Becoming a Social Butterfly
Photo Credit: hannahwadephotography.com
The socialization period for dogs is between 3 and 20 weeks of age and develop a large
part of their personality by 16 weeks. The positive (or negative) associations that your
puppy makes during that critical stage of brain development can last a lifetime. During
this time your puppy is very impressionable. If he has positive
experiences with people, animals, stimuli and environments he is most likely to accept
them throughout his life. Therefore during the period of socialization, we encourage you
to expose your puppy to as many types of social events and influences as possible.
Video References:
Dr. R.K. Anderson’s Open Letter
If at any time during the Socialization period your puppy is frightened – trying to run away, has his tail tucked, or attempts to bite –
Your ultimate goal is for your puppy is for your puppy to be relaxed and confident around stimuli and people that were once scary to him.
We have included a checklist to help you expose your puppy to as many stimuli as possible so he can become a social butterfly!
Below are links to other helpful resources on Puppy Socialization:
Ultimate Puppy – Socialization
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