Socialization is the MOST IMPORTANT thing
you can do for your puppy, but we all but miss it in most every household. Why it's so critical, and how to do it, coming
up. Ian here with Simpawtico Dog Training and
before we start talking about Early Socialization please make sure you're subscribed so you
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and don't forget to check that YouTube description for notes, links, and resources about the
stuff we talked about. Early socialization is a subject I'm passionate
about. I see way too many dogs that have problems
related to undersocialization. Reactivity, anxiety, hyperactivity, excessive
barking, aggression, resource guarding, poor manners...and all of them can be attributable
to some extent to undersocialization. I feel like people don't fully understand
the concept of socialization. It's kind of just a word they've heard bandied
about, and they know it's important, but then they procrastinate on it and they say things
like "I'd like to do an obedience class, so my dog will learn to listen and, you know,
for the socialization, too." Like it's an afterthought to learning sit
and stay. Believe me, nothing — NOTHING — is more
important than socialization. I want to help you understand why it's so
critical and how to do it constructively. We're going to look at the research, talk
to some veterinary professionals, and give you a list of power tips to get out there
and socialize like a boss. You can also skip to the parts you want by
checking the time stamps in the description. Our discussion begins with the 1965 book,
‘Genetics and the Social Behavior of the Dog’ by John Paul Scott, and John Fuller. This volume collects 20 years of research
and is still one of the most comprehensive references for canine behavior. Science since then has tweaked and shifted
their findings somewhat but the overall scaffold they developed has remained pretty much intact. Scott and Fuller helped us understand that
puppies have well-defined periods of development, and that what happens—or doesn't happen—during
these periods has a tremendous impact on the rest of their lives. For the common puppy owner that means we have
some crucial deadlines to meet: Socialization with People should be completed by about 12
weeks of age, Bite Inhibition and Socialization with Dogs by about 18 weeks of age, and work
on Preventing Adolescent Problems should be full steam ahead by five months. From the time you bring your puppy home to
between 4 and 6 months is probably the most important span of time you'll have with your
dog, greatly impacting the dog they'll ultimately grow up to be. Do not underestimate the need for life experiences
and positive socialization during this time, and do not isolate your dog. Now, here's where we usually start getting
a little pushback. A lot of owners isolate their dogs because
of the possibility of infectious diseases. There's a prevalent and outdated notion that
we cannot socialize our puppies until they're completely vaccinated which in some cases
might not be until they're 5 or 6 months of age. This is misguided and potentially disasterous. By then you've already missed the most critical
periods for socialization. So how do we strike a balance? Well, between those two things—the need
for socialization and being cautious about disease—there is a radical middle ground. To help out I interviewed a couple of our
local vets at Lake Road Animal Hospital here in Elmira, New York. Hello, I'm Dr. Mike Brennen. I'm the medical director and owner of Lake
Road Animal Hosptial. Kathy Hughes, veterinarian. Been here for 20...many years. Been a veterinarian longer than most people
here have been alive. Most. [laughing] You know, I think in general veterinary medicine... go back 20, 30 years and I think the recommendations
were wait until they're fully vaccinated. Fully vaccinated at about 4 months of age. I think certainly the behavior community and
most veterinarians have changed that thought, just because of your point. Socialization in our puppies starts probably
6, 7 weeks of age and is really shutting down at 14 weeks of age. So if we're waiting until then we're really
missing an opportunity to create confidence, well developed, well behaved animals. But I also tell people...you know I have people
come in: "The breeder told me, you know, this puppy can't go see any other dogs until it's,
you know, four months old" or whatever it's like, that's just really wrong. You know, as long as your dog has got a half-decent
immune system and the vaccines are given appropriately and at the right times, you need to get 'em
out and you need to get 'em around people, other dogs, strange places, every place you
can think of to go and every other place you can think of to go. But don't just take their word for it. Dr. R.K. Anderson who is both the Diplomat for the
American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine and the Diplomat of the American
College of Veterinary Behaviorists recommends that puppies attend early socialization and
training classes as early as 8 or 9 weeks of age. He's posted an open letter on the website
for the Association of Professional Dog Trainers where he asserts that: "Experience and epidemiologic
data support the relative safety and lack of transmission of disease in these puppy
socialization classes over the past 10 years in many parts of the United States. In fact; the risk of a dog dying because of
infection with distemper or parvo disease is far less than the much higher risk of a
dog dying (euthanasia) because of a behavior problem. " There's a link to Dr. Anderson's full letter
in the YouTube description. Likewise, the official position statement
on Early Socialization by the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior, says that: "The primary and most important time for puppy
socialization is the first three months of life. During this time puppies should be exposed
to as many new people, animals, stimuli and environments as can be achieved safely and
without causing overstimulation manifested as excessive fear, withdrawal or avoidance
behavior. For this reason, the American Veterinary Society
of Animal Behavior believes that it should be the standard of care for puppies to receive
such socialization before they are fully vaccinated." I'll link to the AVSAB Position Statement
in the description as well. OK, so we know we need to socialize our puppies
because the clock is ticking, BUT it should be protected socialization. How do we do that? Well, here are the power tips you've been
waiting for! Socialization's driving goal is providing
a puppy with as many positive experiences as possible in the widest variety of environments
as soon as possible. This will assure maximum confidence and stability
later in life. General public places, so, meeting grounds
with the parks and those sorts of things. What I said about their first round of shots,
that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about. I'm talking about a structured environment
