Dogs and cats are very different animals. Anyone who has ever been around them can testify to that. The typical things that most people associate with either a dog or a cat are generally what make a person choose to have one or the other. Dogs are loving and attention seeking. When you come home from work, Sadie comes barreling toward you! If you just walk into the house from mowing the lawn, Sadie makes a beeline for you like you have been gone for a year! Relaxing in the evening, watching TV, your beloved dog or puppy will often be sitting right beside you, trying to ease her way into your lap without you noticing. The fact that she’s 65 pounds makes little difference to her. She runs after every ball you throw, splashes and plays in the water hose while you are washing your car, and looks curiously at passing birds, bugs, and squirrels…perhaps wondering if they want to play.

Cats, on the other hand, are not quite as concerned with getting attention from you every hour of every day. Leo is much more independent and often only allows you to give him attention when HE is ready for it. Cats are often much more low maintenance than dogs and want their space just like you sometimes do. Trying to get Leo to run after a little ball is a pretty useless way of spending your time. However, when he decides he is ready to play, look out! Tying your shoes can become a huge game to him, and he will continue to play, even as you are walking out the door on your way to work. And all those birds, bugs, and squirrels that Sadie is calmly watching or running after may need to run for their lives when Leo comes around.

Most people are either dog people or cat people, so they don’t generally deal with the other type. But for those few out there who have both, the experience can be a great and entertaining one. Raising a puppy and a kitten together into adulthood can have a very interesting affect on them both. Sadie could begin washing her face with her paws, just like Leo. Leo could decide that baths are pretty cool, just as Sadie does. Sadie may start covering it up after she goes potty, because that’s what Leo does. Leo just might run down the hall and jump in your arms when you come home after a long day, because that’s what Sadie does, or would if she weren’t a 65-pound hunk of love! And whereas Leo might start climbing into your lap for a nap in the evening, you may find Sadie walking into another room for hers.

Seeing the way that each animal picks up on what the other is doing can be an eye opening experience. It can also bring out the deep down personality of your dog and cat. Sadie may realize that she really does need time to herself and does not need to be with you constantly just to confirm your love for her. She may develop confidence that she might not have otherwise realized was there. Leo might start showing that he really does care what you think and do. He may learn that having fun is just as important as keeping his dignity intact.

If you have ever raised these two unique animals together, you have experienced this for yourself. It is hilarious to see your dog acting with as if she were once a princess in a former life and your cat begging you for attention. You can get the best of both animals out of both Sadie and Leo as your wonderful pets, and they will be able to enjoy life a little bit more by learning how the other half lives. Whether you are a dog lover or cat lover, you will definitely be able to enjoy seeing them imitate each other and bring out the quirks in each other’s personalities that may never have been revealed if they were not raised together.

“Dogs live to serve, cats have servants.” Although the author of this statement is unknown, anybody who has lived with cats for many years and then decided to get a dog, this statement will make a lot of sense.

Cat Ownership – Owning the Home You Live in, Your Possessions and of Course You

Cats have this way of hiring servants to do everything for them, referring back to the earlier quote. You call Sir Bruno to come and be pet and he saunters away. However, as he does so, just as he is no longer within petting range, he turns to you and makes sure that you are still paying attention to his royal highness. When it is more convenient for him, he returns and assumes that this is an appropriate time for you. The fact that it is 3 o’clock in the morning, the night before your big presentation at work, is of little consequence to him.

If you live in an area that is safe for cats to freely roam indoors and out (a farm, far from a main road or deep in the country and of course away from coyotes), and you have ever heard the telltale scratch at the door, you know Sir Bruno is requesting access to his palace. Unfortunately, this is usually at the least convenient time, and again, likely to be around 3 o’clock in the morning. When you stagger to the door, half asleep and open it, Sir Bruno doesn’t even move, does he? He sits there, not in his home and not outside enough for you to slam the door in his face and go back to bed. All the coaxing in the world will not entice him to do what he doesn’t wish to do, now will it? Just as you’ve had enough of his shenanigans and are muttering things under your breath that not even you can decipher, Sir Bruno saunters past you, just as he did when refused to allow you to pet him the night before.

