By Rachel Moseley
The critical socialization period for puppies is between 3-12 weeks of age. Ideally the breeder you got your puppy from has started this for you with carefully planned exposures and socialization opportunities prior to them coming home. Once they’re home with you, it’s up to you to continue this process!
So what exactly IS socialization? At its root, socialization is simply about safe, positive, exposure to new stimuli. You’ll want to involve all the senses by incorporating sights, smells, sounds, and surfaces into the process for your young puppies.
You’ll want to practice controlled exposure to a variety of things at the puppy’s pace with tons of positive reinforcement (whether through food or praise). You want to utilize your pups favorite treats heavily to really reinforce those positive experiences. It’s important that they are never forced to interact with people or things when they seem uncertain. Let them tell you what they’re ready for. If they seem afraid of something, don’t worry! That’s totally normal and part of it! Learning that things can be stressful and nothing bad happens will help build a more resilient dog. Take your time with them and let them interact however much or little they want. It’s okay if they don’t want to walk all the way up to the stroller or whatever they’re apprehensive about.
An important note, socialization is about experiencing the world in a safe way. It’s not necessarily about having your dog interact with every person, dog, and item they see. Letting some people pet them and encouraging interactions with known, safe dogs is good for them but not every person needs to pet them and not every dog is safe with puppies.
When should you start socializing?
Your work socializing your puppy begins the day they come home and continues heavily for the first 12 weeks of their life – but socialization never really ends! A dog with proper socialization during the first few months of their life is going to be at a massive advantage to a dog that doesn’t get those experiences but continuing to passively socialize any dog throughout their life will only benefit them.
But what about vaccines?
Many people still wonder whether they should wait until their puppy finishes all vaccines before starting socialization. To address this, the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (AVSAB) has released a position statement clarifying the issue. They emphasize that because the risk of behavioral problems from lack of socialization outweighs the risks, it’s essential to begin socializing your puppy before vaccines are complete—as long as you take proper precautions. Here is the official position statement from AVSAB.
For young puppies that haven’t finished their vaccines yet, it’s important to be careful where you take them. You want to avoid putting them on the ground in places with high dog traffic like pet stores where there’s higher risk for disease. Carrying them in pet friendly stores is a good option if your pup is portable (the perks of smaller dogs!). Other options are exploring places with low dog traffic – when the weather is nice, walking around in front of (not inside) not pet friendly stores can be a good way to expose them to sights/sounds/people while mitigating risk.
Once your puppy is fully vaccinated, you can take them to busier places without worrying as much about disease risks. Our region has plenty of pet-friendly stores and events that are perfect for bringing your puppy or dog along!
Are there classes I can take for puppy socialization?
Here at NWA School for Dogs we have a class specifically designed to be a safe place for young puppies (7-12 weeks) to learn about the world! We sanitize the entire building after closing on Friday, and our Puppy Class kicks off first thing Saturday morning. This ensures a safe environment for puppies who aren’t fully vaccinated yet.
We’ll set up a bear hunt so your puppies can go over, under, around, through, and into obstacles as well as experience being around new people and other puppies. We’ll also troubleshoot common puppy problems and answer any questions you may have!
Our Puppy Class is a 4-week class for $150 that you can start on any Saturday at 9am. Schedule online or contact us to enroll your new puppy today!