Socializing Safely
You pup's Dam has had a nomograph. You can read more on Nomographs in this blog. You should have followed your personalized vaccination schedule and completed a titer to ensure you pup is immune. Until you have results from CAVIDs telling you that your pup is protected against distemper and parvo, take your pups to busy and interesting places but with few to no dogs -- Except for puppy kindergarten which has been shown to not only be safe but to be very valuable for pups longterm.
Why is this important? Because as we socialize our pups out in the world, we want to avoid situations where they might come in contact with parvo or distemper. These two very serious, often fatal, diseases are transferred through the pup coming in contact with feces or saliva from an infected dog. As a result, it can also be transferred through shoes, the pup’s feet, or someone touching an infected dog and then your pup. So until you have that positive titer result back from CAVIDs, it’s very important that you keep your puppy away from dog poop, unknown, unvaccinated or sick dogs and places where dogs are walked, play or congregate except for puppy kindergarten. Even be smart about your vet’s office. Potty your pup at home so you don’t have to do so there and don’t let your pup interact with the other dogs that are there.
So we can reduce the two primary risks inherent in our Sensitive Period pups by controlling the situations we put them in and social distancing from other dogs. At this point in puppy's life, they are going through a fear imprint stage. It is important to socialize your pup now, but to take great care that the socialization if positive and fun. It is this time that negative and scary things imprint just as easily. Therefore, we are looking for quality socialization of quantity at this point.
Try places like nursery's, Lowes, banks, and avoid places like pet stores, dog parks, truck stops. Puppy kindergarten is still safe. When searching for a puppy class, look for one that has a supervised play session (free for all play sessions are not what you are looking for) and uses techniques that build you puppy's trust in you, other people, and other puppies.
Fear Imprint
It is natural for canids to be wary of novel things. This caution is a deeply ingrained survival instinct. Fear imprinting is a type of phase-sensitive learning, meaning it happens at a specific time in a dog's life, it happens very rapidly and the results can be very long-lasting. It's caused by a negative reaction to something: A person, an object, a situation, or activity. We can often identify when a puppy is fear imprinting by a very specific vocalization that we call the puppy scream. It is a high pitched yelping that repeats over and over. You would think that the pup had seriously injured himself, maybe broke a leg. He has been injured in a sense, but the damage is not visible. This is why I recommend quality socialization of quantity. We are going for positive, fun, happy interactions.
Your puppy will go through two more fear imprint stages after you take him home. One at
Engage in adventure walks (we'll cover adventure walks later) and exposure to new places.
Watch puppy's reaction to things. Even though he may not have been afraid of that fire hydrant last week, his brain may see it as a threat today. If he acts afraid, you have 2 options.
1 - if you have the time and safety, give him time to work it out. Don't force him, don't call him to it, just wait and watch. If he needs a bit of reassurance, join him on the ground or take a seat. Be calm and patient while noting his reactions. If pup won't go near, you can encourage him a bit with your body, maybe lean on it or sit next to it as if to say "What? oh, this ole thing, it's harmless."
2 - if the area is not safe, or you do not have the time, pick up the pup and go home. Set up the scenario in a more safe environment and let pup work through it, or visit the scary fire hydrant another day that you have time to let the pup over come his fears. Otherwise, patiently let him work through his unease, and you'll see him excited and proud of himself once he has conquered his fear.
If the pup has a terror type reaction - say the trash truck came, pup tucked tail and ran as far away as he possibly could, while screeching - it's time to change things up.
First off, it is cruel to not comfort the pup. If it is a truly terrifying experience, don't make a huge deal out of it, but let the pup know you have his back. Be calm about it because pup knows what you are feeling - if you are stressed, that is just going to confirm his fears.
Neutralize the situation (maybe removing him in this case, or holding him until the truck is gone and all is quiet).
Then start with baby steps to re-introduce your pup. Remember that it has imprinted, so it may take a LOT of patience and trust to try and work through it. You may start with a recording of the noise, or maybe walking by a trash truck that is off and parked (you may have to keep moving away until pup is comfortable). Keep walking by, slowly getting closer on each pass. Use high value treats and stay calm. You will have to work at puppy's pace and remember - patience and distraction.
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