He eats his food, takes his sweet time moseying to your bed where you by this point are in your second phase of primordial snooze. To reinforce his reign of your home, you and everything in his path, Sir Bruno lands squarely atop your head or if he’s ‘kind’, lies down next to your ear and purrs loudly until you wake up and pet him. And why do you pet him? Because, you recognize that he was clearly a Prince in a former life and although he has been reincarnated into a cat, he clearly has memories of his past existence.

Dogs – They Live to Serve You

If you are a brand new dog owner and assume the behavior you’ve been putting up with in your beloved Bruno is even an inkling of what you can expect out of living with Earl, thankfully you would be mistaken.

The first time you met Earl at the local no-kill shelter, he probably took one look at you and, depending upon his previous experience with humans, he may have either run toward you or apprehensively approached you. Either way, timid or happy-go-lucky, he let you know that he would be so honored if you could please take him home with you. In his non-verbal way, he said to you, “I have had a bit of a rough life and I promise if you take me home, I’ll let you train me, bathe me, brush me daily, cut my nails, I’ll eat whatever you give me and if you walk me daily, I’ll shower you with love and affection.”

And so, you bring Earl home, you introduce him to Sir Bruno who hisses and heads for the door, not to be seen for at least 24 hours, “or until you’ve removed that mongrel from my castle.” Given that the latter doesn’t occur, Sir Bruno accepts your new canine buddy and just deals with it.

Assuming that you keep your promise and train Earl, feed him two squares a day, exercise him at least twice a day, establish that you are the pack leader over him, he will, and this a promise, shower you with as much love and affection as you can stand. Get ready for plenty of puppy kisses, because they’re coming your way.

And for all you know, Sir Bruno may change his ways and not be so quick to ignore you. Well, perhaps not.

]]> http://www.dogsbarkingincars.com/2010/07/31/having-a-cat-today-can-do-nothing-to-prepare-you-for-getting-a-dog-tomorrow/feed/ http://www.dogsbarkingincars.com/2010/06/29/veterinarian-lifesaver-caretaker-confidant/ http://www.dogsbarkingincars.com/2010/06/29/veterinarian-lifesaver-caretaker-confidant/#comments Wed, 30 Jun 2010 00:59:05 +0000 admin http://www.dogsbarkingincars.com/?p=42

One of the most important relationships a new pet owner can develop is the one with his or her veterinarian. Choosing a quality vet may take some time and entail a bit of trial and error. As with anything of this level of importance, it takes time. Occasionally you strike gold right off the bat. Other times, you look for a long time. Just like with doctors that tend to humans, you want to find one who genuinely cares for his or her patients and puts their needs ahead of everything else. If you can find one with a varied career, and both broad and specific knowledge, that’s all to the good. Some animals are known for curious and not-well-documented ailments. One of these esoterically-inclined vets might be the ticket, depending on the species of your special friend.

The traits you may consider optimal when considering a vet may not be the same as your friends would pick. Some people neither want nor care to know about what the vet does. They simply want their animal to be ‘taken care of’. Others want to be involved in every aspect of the process – to bounce ideas off the vet, to have the security in knowing that whatever happens, they and their animal will be getting the best care possible. Of course, when it comes right down to it, you will want to defer to their judgment, but that dialogue is of importance and shouldn’t be discounted.

As an example of a particularly unpleasant ailment, a common problem in German Shepherds is that some develop an autoimmune disease called Perianal Fistulas - characterized by swelling and inflammation of the sweat and sebaceous glands around the anus. Though the cause is unclear, what is known is that the body is attacking itself. In some rare cases, this disease presents itself on the muzzle. It comes across this way:

Day one: Your dog’s muzzle will have what appears to be either white heads or cystic-type pimples.

Day two: Those pimples open up and are raw and oozing blood and pus. They’re painful.

