From the
moment you choose your puppy, there is some considerable urgency regarding
socialization and training. There is no time to waste. Basically, an adult dog's
temperament and behavior habits (both good and bad)are shaped during
puppyhood—very early puppyhood. In fact, some puppies are well on their way to
ruin by the time
they are
just eight weeks old. It is especially easy to make horrendous mistakes when
selecting a pup and during his first few days at home. Such mistakes usually
have an indelible effect, influencing your pup's behavior and temperament for the
rest of his life. This is not to say that unsocialized and untrained
eight-week-old pups cannot be rehabilitated. They can, if you work quickly. But
while it’s easy to prevent behavior and temperament problems from the
beginning, rehabilitation can be both difficult and time-consuming, and it is
unlikely that your pup will ever become the adult dog he or she could have
been.
If your
pup is ever left
unsupervised indoors he will most certainly chew household articles and soil
your house. Although these teeny accidents do little damage in themselves, they
set the precedent for your puppy's choice of toys and toilets for many months
to come. You should treat any puppy house soiling or house destruction mistake
as a potential disaster, since it predicts numerous future mistakes from a dog
with larger bladder and bowels and much more destructive jaws. Many owners
begin to notice their puppy's destructiveness by the time he is four to five
months old, when the pup is characteristically relegated outdoors. Destruction
is the product of a puppy's boredom, lack of supervision, and a search for
entertainment. Natural inquisitiveness prompts the lonely pup to dig, bark, and
escape in his quest for some form of occupational therapy to pass the day in
solitary confinement. Once the neighbors complain about the dog's incessant
barking and periodic escapes, the dog is often further confined to a garage or
basement. Usually though, this is only a temporary measure until the dog is surrendered
to a local animal shelter to play the lotto of life. Fewer than 25 percent of
surrendered dogs are adopted, of which about half are returned as soon as the
new owners discover their adopted adolescent's annoying problems. The above
summarizes the fate of many dogs. This is especially sad because all these
simple problems could be prevented so easily. Housetraining and
chewtoy-training are hardly rocket science. But you do need to know what to do.
And you need to know what to do before you bring your puppy home.
As soon as your puppy comes home, the clock is running. Within just three months, your puppy will need to meet six crucial developmental deadlines. If your puppy fails to meet any of these deadlines, he is unlikely to achieve his full potential. In terms of your dog's behavior and temperament, you will probably be playing catch-up for the rest of your dog's life. Most important of all, you simply cannot afford to neglect the socialization and bite inhibition deadlines.
As soon as your puppy comes home, the clock is running. Within just three months, your puppy will need to meet six crucial developmental deadlines. If your puppy fails to meet any of these deadlines, he is unlikely to achieve his full potential. In terms of your dog's behavior and temperament, you will probably be playing catch-up for the rest of your dog's life. Most important of all, you simply cannot afford to neglect the socialization and bite inhibition deadlines.
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