Socializing puppies is a must, but it is often misunderstood, leading to behavior problems that could have been avoided. In a recent post I mentioned that when an eight week old puppy comes to live with you, it has only been walking for four weeks. That is not very long and means that your puppy is quite low on life experience and you will have a lot of socialization to do from the start. But there are a lot of things about socialization that people don't do correctly, often simply because no one told them. So to help set you and your puppy up for success, here are seven tips for successful socialization.
Tip 1: Make Sure You Know Your Puppy
One common problem in socialization is people overwhelming their puppy. This inadvertently teaches the puppy that people, dogs, and new things are scary and stressful. Before you go out (or invite someone over) to socialize your puppy, make sure you know how to tell if your puppy is stressed versus comfortable. If you can't tell if your puppy is stressed, you will end up putting your puppy in situations where socialization will backfire.
Tip 2: Help Your Puppy When it Asks for Help
Many times we have a tendency to assume that the puppy can handle something or will get over something. But that is not always the case. As a matter of fact, puppies around the age of eight weeks old are going through a fear period. This means that what they experience during this stage of life can impact them for the rest of their lives. If your puppy communicates that it is stressed, help it out by removing the stressor (can also take a break for a nap) or giving your puppy some emotional support. This way, even if they do get scared, they will know they can count on you and trust you.
Tip 3: Socialize Your Puppy to More than Just People and Dogs
Many people believe that a puppy is socialized when it has met a certain number of people or been on play dates with a certain number of dogs. But that is not the case. Socialization is about more than just people and dogs. It is about sounds, smells, weather, flooring, places, and more. Introduce your puppy to different toys, different smells, different types of flooring, car rides, even introducing them to different weather (e.g. working in the rain) is helpful. Keep your puppy safe (if you are not in a secure, fenced in yard, please keep your puppy on leash) and make sure your puppy is enjoying process. If at any point your puppy gets tired or stressed, simply take a break and end the session. Though it is better to quit while you are ahead. So take your puppy out for small socialization sessions at first and work your way up to longer sessions.
Tip 4: Socialize Your Puppy with Familiar Dogs and People First
This is a big one. If you socialize your puppy with a person or a dog you do not know, you run a huge risk of socialization backfiring. This is because you will not know how that person or dog will react. This is especially important with other dogs. Dogs you do not know can pose a safety risk to your puppy because you have no way of knowing how they will react. And if something bad happens, a stranger's dog may not respond to you. So do your best to set up play dates with dogs and people you know personally (and who like puppies). You can still socialize to people you don't know, but I would make sure you are comfortable telling them when your puppy has had a enough. (Note: puppy classes are okay as long as they are managed properly, the staff uses positive reinforcement, the staff will separate puppies who are not getting along, and the staff will provide "safe spaces" for puppies who are shy and wish to simply watch or will allow you to remove your puppy from sessions when it is uncomfortable. Check out my online puppy course to learn more about how to socialize your puppy).
Tip 5: Tell People What You Want
As mentioned previously, it is okay to introduce your puppy to strangers. However, you need to be willing to stand up for your puppy. If children are around, you need to find polite ways to have them interact with the puppy. Same with adults. If your puppy is nervous, either don't do an intro, or tell the person to go at the puppy's pace and offer treats. It is important that you stick up for your puppy, especially since they are so cute and many people do not know that puppies can get nervous when meeting new people. So don't be afraid to speak up for your puppy and tell people how you want them to interact with your puppy.
Tip 6: Be Proactive and Polite
Not everyone will like that you tell them how to interact with your puppy. But it will be much less stressful for everyone if you are proactive and polite. If it is safe, it is best to have your puppy on the ground when you are socializing it. That way it will feel free enough to move if it is uncomfortable. When you approach a person (or a person approaches you), before anything happens, give your puppy a treat for doing something like sitting or laying down. Next, as the person gets within earshot, explain your situation to the approaching person and do so in a way that helps that person want to help you and your puppy. Here are some ideas for things to say:
For moderately shy puppies: "My puppy is not yet comfortable with new people so I will keep her with me, but you can offer her a treat and let her sniff you."
For very shy puppies: "My puppy is very nervous so we are just watching people go by right now. But if you would like to help, it would be great if you stood nearby and ignored her while you chat with me and I give her treats. That will help her feel like she can sniff and investigate without being overwhelmed."
For moderately outgoing puppies: "My puppy is working on socialization, but she hasn't learned how to greet people yet. If you want to say hi, you can squat down with your side to her and we will see if she wants to say hi. If she does, she will approach you. If she does not want to say hello then she will stay near me."
For very outgoing puppies: "My puppy gets very excited about new people, so we are working on polite greetings. So we can use this as practice. You can stand and talk to me while I give her treats for sitting, then when I give her cue to say hello, you can squat down and greet her on her level."
Keep in mind that these are just some ideas. Please explain things and request certain interaction procedures based on your own puppy's needs. It is helpful to give clear instructions to people rather than suggesting things. This way people know exactly what you want. Once again, it can be helpful to explain things in a way that helps people see that they are helping you and your puppy, Many people are happy to help (e.g. "if you approach her like such and such, you will be helping her feel safe..." etc.). If people are not respecting your requests, simply politely tell them it is time for you and your puppy to move on to the next adventure, and leave. Do your best to stand up for your puppy, while also being polite to those around you.
Tip 7: Take Your Puppy to The Vet For Training Visits
Call your veterinary office (it is great to find a vet who has force-free certified staff) and ask them if you can bring your puppy in just for some socialization training visits. For the first training visit, simply take your puppy in and give it treats for meeting the staff and for being in the exam room and on the table. For the second training visit, give your puppy treats while it explores some of the common tools the vet will use. You can have normal vet visits between these, but I would recommend doing at least one "fun" socialization visit before your puppy needs to go in for a real appointment. If you can only get one in before a real appointment, make sure you puppy gets a chance to investigate some of the vets tools in that first training visit. I would highly recommend contacting a trainer to work with to help vet visits go smoothly for you and your puppy as it ages. To get help in this area of training, contact me at happyats@outlook.com .
Closing Thoughts
There is a lot to do for socialization with your puppy and I would argue that it is even more important to have good quality socialization that to get all the right behaviors trained from day one. You definitely want to train your puppy, but good quality socialization is one of the things that can make or break that training when it comes to real life situations. Whatever processes you use and whoever you choose to socialize your puppy with, make sure that socialization is fun for your puppy! The goal is for your puppy to learn that life is great! So make sure that is the message you are communicating to your puppy during the socialization process.
To get help socializing your puppy, contact me at happyats@outlook.com or visit the in-person and online service pages to find out what learning opportunities are offered here at H.A.T.S.!
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