The first few months of your puppies life are the most critical for learning and development, At this stage of life (8-16 weeks) your puppy’s brain is a sponge absorbing as much information about this strange world as possible, by exposing your puppy to all the wonders of the world at a young age in a safe and controlled environment you can rest assured you will have a confident dog. Right now is also the best time to start obedience training with your young puppy as it is never too early to start training, by starting early you can ensure the lessons learnt now have a lasting and POSITIVE experience.
Listed below I have made a list of things that you should expose your puppy to. Please keep in mind when socialising your puppy with anything new especially machinery and vehicles, to be sensible and to remember that this is all new and rather intimidating to your puppy who is doing its best to take it all in. Always start at a distance which is reasonable for the puppy, for example if they seem a little scared of the sound the TV makes, turn down the volume and start at a point where the puppy seems relaxed and will happily play a game or take treats from you, as the puppy gains more confidence move your way closer to the TV and increase the sound slowly.
You can read more about the things that your puppy should be exposed to below the image of Storm, the Rottweiler. To book a puppy socialising session in Melbourne with our head trainer, Chris Loverseed, fill out the form on the right, call 0403 727 981 or visit our In Home Puppy Training page for more information.
Environments for socialising your puppy
- Sporting fields
- Train stations
- Different ground surfaces
- Primary schools
- Shopping centre entrance
- Outside Coffee shops
- The vet
- Underground car parks
- The grooming saloon
- Pet shops
- Little walks in the rain
- The beach and pools
- Different types of stairs (only a few steps and keep puppy on leash)
Socialising your puppy with humans
- Babies and small children (the more the better)
- Meet a clown or other dressed up people wearing masks etc.
- People with different skin colours
- Kids on bikes
- People with umbrellas
- People with walking sticks and wheel chairs
- Nursing homes or show and tell at school if possible
Machinery and objects
- Trucks
- Trains and trams
- Smoke alarm
- Lawn mower
- Washing machine
- Vacuum
- Power tools
- Hair dryer
- Line trimmer
- Kitchen electrical goods
- Water hose
- Police, Fire and Ambulance sirens
- TV
