Exercise and Socialization
THE IMPORTANCE OF EXERCISE
A dog’s sense of smell is in the region of 40 times stronger than our own and exploring other smells/scents is not just something that helps a dog with physical exercise, but also provides much needed mental stimulation. It can be likened to us reading the paper or watching a good program on TV; it provides mental stimulation and helps us to relax. There were experiments done in Germany whereby they took about 100 dogs exhibiting normal behavioural problems and the only modification that was done, was that they were allowed to smell different places and surfaces. The behaviours that were a problem were reduced by over 60% without any behaviour modification being brought in.
In addition, exercise has the effect of increasing the natural serotonin levels which can act as a sedative and will assist in reducing the stress levels. As we all know a tired dog is a good dog! So even if you just take your dog for a 5 minute walk and smell it will help to stimulate his senses.
What you do need to bear in mind is that until your pup has received it's 3 set of vacs is that if exposed to Parvo, the result could be very serious. A dog can contract Parvo throughout it's life, but after receiving the 3rd set of vacs, if the disease is contracted it tends to be less severe.
To safeguard your pup, do not walk in public areas - rather have puppy parties or let the pup meet with friends dogs that you know have been vaccinated.
A dog’s sense of smell is in the region of 40 times stronger than our own and exploring other smells/scents is not just something that helps a dog with physical exercise, but also provides much needed mental stimulation. It can be likened to us reading the paper or watching a good program on TV; it provides mental stimulation and helps us to relax. There were experiments done in Germany whereby they took about 100 dogs exhibiting normal behavioural problems and the only modification that was done, was that they were allowed to smell different places and surfaces. The behaviours that were a problem were reduced by over 60% without any behaviour modification being brought in.
In addition, exercise has the effect of increasing the natural serotonin levels which can act as a sedative and will assist in reducing the stress levels. As we all know a tired dog is a good dog! So even if you just take your dog for a 5 minute walk and smell it will help to stimulate his senses.
What you do need to bear in mind is that until your pup has received it's 3 set of vacs is that if exposed to Parvo, the result could be very serious. A dog can contract Parvo throughout it's life, but after receiving the 3rd set of vacs, if the disease is contracted it tends to be less severe.
To safeguard your pup, do not walk in public areas - rather have puppy parties or let the pup meet with friends dogs that you know have been vaccinated.
SOCIALIZATION
As mentioned previously, puppies have a ‘window of opportunity’ which is the canine socialization period, between 3 to 16 weeks wherein a puppy can happily accept new situations and people easily. This is a period where the owner needs to do as much work as possible to expose the puppy to different people, animals, environments and noises. I like to compare it with putting down the foundations for a new house. If you take the time to allow the concrete to dry properly and your mix is correct, the result will be a strong basic structure which can be built upon and the chances of cracking is slight. However, if you build before the concrete has settled and dried properly and your mix is wrong, the chances of cracking at a later stage are high. So too with puppies, give them a solid foundation on which to build and you will never regret it.
Here are some ideas for socialization:-
Different adult dogs of different ages and breeds. Make sure first that the dog is friendly before introducing your puppy. If in doubt rather don’t introduce the puppy so that you don’t expose it to a fearful situation. You will be shown in class how to introduce your puppy to other dogs.
Different animals. A puppy may have been introduced to a horse but imagine what the puppy may think if it suddenly views a horse with a human on its back! Include cats, birds, rabbits and anything else you can think of.
People of all ages, shapes, colours and sizes. Children here are especially important, let your puppy mix with them right from babies through to teenagers. Don’t forget to add children riding bicycles, pushing prams etc into the mixture, as well as children shouting, crying, running etc. We often come across people who are physically challenged and may be using crutches or a wheelchair, so expose your puppy to this as well. Important people who visit your home who need to be introduced to your puppy are the postman and the dustbin man, garden service and anybody else who wears uniforms, hats and rides bicycles. If you are a house of only women, make sure that your puppy meets as many different men as possible. Ian Dunbar, well known behaviourist and author of many excellent books, advocates that you should introduce your puppy to no less than 100 different people before 16 weeks of age.
Have as many people over to visit as you possibly can. Let them all say hello to your puppy and touch him gently all over.