Day three: They are very raw and extremely irritated. Hopefully, if you see something like this, you won’t, as many people do, wait three days. If you haven’t felt alarm by now, by day two, you should at least have taken your Shepard to the vet. Most vets will recognize the illness easily. A normal course of treatment to try is treating with Animax as 75% of cases usually clear up with one run of the drug. However, if Bruno is the rare dog whose nose or sebaceous glands don’t clear up with one treatment, hopefully your doctor will be open to your bringing alternate or experimental treatments you may have researched on your own to his or her attention. And if you happen to have one who is broadly inclined, they might have a few you don’t know about.

Another ailment particular to a majority of Shepherds (and large dogs in general) is Hip Dysplasia. This is an exceedingly unfortunate side-effect of particular breeding in order to achieve a certain appearance. It can manifest in degrees from mild to severe, and though there are surgical procedures for it, if Bruno’s discomfort can be minimized with anti-inflammatory medication or other medicines, that would be the optimal course. There’s no sense in putting the dog through the physical and emotional distress of surgery if you don’t have to. If your vet (with whom you hopefully have a good rapport) does not advocate surgery, and provides well-founded reasons as to why not, listen to him or her. Take his or her advice.

The point about this narrative is that it’s important to have a relationship with your vet that includes you being your pet’s best advocate. Your vet may understand medicine, but he or she doesn’t a) know everything and b) doesn’t know your dog the way you do.

Dogs have very obvious emotions. They are an animal that wears its heart on its sleeve (or fur). They put their tail between their legs when they are scared, wag their tail wildly when they are playful or happy, and lay down and look up at you when they are tired, sad or bored. In general, most dog behaviors are fairly easy to understand.

However, there are a variety of dog behaviors that are more complicated. We sometimes have a tendency to place human emotions onto dogs, but the reality is that there is still a lot we do not know about dog emotions. One of the best examples of this is when it comes to negative behaviors.

Dogs may also exhibit some strange behaviors that seem moody, angry or sometimes even a little bit scary. For new dog owners that have never experience some of these behaviors, they may look as though your dog is trying to act out, and possibly throwing a tantrum.

Uncontrollable Running

Some types of dogs are prone to uncontrollable running. Excite them just a little bit and they will suddenly jolt around your home, running and weaving in and out of anything in their path, possibly running into pieces of furniture until they finally stop and look up at you, tired.

Do you have a herding dog? This is not a tantrum. This is the effect of a rush of energy that has caused these dogs to be overwhelmed by their instincts. Herding dogs have herding instincts, so they will start to run. Anything that causes a rush of energy can lead to these types of behaviors.

Many of these strange, sudden, and possibly overwhelming behaviors are a result of your dog’s specific breed type. You will find that many breeds, not just herding breeds, have some type of instinctual behavior that they struggle to control when they are rushed with energy. Keep that in mind when you are worried about a dog tantrum.

Alpha Behaviors

Other types of behaviors that may seem like tantrums are alpha dog behaviors. Dogs may show these behaviors by urinating on your pillow or chewing up your favorite shirt. In some ways these dogs are throwing a mild tantrum. For example, a dog is more likely to urinate on your pillow if you recently kicked it out of bed.

However, these are generally the result of the dog thinking it is alpha of the pack. When you do things that question its leadership, these dogs respond with bad behaviors designed to reinforce “their dominance.” Urinating in your pillow may be due to you sleeping in a space it thinks is its own. All of these “tantrums” are due to a long term problem and your dog acting out in specific ways.

Do Dogs have Tantrums?

According to pet owners, dogs do have tantrums. Many pet owners have found that their dogs seem to slam their paws on the ground when they do not get what they want or nip at their feet when they are unhappy. Some of these dogs may be having tantrums, while others behaviors may simply be getting anthropomorphized by their owners.

Still, there is no denying that there are a number of behaviors that dogs show that could easily be defined as having a tantrum. For example, if your dog gets frustrated, it may bark at you angrily, growl and whine a bit, or go and attack its toys out of frustration. But dogs are not likely to show you true tantrums in the same way that humans do.

