Early Socialization.
Early Neurology; The stimulation as described below will give the puppies more tolerance to stress, improve the heart, immune system and adrenaline flow. This will effect the puppy for life. This early stimulation should be done daily from day 3 through day 16 of puppies' new life.
Rub a Q-Tip on the pad of the feet (tickling effect).
Hold puppy with the head upright and tail down.
Reverse direction of the puppy with tail up.
Hold puppy up off the floor in a level position.
Put the puppies' feet down on a really cold damp towel
You could stroke each foot once or twice with an ice cube
Do Each For A Maximum Of 4 To 5 Seconds Daily.
SEVEN
"The rule of Sevens says that you should introduce your puppy to AT LEAST seven new kinds of surfaces, seven new kinds of people, seven new kinds of foods, seven new kinds of sounds, and seven new places by the time he is 12 weeks old. All new situations should be introduced in a neutral or positive way—nothing frightening or hurtful. “
1st week
Pick the puppy up each day, rub his softness against your check. Hold for about a minute.
Support the puppy under his tummy.
2nd week (7 to 14 days)
Hold the puppy in different positions briefly, turn him in a circle one day, to left the next, etc. including upside down.
One day during this week put him in a cold room for about 2 minutes.
3rd week (15 to 21 days)
The stress can be more specific. One day, pick the puppy up and give a momentary pinch to the ear, another day a
momentary pinch between the toes, different foot each day.
4th week(21 to 28 days)
One stress event is sufficient for this week. The puppy is becoming very aware of all around him. Take the pup from his littermates and place him on a different floor surface than he has experienced before. Leave there for 3 or 4 minutes and watch his reaction to different objects in his line of vision and how he reacts to being alone.
•This Is The Beginning Of The Socialization Period. A Few Minutes With Each Individual Pup Is Important. Pick Them Up, Talk To Them,
Stroke Them. This will imprint on the pup his place in the world of humans.
•DO NOT remove the puppies from the litter. Do not wean at this age. If complications with the mother dog require early removal fromthe litter, do it BEFORE 21 days or AFTER 28 days.
•Do not allow negative events to take place during this period. This could result in shyness or other unwanted qualities in a puppy
5th week (29 to 35 days)
Give the pups mild auditory and visual stress. On one day, place a radio near the puppies at a loud but not blaring level. Five minutes twice in one day is sufficient. On another day, flick the room lights on and off for two to three minutes, a couple of times during the day. Or you can use flashlights. The pups need stimulation of people, sights, and sounds.
Twice During This Week, At Least, Take Each Pup Away From The Pen Area And Littermates And Interact With Each Pup For Ten Minutes Or So. Gently Playing With Them Individually On The Floor Works. Bend Down To Their Level, Making Eye Contact And Facial Expressions. Get Your Face Close To Theirs
The mother will be in the process of weaning the puppies. It is important that you let her do her job.
6th week(36 to 42 days)
This is a Critical period for interacting with humans. Spend a total of twenty minutes with each puppy away from the litter this week, preferably in two ten-minute sessions, it is the best thing you can do to help the puppy begin to develop a well-adjusted personality. The pups two-way communication system is developing. The pups will run to you, climb on you, wanting to interact. How they are raised during this period of time will effect them for life.
7th week (43 to 49 days)
Each individual session with each pup should be about ten minutes long. Call the puppy to you, get him to follow you, sit down on his level and gently play a bit. Talk to him and get him to look at you.
Noted: DO NOT remove puppies from the litter. Wait until after 7 weeks of age to let the new homes take the puppies.
8th week(50 to 56 days)
This Is The Fearful Period. Pups are afraid of loud noises, movement, and confusion and are cautious of anything new in the environment. If the pup experiences something frightful or harmful during this period, he may be terrorized for life. But don't put the pup in seclusion during this period, let him have normal experiences. Also during this period the pup may be suspect of even normal things around him, as though he doesn't even trust his own judgement. Be calm, this period will pass in a week or two, and providing the pup has not had a frightening experience it will be back to normal by the end of the ninth week.
Never Send A Puppy To A New Home Or Introduce New People & Dogs During This Period
•The puppy is experiencing his FEAR IMPRINT PERIOD between 8 and 9 weeks of age, and any traumatic encounters will stay with the puppy for his whole lifetime
•Do not let the child hurt or frighten the puppy. The best way not to let a child accidentally drop a puppy is to not let them pick it up in the first place.
9th - 12th weeks: (57 to 84 days)
The pup develops strong dominant and subordinate behavior among the littermates. They begin to learn the right behavior during this time. The pup has a very short attention span. The brain is ready for full functioning. Exposure to different environments and building of self-confidence is a primary consideration here. All puppies should receive their own special time alone with the breeder; otherwise the pups will begin bonding with each other, will lose their interest in people and will become more difficult to train. Fifteen to twenty minute visits to new places is sufficient several times a week or daily if possible. Do not isolate the pup during this period for great lengths of time. You must begin to build the dogs self-confidence.
• Use the word "NO" sparingly and only when it really demands it. If you don't want the pup into something, take it away, rather than continue correcting all the time. An excellent means of building self-confidence in
a pup is to spend time alone with him, playing with him, grooming him and beginning to teach him behaviors that are important to you, such as to sit, come or walk with you. Interaction with adult dogs throughout
this period helps build a sense of "pack order", and helps them overcome fear aggression of other dogs, SEVEN must be introduce before 12 weeks.
3 to 6 months stages:
Chewing and biting begins, since the permanent set of teeth will be coming in. Be sure the pup has HIS own things to chew on and give correction for mouthing or biting you. Around Four Months Of Age, the pup will go through an avoidance period similar to the fear period experienced at eight weeks of age. He becomes very suspicious of anybody and anything new.
•Just keep things Normal for the pup during this period and exposure should be kept at a quiet minimum. Determining Pack Leadership happens during this period also. You must always keep your pup informed of
the fact that you are Alpha at this period. He will remember this then for life and will be easier to live with. This is the period when males start to go through "testosterone poisoning" and will challenge you. Do NOT
tolerate any misbehavior or dominance during this time.
9 to 12 months stages:
Around 9 to 12 months, some pups will go through this fearful period again. Do NOT allow the pup to get away with shying away. If they are allowed to be shy and run AWAY from a situation, they will remain that way for life. Be Firm and Gentle; let them know you are there for them, but never allow them to back away. When they are hunching down and acting fearful, never say "It's ok, it won't hurt you, etc." All they will remember is that you said
"It's Ok", and interpret that as "It's Ok To Act Fearful, And Pull Away." When encountering this behavior, tell them "NO, straighten up and act right." Hold them gently to the fearful situation and make them submit. They will soon find that their fears are unfounded and everything will be back to normal in a very short period of time. With Terriers, instead of shyness you will see Fearful Aggression. Again, DO NOT tolerate any misbehavior or dominance during this time
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