Visits to the vet are high priority. Drop in to say hello with your puppy and let the receptionist and anybody else there say hello as often as you can. If your vet is not busy see if you can pop your puppy onto the examining table and scale for practise and treat and praise. Take a few minutes longer and sit in the reception doing ear slides while your pup sees the comings and goings around him. This is an important part of your training as most dogs visiting vets are exhibiting fear which your pup will pick up. Just by sitting and letting him watch while you do the ear slides will reassure your pup and go a long way to making him a more confident dog.
If you intend to have your puppy groomed or kennelled these are two more places which need to be visited. Another I like to include is your local supermarket. Although very few of them allow dogs inside nowadays, it is a place full of interesting people that your puppy can get used to as well as a lot of cars making different noises and even some hooting. Don’t forget to include motor bikes as well. Even if you don’t want to show your dog or take part in obedience trials, taking your puppy for an outing to a dog show is excellent.
As you can see, the list can be endless. Another aspect of this to consider is to expose your puppy to as many different noises as possible. Thunder, trucks, fireworks, gunfire, dustbins been lifted and dropped, plastic bags, tins banging etc Although this sounds like a lot of work, it will create an excellent foundation for your puppy and can be a huge amount of fun for both of you.
As mentioned previously, puppies have a ‘window of opportunity’ which is the canine socialization period, between 3 to 16 weeks wherein a puppy can happily accept new situations and people easily. This is a period where the owner needs to do as much work as possible to expose the puppy to different people, animals, environments and noises. I like to compare it with putting down the foundations for a new house. If you take the time to allow the concrete to dry properly and your mix is correct, the result will be a strong basic structure which can be built upon and the chances of cracking is slight. However, if you build before the concrete has settled and dried properly and your mix is wrong, the chances of cracking at a later stage are high. So too with puppies, give them a solid foundation on which to build and you will never regret it.
Here are some ideas for socialization:-
Different adult dogs of different ages and breeds. Make sure first that the dog is friendly before introducing your puppy. If in doubt rather don’t introduce the puppy so that you don’t expose it to a fearful situation. You will be shown in class how to introduce your puppy to other dogs.
Different animals. A puppy may have been introduced to a horse but imagine what the puppy may think if it suddenly views a horse with a human on its back! Include cats, birds, rabbits and anything else you can think of.
People of all ages, shapes, colours and sizes. Children here are especially important, let your puppy mix with them right from babies through to teenagers. Don’t forget to add children riding bicycles, pushing prams etc into the mixture, as well as children shouting, crying, running etc. We often come across people who are physically challenged and may be using crutches or a wheelchair, so expose your puppy to this as well. Important people who visit your home who need to be introduced to your puppy are the postman and the dustbin man, garden service and anybody else who wears uniforms, hats and rides bicycles. If you are a house of only women, make sure that your puppy meets as many different men as possible. Ian Dunbar, well known behaviourist and author of many excellent books, advocates that you should introduce your puppy to no less than 100 different people before 16 weeks of age.
Have as many people over to visit as you possibly can. Let them all say hello to your puppy and touch him gently all over.
Visits to the vet are high priority. Drop in to say hello with your puppy and let the receptionist and anybody else there say hello as often as you can. If your vet is not busy see if you can pop your puppy onto the examining table and scale for practise and treat and praise. Take a few minutes longer and sit in the reception doing ear slides while your pup sees the comings and goings around him. This is an important part of your training as most dogs visiting vets are exhibiting fear which your pup will pick up. Just by sitting and letting him watch while you do the ear slides will reassure your pup and go a long way to making him a more confident dog.
If you intend to have your puppy groomed or kennelled these are two more places which need to be visited. Another I like to include is your local supermarket. Although very few of them allow dogs inside nowadays, it is a place full of interesting people that your puppy can get used to as well as a lot of cars making different noises and even some hooting. Don’t forget to include motor bikes as well. Even if you don’t want to show your dog or take part in obedience trials, taking your puppy for an outing to a dog show is excellent.
As you can see, the list can be endless. Another aspect of this to consider is to expose your puppy to as many different noises as possible. Thunder, trucks, fireworks, gunfire, dustbins been lifted and dropped, plastic bags, tins banging etc Although this sounds like a lot of work, it will create an excellent foundation for your puppy and can be a huge amount of fun for both of you.
