Further breaking down your puppy's first 12 weeks

Further breaking down your puppy's first 12 weeks

Your puppy’s behaviors during the first three months are called the Developmental Periods. These are the stages starting from birth, which is the Neonatal Period between the first two weeks of his life all the way to the Environmental Awareness period, which is the period lasting between ten to twelve weeks of age.

Developmental periods are an essential part in your puppy’s growth. This is the stage where your puppy develops his own unique personality that will be the basis for his behavior as a mature dog. It is also the stage where he becomes aware of his identity and learns about the environment around him.

It is helpful to know these periods in your puppy’s life in order for you to have a better understanding of how to take care of him. Below is a list on what to expect during your puppy’s developmental periods.

One to two weeks – This is the stage when inherent behaviors are seen. They are crying, sucking, touching, and crawling. They have no ability to learn anything at this period. They sleep about ninety percent of the time. They have no sense of sight and sound and are very susceptible to cold temperatures. They need their mother's touch to stimulate urination and defecation.

Three weeks – They start to walk at this age. Their eyesight and hearing are dim but developing rapidly. They are starting to urinate and defecate without their mother's stimulus and are starting to develop interest with the rest of the litters.

Four weeks – They start to become aware of the many sights and sounds around them. They realize that people are significant but that their mother is still the most important part of their lives.

Five weeks – The stage where they are not scared of anything. They start to become very alert. They are developing awareness to people and are starting to play with them.

Six weeks – They have full development of eyesight and hearing. They are very curious and love to explore. Their legs are getting stronger.

Seven weeks – This is where you can start housebreaking them. Puppies in this stage are very involved with their own needs and are not likely to respond when being called.

Eight and nine weeks – They begin to respond more to their name and start following you around. They are cautious about new things.

Ten to twelve weeks – They respond to their name at all times and start to come when being called. They are more dependable with housebreaking and learn not to get stepped on.

5 Myths about neutering

5 Myths about neutering

Many male down owners are reluctant to get their pets neutered. They have reasons that are, ironically enough, not due to the operating and surgical procedure of neutering, but rather because of several myths that float around. Unfortunately, most people accept these myths as facts.

Myth: “My dog will be upset with me for not ever having a sexual experience”. Canine sex drive has nothing emotional or romantic involved in it. It is purely instinctual and your dog cannot have any type of anger towards you for this. In addition, scientific studies show that dogs do not act out sexual behavior unless sexually stimulated. Believing this myth about your dog is simply an attitude of anthropomorphism.

Myth: “My dog will become wimpy and sad”. Having your dog neutered will have absolutely no effect on his strength. His stamina will also remain strong and resilient. And above all, your male dog might actually prove to be a happier one when all of those sexual frustrations have been quelled by the neutering surgery.

Myth: “My dog will not a good watch-dog anymore”. This is just completely false. There is nothing about your dog being a good watch-dog that will be effected by a neutering operation.

Myth: “It is unnatural to neuter a male dog”. In today's world of the domesticated dog, there is nothing “natural” about its living. Dog's are dependent upon people for their food, shelter, and even their health. They no longer run with the pack like a wolf so having your dog neutered is nothing new to the unnatural new world of the dog.

Myth: “Neutering will make my dog get fat and lazy” The only thing that will cause your dog to get fat is too much food and not enough exercise. If your dog gets fat then it will not be the operation that does it, but rather because the owner is not feeding the right amount of food to the dog as well as ignoring adequate exercise.