Bad Behaviors are Not Your Dog’s Fault

When your dog exhibits a number of unwanted behaviors, it is important to remember that bad behaviors by your pet are not your dog’s fault. They are almost always caused by problems with training, and almost every bad behavior your pet performs is a direct result of one of three possible problems:

·         Your dog has too much energy.

·         Your dog doesn’t understand its place in the pack.

·         Your dog gets rewarded accidentally for bad behaviors.

Each of these represents a change that YOU will need to make in order to improve your pet’s behaviors. Below we will explore each of these problems and what can be done to solve them.

Too Much Energy

When human beings have too much energy, they get jittery. When dogs have too much energy, they get instinctual. Dogs that have too much energy tend to perform behaviors purely on instinct and forget everything they have been trained to not do. The best example is with chewing. Dogs that have too much energy often chew on things like carpets and furniture, because chewing stimulates both its brain and body.

Too much energy is almost exclusively caused by your dog not getting enough exercise. A tired dog is a happy and well behaved dog. If your dog is chewing on your furniture or exploring other bad behaviors, you may simply need to take your dog for longer and more energy filled walks.

Misunderstanding its Place in the Pack

Dogs need to have a place in the pack. Whether it is 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, or last, dogs need to know where they stand in the pack’s pecking order. When your dog doesn’t know its place, or when your dog thinks that it is alpha dog (leader dog), it is prone to misbehavior. Your pet, as much as you love it, must always know that it is last in the pack. To make sure your pet understands this, train your dog to be submissive and make sure every member of your family establishes itself as higher up in the pack hierarchy.

“Accidentally” Rewarded for Bad Behaviors

Imagine you do not want your dog to lick your face. Every time your dog tries to lick your face, you tell it “no” and move away. This is a correct way to train. Now, imagine you came home from a terrible day at work and needed to experience your dog’s love. You decide “I need my dog’s love this one time. I’ll let it lick my face.” Your dog licks your face and you give your dog a lot of love. This may seem harmless, but your dog has now been rewarded for an unwanted behavior. Your dog does not know that it was okay that “one time.” All they know is that you rewarded them for a behavior. The next time you come home, your dog is going to try to lick your face again, and it will not remember that you do not like it. You will have to train your dog out of licking your face all over again.

That is why it is important that you always stand firm with your pet. Any time you do not want a behavior, you must never allow the behavior. No exceptions. As soon as you let your dog do it “just once,” they will continue to do it and no longer understand that it is unwanted.

Your Dog Can Learn

With the right training, all dogs can be trained out of their bad behaviors, because dogs never want to do things that you do not like. Unwanted behaviors by your pet are almost exclusively problems that you have accidentally caused. Take your dog for more walks, make sure you establish yourself as alpha dog and never reward your dog for unwanted behaviors and you will find most of these bad behaviors go away.

Some dogs take riding in cars very well. Others, however, act as though the car ride is about to take them to their doom. They whine and cry with regularity, occasionally making waste in your car out of fear. When your dog is afraid of riding in the car, there are several methods to employ to train your dog out of these unwanted behaviors.

Why Do Dogs Cry in the Car?

The first thing to understand is why dogs are so fearful of car rides. By understanding what makes dogs afraid of riding in the car, you can better understand what you need to avoid in order to make your dog more comfortable. Dogs are afraid of car rides because:

·         Often times it leads to somewhere they are afraid of, such as the vet or kennel.

·         They may not understand the noises that are coming from your car and the street.

·         They may have trouble standing and have hurt themselves during a car ride in the past.

It is understandable that some dogs are fearful of car rides. Car rides can be confusing and may often end in pain. This can be terrifying for your pet.

Training Your Dog to Like the Car

The key to training your dog to enjoy car rides is with habituation. You need to slowly get your dog used to pleasant, easy car rides that do not and will not cause pain or discomfort.

Your first step is to make sure your dog has gone to the bathroom long before going inside of your car. You do not want to punish your dog at any time during this training, and if your dog starts to poop on your car seat you may not be able to help yourself.

Next, train your dog to not be afraid of getting into the car without it running. Give your dog treats when it shows good behavior by entering or standing near the car. Expand the length of time the dog needs to stay in the car before you give them a treat. After a while, the car itself will not be such a fearful area.