that you're gonna provide, and you're sure everyone else has had their shots. Going out to the parks and in the general
public, uhmm, I like to see at least their 12 week. The 12 week is probably the most important
vaccine our pets are gonna get. Most dogs are gonna convert at that point. So after that vaccine I'm more comfortable
with them getting a little more worldly Lots and lots of Classical Conditioning will
be the game. You don't need to be a behavioralist or Applied
Psychologist to do it. Just do it in this order: stimulus, followed
by food or play. In that order. Person with a hat appears--feed. Loud truck goes by--feed, feed, feed. The food isn't a distraction; it's programming
a positive emotional response. Couple this with play, petting, praise...the
whole nine yards. Socialization is an ongoing process and it's
happening whether you want it to or not. Be aware of your dog's experiences, or lack
of experiences. Pay attention because they're learning all
of the time. If you do nothing, you have no control over
what your puppy is learning. Socialization is not necessarily direct interaction;
you don't have to be nose to nose or toe to toe; it can simply be good experiences in
proximity to new stimuli. Novelty is the game. Make new things seem awesome. Play with your pup, feed your pup, and let
them have positive experiences *around* people, dogs, and environments. This is called Protected Socialization. This means that you can avoid, or work at
greater distances from things you can't control. This includes dogs you don't know, people
you don't know, and people who won't listen to your wishes. OR, things that you want to expose them to,
but may be too intense at close range. Don't force a fearful puppy to interact. Gain some distance, get them under threshold,
and continue the work. Even if you just sit on a park bench and eat
lunch together, this is powerful stuff. You need exposure to multiple people. Your puppy should have met at least a hundred
different people by the time they're three months old. Many of them should handle the dog, hand feed
the dog, and do easy and fun little training exercises provided they will do it the same
way you do. You need exposure to multiple dogs. Your other dogs, or your sister's dogs that
visit once in a while, or your neighbor's dog they play with are not enough. And I commonly hear people say, you know,
like "Oh he's around a lot of other dogs. My brother has two dogs, and they come over
to play all the time." Or, you know, "My mother-in-law, we take them
over to my mother-in-law's." And it's like, well good they're socialized
to one family and two dogs. That's not gonna cut it in real life. You know, and it's really hard to get that
concept through to some owners. And it doesn't matter if they have a pure-bred
dog, or a mixed breed dog, or they got it at the shelter or whatever. I think it's hard to get people to grasp that
concept of how important it is to get them off the property, strange people, strange
places, that sort of thing. They need many chances for exposure. Consider puppy parties at home, off-leash
socials at training schools, and puppy classes. Puppies should interact mostly with other
puppies around their own age. This is the most efficient system for teaching
bite inhibition, social skills, and confidence. This is also an opportunity to help your dog
learn to engage with you around competing motivators. Well structured, off-leash Puppy classes are
fantastic opportunities for high density socialization. A good class will allow supervised, functional
socialization while integrating it with the training. Clean facilities where other vaccinated dogs
come are also perfectly safe, although many vets recommend that you carry your dog in
parking lots as they are pretty filthy. Carry your puppy into puppy school, but once
there, allow them to play freely. Puppies should also have interactions with
friendly adult dogs too. These dogs should be social but not too overbearing
or permissive. These "neutral" older dogs will help round
out those social skills. Avoid dog parks. There is no pathogen control on the grounds,
no mandatory vaccinations for the older dogs, and no way to screen the tempermant or experience
of the other dogs, or the owners for that matter. In my opinion, they're a hot mess. Save those for later, if ever. While dog to dog interaction is a necessary
component, the caveat is that too much of it can make them overly preoccupied with other
dogs. Let them have experiences with other dogs,
but don't let them become dysfunctionally obsessed. Keep them engaged with you, and break up play
sessions every few minutes for mandatory settle downs and small training "breakout sessions." Your puppy also needs good experiences in
a variety of places and environments. Think about having protected exposure to traffic,
crowds, construction, automatic doors, etc. Don't take anything for granted. Carry food in your pocket, and use it to do
your Classical Conditioning. Work to develop strategies tailor-made for
your dog's individual temperament. Don't overwhelm them, but definitely challenge
them. In this vein, you should also design experiences
to zero in on your puppy's weaknesses; if your dog is weird about your tile floor, or
your neighbor's leaf blower, for example, these are places to divert your energy. Pay attention and don't expect your dog to
grow out of it. Dogs don't tend to grow out of things, the
tend to grow INTO things. Take the wheel and steer that ship. Speaking of which, vet visits are a common
trouble spot for dog owners. Be proactive and guide your dog this too. Make an appt. to introduce your puppy to the
staff and the doctor without any procedures. Classically Condition surfaces, the scale,
exam tables, and equipment. If your puppy is uncomfortable, don't force
it. Do some protected socialization and ease into
more later. Socialization doesn't end with the end of
puppyhood! You should absolutely pay special attention
in the early periods but definitely continue into adulthood. Dogs can de-socialize with isolation, so keep
getting your dog out to have experiences or it will unravel. A lot of bad behavior is rooted in insecurity
caused by undersocialization. By 8-10 months of age annoying adolescent
behaviors will be in full swing, so short circuit these with good socialization! Having that solid foundation often prevents
many behaviors, or at least makes them much easier to deal with in a shorter time frame. All right puppy owners, I hope this has lit
that fire under your ass to get out there and get to work on your socialization. Do not waste time and opportunity. Now, question for you what has your socialization
regimen been like? What have been your challenges, how did you
overcome, and what questions do you have? Let's connect in the comments. Don't forget to thumbs up this video and as
always, keep learning, keep practicing, and we'll see you next time. Thanks for watching.
