Last week I had this email from a client about socialising her 10 week old (and completely gorgeous) puppy:
“If I want to walk further than 50 m from the house, he is very unhappy and wants to go back. I am worried that if I push him, it will be bad for him and he might be a nervous dog later on. So how much interactions, socialisation is enough or too much? Should I give him a little bit more time to acclimatize or push him a little bit over the comfort zone? “
Socialisation is about your dog having positive, low-stress experiences of the things she might meet in everyday life (people, animals, places, surfaces, noises, vehicles etc.) to help her to be comfortable in this complex world. The key socialisation period is between 3 and 16 weeks of age (so breeders have a big role to play too), but socialisation should continue for at least the first year and probably 2 years of your dog’s life.
Most importantly and vitally, your dog needs to be happy and comfortable with people – babies; toddlers; young children; teenagers; young adults; older adults; people of different ethnicities; people with glasses, beards, or hats; in wheelchairs; loud, confident people; shy people; etc. etc. And any dog-dog interactions should be controlled, safe and positive.
Many, if not most, puppies refuse to walk as the new owner expects them to. They may put the brakes on at the front door, or perhaps they’ll tentatively get to the end of the drive then start a sit down strike. They may even walk a few yards (or metres) then stage their protest.
They are not being naughty – they’re just overwhelmed by all the sights, smells and sounds of this incredible world they’ve only so recently been born into.
If you’re walking along and spot something odd out of the corner of your eye, you stop and look to see what’s going on – you need to make sense of it before you walk onwards. That’s exactly what puppies are doing. They need time to make sense of the huge riot of scents, sights and sounds that flood their senses when they first start going out and about.
My reply to the email was:
“(X’s) behaviour is totally normal for puppies. Just take him out as far as he’ll happily go (before he shows any sign of wanting to pull back to the house), then stand and chat to him, giving him treats. After a few minutes see if he wants to go a bit further. And repeat. Until you decide to go back home. And aim for him to meet at least one new person every day.”
Taking your time is the secret to good socialisation and to getting your puppy to walk with you. And remember the rule of puppy walks – 5 minutes per month of life twice a day. Use that time wisely – and in lots of different places.
Be patient and give your puppy time. It won’t take long for them to gain their confidence and start to walk happily with you.
Keep training,
Carol