Next, walk your dog to an area away from busy streets and loud noises and have a friend or family member drive the car over to meet you there. Using treats and verbal rewards, get your dog into the car in a comfortable location (have a pillow nearby or a specialty dog seat available). Drive very slowly with the windows down around the quiet area. The noises and smells will help your dog calm down while in the car. Keep this trip short, let your dog leave the car, reward it with lots of treats and walk it back home.

Over the next few days you should continue to extend the length of time the dog is in the car. You can also slowly expand the speeds and take the dog into slightly noisier areas. But you should always make sure that your dog is comfortable on the trip and that you are not going somewhere that the dog may be afraid of, such as the vet.

As long as you continue to make incremental changes and habituate your dog to the car, you will find that your pet will enjoy car rides more and handle the trips with less crying.

Introducing a new pet to a home can be a difficult task. When you have both cats and dogs, these animals both do not trust each other and represent real threats towards their ability to get what they want in the household. Though in cartoons it is often the dog that chases the cat, in real life, friendly dogs are often at the mercy of the cruel cat’s nails, as many cats swipe and scratch and new dogs in order to let them know who is boss.

A household that has both animals needs to make sure that they train their cats to treat their dogs well, or else they may find their dog becoming injured and unhealthily submissive, unable to roam freely around the house. Below are two ways to try to help train your cat to accept your dog as a family member.

For New Dogs in Homes with Cats

When you are introducing a new dog to a home, it is a good idea to do as follows:

·         Make sure both know that you are in charge, not the cat or the dog.

·         Create the dog and give the cat an opportunity to sniff it, as well as show any dominance in a harm free manner. If your cat is aggressive, do not worry about it – that is why your dog is in the crate.

·         Try to mix scents between the two animals by sharing a brush or petting both using the same hand so that the two smell of each other.

·         Allow this to continue for several days.

·         Let the pets interact by letting the cat roam free and keeping your dog on a leash. If they are friendly, that’s a good sign, but do not let the friendliness overstay its welcome.

·         Repeat their interaction time for a few more days, then try it without the leash.

·         If a fight breaks out, start the process over. Eventually they will gain an acceptance for the presence of one another.

For Dogs and Cats That Already Live Together and Do Not Get Along

Sometimes you already have a dog or cat in your home that is not interacting well with the other. When that is the case, you will need to try to do the following:

·         Get a tall baby gate that neither the cat nor dog can jump over.

·         Allow them to sniff each other through the gate and show their signs of dominance if need be.

·         Whenever the cat is showing friendliness, give the cat a treat. Cats may not respond as well as dogs do to positive reinforcement, but that does not mean they do not understand it.

·         Make sure your dog learns proper commands for staying, sitting, etc., so that you can make sure your dog does not do anything to instigate the cat.

·         Continue the gate/reward process until the cat is less aggressive towards the dog, then try it with the dog on a leash and the gate removed (you may need someone else to hold onto your dog while you give your cat treats).

Over time your cat will learn to accept your dog as a member of the family, and though there is a high likelihood your cat will never treat your dog like a companion (cuddling and sleeping together as some dogs and cats do), at the very least you can teach your cat to ignore your dog’s presence, so that there is no violence and both of your pets are happy.

When human beings gain weight, that weight gain is obvious. Our skin starts to sag and grow, our pants get too tight while our bodies start to jiggle as we run. There is almost no one in the world that does not notice that they have gained several pounds, and even fewer that do not notice that they have gone from fit to “obese.”

But when it comes to your dog, obesity becomes far less obvious. In fact, what defines obesity is not well known in the general pet owner population, despite obesity being one of the main health concerns of dogs and puppies across the nation.

What is an Obese Dog?

Obesity amongst dogs is a serious problem. But unlike with human beings, where you are not “obese” until you are more than 20 or 30 pounds overweight, with dogs a few extra pounds can be the difference between healthy and dangerously overweight.

Dog obesity is defined as any time that you cannot feel your dog’s ribs, your dog is overweight, and if the ribs are especially hard to touch, the difference in weight is considerable.

