Puppies and socialization

Sharon7 said:
Yikes Gloria what a cascade of horrible events! I can imagine your fear and panic. These dogs are so sensitive - that's why so many go missing - they do bolt and then good luck catching them. Glad it all turned out OK and you must have gone inside and poured yourself a big glass of wine!!! Holy cow. Poor Beau - literally dragged into it!
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Yes, I was a nervous wreck after that incident. It caught me so off guard as he had been doing so well earlier. That said, Ann explained how she holds the loop of the lead over her wrist and then wraps some of the leash looped around her hand too! You can bet next time I walk Liam I will be using this method!

I have to say it hurts your feelings when they bolt away from you like that with all the love and affection we show to them!

I know it is the fight or flight response so they are not thinking. I just thank God he stopped at the edge of my lawn and street. He is so much larger than Beau and poor Beau had no chance to stop him.
 
Caro said:
Remember, socialisation isn't 'socialising'. Obviously you can't take her out to some places when she hasn't had all her shots (although I used to tote Tully around in a handbag when I walked Deska). And we hung around shops and noisy places with her in a bag, or on my lap while I sat on a bench. Did it work, I don't know, I did the same socialising with both dogs and they were chalk and cheese when it came to noise sensitivity and confidence.

Here's the best place to start - the Dr Sofia Yin checklist for socialisation https://drsophiayin.com/app/uploads/2015/12/Socialization_Checklist.pdf
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I experienced the same thing with Piper and Finnie...Piper is a social butterfly. I did have issues with him when he was young (started barking at everything at around 5 months) but with help from a trainer I dealt with it and now he's just a prince. Loves everyone and is just a perfect dog. Finnie on the other hand....he decided at 9 weeks that he didn't like being held. At 11 weeks when he came home this continued as well as his dislike of the grooming table. Later it was strangers approaching him amongst other problems. I socialized them both the same, lots of exposure, took him everywhere. Very frustrating...I love this boy but phew...at 14 months I have to expose him to 100% more things and places now! We do our regular private class, an obedience class with other dogs/people, a training session with several other dogs and people (I work him on my own but with distractions) every Saturday and now that the weather is getting warmer we'll start heading out to work outside of Walmart and the mall etc. Socializing is something that never ends.
 
Piper's mom said:
I experienced the same thing with Piper and Finnie...Piper is a social butterfly. I did have issues with him when he was young (started barking at everything at around 5 months) but with help from a trainer I dealt with it and now he's just a prince. Loves everyone and is just a perfect dog. Finnie on the other hand....he decided at 9 weeks that he didn't like being held. At 11 weeks when he came home this continued as well as his dislike of the grooming table. Later it was strangers approaching him amongst other problems. I socialized them both the same, lots of exposure, took him everywhere. Very frustrating...I love this boy but phew...at 14 months I have to expose him to 100% more things and places now! We do our regular private class, an obedience class with other dogs/people, a training session with several other dogs and people (I work him on my own but with distractions) every Saturday and now that the weather is getting warmer we'll start heading out to work outside of Walmart and the mall etc. Socializing is something that never ends.
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Wow, that is true dedication. I love it.
 
I've taken Brodie to puppy class but when he was new, new and didn't have all his shots, the puppy class I took him to was more controlled, at a training facility. We paid for it, but I was confident that all pups were up to date on shots. Once he had his last puppy shots, I did the Petco free puppy play dates until a new pup joined that was really nasty.

Per my vet, I did visits to Home Depot and Lowes and places where he could go in, but ride in the cart. I still carry a blanket or beach towel in my truck for him. Just yesterday we drove to Cabela's and Brodie rode around in the cart. Until he got all his puppy shots adn rabies, we didn't do feet on the ground wherever we went. We did visit Petco, but during the week, not on weekends and never feet on the ground - you just don't know who has done what with their pets, you know?

We just finished up our first session of level 1 obedience with the training facility. We will repeat level 1 again starting at the end of the month. Brodie seems to do very well with people, no shyness although there are some folks he just won't go up to for whatever reason. We don't have a whole lot of car traffic on our road, so that is something I am working on now. Many dogs seem to bark a lot at Brodie, he wants to meet and greet but they seem a tad viscous. One of the ladies in my obedience class says she thinks her dog looks at Brodie like he's a cat - he's on the within size at 13" almost 5 months old but he is just a tad bigger than our cat so she might be right. We met a schnauzer yesterday, same thing, owner said I wonder if he thinks he's a cat!
 
There's a lady at our class with a Yorkie who wants to attack every dog it sees. It's a pup (8months) who last week had his sights set on Finnie and a yellow lab. I'm thankful my issues are easy to deal with .
This lady is frazzled by this behaviour but she did get good tips from the trainer and myself.
 
Phoebe'smom said:
Courage turns to fear quickly around flags, balloons and umbrellas!
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Once again, I am going to dread the 4th with all the fireworks!

I was cleaning in the basement yesterday and brought up a big box. At first Liam ran into the other room seeing this. Then he tentatively came towards me. I told him he was being a silly pup pup... my endearing term for him. When he came closer and smelled the box I practically see him lavishly! He seemed relaxed after that!

Going to do some conditioning with an umbrella! You never know when you will need it so that is a good challenge for us!
Thanks for the guidance!
 
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Oh dear Gloria, I don't envy you. Without Mr D to go ballistic, we've gotten through thunderstorms and fireworks with barely a sound. The cats have even given up hiding during a storm. A sound sensitive dog can be so exhausting.

If it helps, I found Mr D was better dealing with scary things when he was in a harness (I guess he felt more connected with me). And you should probably start now downloading some fireworks sounds to play while Liam is eating so by June he'll be a better prepared.
 
KarenCurtis said:
From the breeders blog, this is so true;
"Once pups get into their new homes 8 weeks to four months is a critical time. They need the most socializing during this time, they need to do things that build their confidence.The pups have a basic foundation and now it is up to you to take over and help them become awesome pets and well adjusted. So much of their development now depends on you. Socializing should continue through their lives."
No, I didn't ask permission to post this quote, but I really don't think she would mind. I'm taking this very seriously, I didn't with Sandstorm, he was five months old when I got him and I didn't keep up with enough socialization. I didn't socialize him enough, I just didn't know. He's a great dog now, but there are still problems like walking past people on the road, meeting kids. With the puppy it will be tiring but worth it. I'm going to have puppy parties and after work I will have to take her out to stores and places where there are people and noises, and PUPPY CLASS!!
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I absolutely agree..I did not do any particular socializing with Sasha and she was quite timid...I bring Katie to plenty of stores..just to meet the people and hear the noises. She meets all the contractors working outside...also the UPS guy (who is here everyday because of Amazon Prime!) the mailman etc. and...we are now in puppy classes. I love it as much as she does.
 
Katie’s Mom said:
I absolutely agree..I did not do any particular socializing with Sasha and she was quite timid...I bring Katie to plenty of stores..just to meet the people and hear the noises. She meets all the contractors working outside...also the UPS guy (who is here everyday because of Amazon Prime!) the mailman etc. and...we are now in puppy classes. I love it as much as she does.
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Thats what I plan on doing with Minnie. I think Minnie will look like your pup!!
 
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