(Socializing Your Puppy or Dog #1) Socializing Your Puppy or Dog: Making a Lifelong Difference

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Youโ€™d better get out there and get started!ย  Thereโ€™s no such thing as overkill when it comes to properly done socialization. You canโ€™t do too much. Pups who are super-socialized tend to assume that new things they meet later in life are safe and good until proven otherwise.

Dogs who are very well-socialized as pups are least likely to develop aggressive behaviors in their lifetimes. Pups who arenโ€™t well-socialized tend to be suspicious and fearful of new things they meet throughout their lives, and are most likely to eventually bite someone.

If your pup comes to you from a socially impoverished environment, youโ€™ll already see the signs of neophobia. You have no time to lose, and you may never be able to make up all the ground heโ€™s lost, but you can make him better than heโ€™d be otherwise.

  • Trainers talk about giving pups โ€œ100 new (positive) exposures in the first 100 days.โ€ If your pup is already showing signs of timidity or fear, triple that to 300 exposures in 100 days. And get busy!