Bringing Home A New Puppy Do's And Don'ts

The canine socialization period is when the puppy needs to stay with his mother and littermates. The games he plays with his litter mates teach him balance, coordination and timing. This is a critical period in the puppy’s life for he learns one of the most important lessons of his life—to accept discipline. He learns it from his mother. This learning has far-reaching implications: once the puppy has learned to accept discipline, it can be carried over to a new master. If deprived of this opportunity, he will never again be able to fully learn these lessons. Puppies that are taken away to a new home too early (before 7 weeks) will tend to be nervous and to bark and bite and often cannot accept discipline. They may frequently be aggressive with other dogs.

You’ve decided to share your home with a dog. Yay! A dog is one of the best companions that we can have. A 50-day old pup is full of energy, yet needs gentle handling and loving company. It’s a big step for Puppers, leaving his playing companions and coming away to unfamiliar surroundings.

From birth to 12 days, a puppy is little more than a feeding and sleeping machine. Mother is the only environment that the pup responds to. From 12 to 20 days, the puppy starts going through many changes. From not being able to hear, walk, move his bowels without stimulation, or eat without sucking poor old mama, the puppy can now do all of this.

The period from 21 to 49 days, or 3 to 7 weeks, is the canine socialization period. This is when the puppy learns dog-specific behaviours. 

Seven weeks to 12 weeks is the best time to move a puppy to a new home. He is ready to transfer his learning from the nest to his new companions. However, your new puppy may not be too excited about going away with you, leaving behind littermates and the only family that he has ever known.

The dislocation in his life can be made smoother if you make a few preparations ahead of time; then, you can focus on what makes him comfortable.

Plan to bring in the new puppy during a long weekend or vacation time: Getting used to the new home and the family, settling down to a new schedule, or house training takes time. It will take at least 3 days for the puppy to get used to his new home. Keep a broadly consistent schedule at this time, so that it’s not stressful for Puppers. Decide on basic words that you’d like to use with the puppy. It’s important that everyone uses the same words when referring to the same things. That will keep the environment calm and provide stability. For instance, everybody say, “Sit,” rather than one saying “Sit” and another saying “Sit down.”