing and training your new puppy.  In short, be sure to take this task seriously – start early, and keep it up as your puppy approaches and grows through the difficult “teenager” times (usually, lasting up until the dog is 18-24 months old).  And most of all, keep it positive! 

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