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How late is too late to socialize a puppy to other dogs, strangers, kids, and that sort of thing? At what point will they become difficult to train for apartment living?
It's easier if the puppy is 10 weeks; but if the puppy has a friendly disposition, he/she can still be socialized and trained and habituated to apartment life at three months or even four or five months. Much depends on the puppy's prior environment as well as the pup's individual temperament and breed/mix.
I'm not sure there is an age where a dog can't be trained. It just takes a little more perserverance and comittment, but the adage "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" is not true.
I'm not sure there is an age where a dog can't be trained. It just takes a little more perserverance and comittment, but the adage "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" is not true.
Really? I had been told that having general agreable behavior towards people and animals depended on getting them a lot of exposure to people and animals as puppies.
So more specifics about the dog. He's a beagle, about eight weeks old now, and has been pretty much free roaming outside with his brother since he was 5 weeks.
I'm not denying that early socialization can make things easier, but even if it doesn't happen, proper training can still happen. Truth be told, no training is one and done. It is a life-long process and must be continually reinforced and worked on.
Think of rescue dogs...many of them were not properly socialized and trained but they learn how to act and behave properly with an owner who is dedicated.
One thing you do want to be cautious about is getting him too much exposure to other dogs before he's had all his shots. As a young pup, he may still be susceptible to other diseases (parvo, etc). I would talk with your vet about that.
8 weeks? Raising a puppy is a lot of work, but 8 weeks is not "too late" for anything! He's still just a baby. And yes, be very cautious until he's been vaccinated.
From birth to 2 weeks is the Neonatal Period. Puppies are basically helpless, can't see or hear, rely on their mama for everything - they can't even regulate their body temperature or pee / poop without help from mama at this stage.
From 2 weeks to 3 weeks old, puppies are in the Transitional Period. Their eyes open and they begin to react to sound.
From 3 weeks to 1 month old, puppies are in the Awareness Period. This is when puppies become able to thermoregulate and eliminate on their own. Their senses become fully operational. They can get around pretty well and start to play with their littermates.
Overlapping the Awareness Period is the Canine Socialization Period which occurs from the 3 week mark to the 7 week mark. It is extremely important for pup to remain with mama and littermates during this time so he can learn all about canine behavior - things like bite inhibition and reading canine body language.
7 - 12 weeks is considered the Human Socialization Period but this does not mean no human socialization takes place before 7 weeks. Gentle handling and positive associations with people should be happening pretty much from the start ideally. In the middle of the Human Socialization Period, puppies go through a fear imprinting stage. Anything that traumatizes a pup between week 8 and week 11 is likely to remain a fear for life. So while it is important to expose pups to people during this period, care must be taken to do so in a positive, non-threatening way. Note that yet another fear imprinting phase occurs in adolescence (6 months - 1 year).
8 weeks is not too late to socialize a pup. You have a month to get in some really good work. If you know what you're doing, you can set the pup up for success. If you don't know how to properly socialize a puppy, you can permanently screw him up during this critical stage. There is a delicate balance between lots of exposure and keeping that exposure pleasant and positive for the pup. So important to be able to read the puppy and respond accordingly.
As was said already in this thread, many people have adopted older dogs with poor previous socialization and turned those dogs around with careful training. If it is not too late for a 5 year old undersocialized dog, it certainly isn't too late for an 8 week old pup who is still in the Socialization Period!
It's good this Beagle pup has been with his brother and not alone. If he'd been alone during the Canine Socialization Period it would be more tricky to introduce him to other dogs later. Wish he could have been kept with his mama though because she has more to teach him than his brother can.
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