Three Weeks Old!

The puppies turned three weeks old on Friday!  It's been an exciting week for them learning how to lap liquids from a bowl, enjoying their first kibble & goat milk gruel, having a potty area added to their pen, and families who have reserved puppies have been invited to come visit the puppies starting this week.  The window of socialization begins at three weeks of age, so all of these visits and experiences are important to the emotional and social development of the pups. 

I've been following Jane Killion's Puppy Culture video http://www.puppyculture.com/ to raise enrichment seeking, problem solving, well rounded puppies.  It's not very different from I've done before, but there are small tasks to focus on each week with the puppies.  This week, one focus is startle and recovery.  Starting at 21 days of age, puppies will startle upon hearing sound and something suddenly placed in front of them.  They don't yet have fear, and will recover immediately, so this week is the time to practice and become desensitized to being startled!  This can lead to a quicker recovery time once the puppies are older and do have that fear response to scary things. 

I have of course continued to handle each puppy as much as possible daily - rubbing toes, ears, stroking faces and tails - so that they are accustomed to being loved on! :)


 

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