Helping pet parents navigate that all-important puppy socialization phase during a pandemic.
To grow into healthy, happy dogs, puppies need socialization. It’s a critical part of a dog’s life, that impacts their future behavior.
By exposing puppies to the world and what's in it, they learn to be at ease with a variety of people, places & situations. The better socialized your puppy, the easier your life is going to be!
But socialization hasn’t been all that easy in recent times, what with a global pandemic to deal with. So how can you still make sure your puppy gets all the exposure they need during covid?
We’ve got a guide to puppy socialization with a handy checklist for you to tick off, plus our top tips for navigating socialization with social distancing!
To grow into healthy, happy dogs, puppies need socialization. It’s a critical part of a dog’s life, that impacts their future behavior.
By exposing puppies to the world and what's in it, they learn to be at ease with a variety of people, places & situations. The better socialized your puppy, the easier your life is going to be!
But socialization hasn’t been all that easy in recent times, what with a global pandemic to deal with. So how can you still make sure your puppy gets all the exposure they need during covid?
We’ve got a guide to puppy socialization with a handy checklist for you to tick off, plus our top tips for navigating socialization with social distancing!
When to socialize a puppy?
The ideal puppy socialization window starts around 3 weeks of age and ends between 12-16 weeks of age. This is the “ideal”, meaning it’s the easiest and most effective time to be exposing your puppy to new things. But that doesn’t mean you can’t keep socializing after this.
If you have a pup who is already outside this age window, don’t panic. It’s better to start late than to never start at all. Just be sure to follow the top tips for socialization success.
When to socialize a puppy?
The ideal puppy socialization window starts around 3 weeks of age and ends between 12-16 weeks of age. This is the “ideal”, meaning it’s the easiest and most effective time to be exposing your puppy to new things. But that doesn’t mean you can’t keep socializing after this.
If you have a pup who is already outside this age window, don’t panic. It’s better to start late than to never start at all. Just be sure to follow the top tips for socialization success.
How to properly socialize a puppy:
- Slow and steady wins the race - take each activity and new meeting slowly, this way you’ll be able to make sure it is…
- Positive! - try to ensure every encounter your puppy has with new things has a positive outcome. Whether that is lots of play, treats or affection.
- Fear - young puppies also go through “fear periods,” which might explain any backward steps they take. So don’t be discouraged by slowing things down now and again.
- Vaccinations - puppies aren’t fully vaccinated until around 12 weeks, which means they shouldn’t be coming into contact with lots of unknown dogs (and their pee and poop!) who might pass on harmful diseases. In this case, you should avoid areas that might be heavily populated by lots of dogs.
- Still socialize - however, before fully vaccinating you can still socialize your puppy with people, places and dogs you know to be fully vaccinated (and super friendly.)
- Treats for good behaviour - everytime your puppy is calm, shows bravery or generally gives you their attention over something new - it’s a great idea to reward them. Letting them know scary things aren’t all that scary, and that listening to you is where their head should be at.
- If things don’t go to plan? - if your puppy is ignoring you, won’t take treats, or even looks very frightened, it’s ok. These things happen. Think: how can I make this easier for them to get right?
- Puppy socialization classes - are a great resource. Use them to get your puppy meeting lots of new faces, having fun and also letting off some steam. These classes are also designed to help your dog begin to learn to listen to you, even in distracting environments.
How to properly socialize a puppy:
- Slow and steady wins the race - take each activity and new meeting slowly, this way you’ll be able to make sure it is…
- Positive! - try to ensure every encounter your puppy has with new things has a positive outcome. Whether that is lots of play, treats or affection.
- Fear - young puppies also go through “fear periods,” which might explain any backward steps they take. So don’t be discouraged by slowing things down now and again.
- Vaccinations - puppies aren’t fully vaccinated until around 12 weeks, which means they shouldn’t be coming into contact with lots of unknown dogs (and their pee and poop!) who might pass on harmful diseases. In this case, you should avoid areas that might be heavily populated by lots of dogs.
- Still socialize - however, before fully vaccinating you can still socialize your puppy with people, places and dogs you know to be fully vaccinated (and super friendly.)
- Treats for good behaviour - everytime your puppy is calm, shows bravery or generally gives you their attention over something new - it’s a great idea to reward them. Letting them know scary things aren’t all that scary, and that listening to you is where their head should be at.
- If things don’t go to plan? - if your puppy is ignoring you, won’t take treats, or even looks very frightened, it’s ok. These things happen. Think: how can I make this easier for them to get right?
- Puppy socialization classes - are a great resource. Use them to get your puppy meeting lots of new faces, having fun and also letting off some steam. These classes are also designed to help your dog begin to learn to listen to you, even in distracting environments.
Puppy Socialization During Covid
Whilst it might not be possible to socialize up close and personal for a little while yet, there’s still a lot on the below checklist that puppies can engage with, even during a pandemic.
For example, they can still be exposed to new smells, new surfaces, new sounds, new visual stimuli - all of which are just as important as meeting people and puppies.
Looking at the checklist below, pick the items that you can still practice, and perfect them while whilst we all wait to be able to do more.
The Puppy Socialization Checklist
Here is a comprehensive list of the kind of things you will want your puppy to be exposed to.
Introduce as many of these as you can at home, and then get going on the others as soon as you can.
Score each item every time your puppy encounters it, and keep track of your puppy’s improving reactions.
Remember to always start from a further distance and work your way up. Once your pup seems unfazed or remains calm in each scenario, you can tick it off!
People
- Your immediate family
- Men and women of a variety of heights/builds
- Men with loud voices
- Elderly people
- Teenagers
- Children (8-11)
- Children (5-7)
- Toddlers (2-4)
- Babies
- People with beards
- People with hats
- People with masks
- Delivery men and postmen
- People carrying boxes
- People with canes, or walking sticks
- Runners or joggers
- People playing sports
- People of different ethnicities
- People in wheelchairs
Animals
- Larger dogs than them
- Smaller dogs than them
- Adult dogs who you know play well
- Adult dogs who you know will reprimand/correct a puppy gently
- Cats
- Horses
- Livestock such as sheep, cows, pigs, goats
- Birds flying and walking birds
- Assistance dogs
Objects
- Bicycles
- Skateboards
- Scooters
- Motorcycles
- Cars
- Trucks
- Buses
- Plastic bags
- Large bins
- Hoovers
- Reflective objects
Sounds
- Thunder
- Fireworks
- Babies crying
- Airplanes
- Doorbells
- Door knocking
- Cars starting
- Alarms
- Loud music of different styles
- Cafes and restaurants
- Sirens
- Traffic
- Children playing
Touch/Handling
- Picking up
- Collar
- Harness
- Leash tension
- Ears
- Tails
- Paws
- Nails
- Stomach
- Opening mouth
- Brushing Teeth
- Toweling off
Experiences
- Long car journeys
- Vets
- Grooming
- Crowds
- Public transport
- Crating
- Dog-friendly shops
- Outside a school
- Parks & Dog Parks
- Puppy Class
- Other homes
Surfaces
- Water
- Gravel
- Wood floors
- Tiles
- Concrete
- Stairs
- Mud
- Ice, snow, frost
- Grates (you can use your crate or exercise pen as a substitute)
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