Labradoodle - Wandering Passion - Socialization of puppies
The importance of early socialization
Only a small part of our dogs' behavior, because about 20% is genetic. The rest is the impact of primary and secondary socialization, or stimuli that our puppy received during the critical period of its development.
Note - this is not just about the number of stimuli, but above all about their quality. It is not enough to tame a dog with something. This should be done wisely. Excessive stimuli, presented in the wrong way or at the wrong time, can do more harm to a puppy than good.
I love young brains, they can be freely shaped. It really is an amazing process. Of course, every puppy is born with certain genetic resources, a temperament that we have no control over. We will not change an independent puppy, dominant or subordinate, and with a sensitive person work is not easy. But we can teach these beings to be ourselves really fully and be able to use these wonderful resources.
OUR SOCIALIZATION PROGRAM FOR AUSTRALIAN LABRADOODLE PUPPIES
Primary socialization of Labradoodle Hairy Passion
Newborn puppies are not born bare and cheerful. They already have their basic senses:
- sense of touch
- sense of smell
- thermal sense
Already we are working on them in the first period. Of course you should take considering the fact that puppies in this period need above all all the safety that their mother gives them. They need to eat, sleep and grow.
Therefore, in this first period, we reduce stimuli to the necessary minimum, focusing mainly on early neurological stimulation, which begins at 3 and ends on the 16th day of puppies' life.
After this period, we introduce diaphragm and labyrinth exercises - these last about 2 weeks and their goal is to eliminate potential motion sickness. The best is that all this takes place without leaving home;)
We set puppies for olfactory stimuli when their ears and eyes are still closed. Puppies learn the map of their bodies thanks to the Shantal massage. They find out what they are. The mother does the same by licking the little ones from head to toe with a warm, moist tongue.
When we start to see and hear the world around us
When puppies open their ears and eyes, it's time to modify our plans.
We are still massaging babies, but this time we are introducing new visual stimuli and auditory
We show them various nooks of our apartment, we play a CD with various sounds. We drop various items on the floor to make some reflexes (I got scared but it's okay)
Then it's time to leave the delivery pen and familiarize yourself with:
- various substrates
- rdifferent people
- other animals
- other dogs
- terribly strange objects
- loud, moving objects
- objects making noise
Puppies also learn to solve various problems, we set them various challenges so that they learn self-confidence in different situations.
We create enriched environments consisting of various strange objects on which they must climb, walk inside, crawl into, pass through, etc.
Week 6 - that is, we know a lot, but ...
Around 6 weeks you can start learning the first visual commands like sitting, lying down, high five.
It is also a good time (after waiting a few days after the first vaccinations) to leave the house in unknown areas. We go with puppies everywhere, showing them traffic, cars, trams, buses and various strange places.
We do not spare toddlers, we take them out to rain and snow and when we hear the storm from afar we open the balcony.
We teach puppies how to calm down by throwing and licking. We make an introduction to sniffing thanks to the enriched environment.
All socialization must take place in safe conditions and stimuli should be graded so that the puppy gets the most out of it. In the future it will be a cool, mentally stable dog.
This is a very arduous job that you have to spend a lot of time on. Therefore, our day starts at 6.20, from the first walk with puppies, and ends with the last walk at 23.00. This is not a thing that can be done in the meantime. I do not support kennels where puppies spend most of their time in the puppy playpen. I will never agree with that such puppies get everything they need.
When puppies get to new homes, secondary socialization begins, which will last until about the age of 2. These first 2 years have the greatest impact on the formation of your dogs' psyche
If you are interested in our social in the following weeks, I invite you to read my article at:
OUR SOCIALIZATION PROGRAM FOR AUSTRALIAN LABRADOODLE PUPPIES