What amounts to a few extra pounds is actually quite a bit of weight gain. A dog that should weigh 30 pounds but weights 35 pounds is 16% larger than it should be. It is the same as a human that should weight 150 that weighs 175.

What Health Concerns Stem From Obesity?

When your dog is overweight, a number of health problems may occur. Some of these issues include:

·         Diabetes

·         Heart Disease

·         Increased Cancer Risk

·         Hip Dysplasia

·         Joint Problems

Among many others – and all of these are linked to simply a few added pounds over your dog’s ideal weight. It is important to remember that a dog’s body was not designed to handle weight gain. Many breed, especially, have increased levels of weakness on their body (the dachshund and its spine, for example) which are simply not able to handle any increased pressure, as they are barely able to handle their “ideal” weight. A few extra pounds can be dangerous.

What to Do to Limit Obesity

Part of the reason that pet owners do not often realize that their dogs are gaining weight is because that weight gain is hard to see. When you see your dog every day and the difference in weight gain is just one or two pounds, it can be hard to notice that your dog has changed inside at all. If your dog has a great deal of air, too, this can also make it very hard to notice.

There are several things you can do to reduce this weight gain. The first, of course, is to exercise your dog daily – giving it at minimum its daily recommended requirement, and more if possible. Dogs need to exercise for their own health.

The next thing you can do is give your dog only its recommended diet and adhere to effective feeding practices, including limiting its food and feeding it at very specific intervals every day. Dogs that can overeat will overeat, and the dogs that do not know when they are going to be fed may try hard to find unhealthy food elsewhere.

Finally, start rewarding with affection instead of treats. Treats are usually fattening foods and not ideal for your dog’s diet. Affection, on the other hand, causes no weight gain and for most dogs is just as much of a reward as a treat. If you are worried that your dog may be gaining too much weight, exercising and monitoring your dog’s diet should be all you need to do to make sure that your dog stays healthy for longer.

Signs Your Dog Has Fleas

The best way to find out if your dog has fleas is to pay attention to the obvious and unobvious signs. Some of the signs that your dog has fleas include:

·         Excessive Scratching or Chewing

Perhaps the most obvious sign that a dog has fleas is a constant biting of their own skin or scratching with their nails. Depending on the severity of the itch, the scratching and biting can be fairly aggressive, and it is not uncommon to see clumps of hair ripped out from some of the medium to longer hair breeds. Assuming your dog has had a full bath and the irritations are not caused by allergy, chances are there is a flea there somewhere.

·         Flea Dirt

Fleas, like all animals, need to poop. Flea waste is very unique. Filled with blood, fleas like to leave their waste in a single location on your dog so that it can be out of the way of their eating area. If you see a small patch of what appears to be a pepper looking substance on your dog’s skin, chances are it is flea waste (often referred to as “flea dirt”). If you dab it with a wet cloth, the dirt will often be dark red due to the presence of blood.

·         Checking for Fleas

One of the reasons these alternative signs are important is because fleas do a tremendous job of hiding. But your dog only has a limited amount of skin. If you check inside of hidden areas, such as on the inside of the leg, or beneath a large clump of hair, it is not uncommon to find a flea presence. They will run away quickly and are fast jumpers, so you cannot pick them out one by one, but at least you can know your dog has fleas and do something about it.

·         Red Bumps on Your Legs

Fleas are biters, and if your dog has fleas, chances are they will bite you too. If you have mosquito bites despite seeing no mosquitoes, there is a good chance they are flea bites from a stray insect that jumped from your dog to your leg. This is especially true when combined with any of the other observations noted above.

Treat Quickly/Easily – Use Known Brands

When you find your dog has fleas, you should quickly treat it with an effective flea killer. However, make sure you use one of the main brands recommended by your vet. Flea killer is a toxin, and the cheaper brands can injure your dog’s organs when used for a long period of time. By killing the fleas on your dog early, you will be able to drastically reduce the amount of irritation your dog feels, as well as ensure that you, yourself, do not wake up in the morning with a great deal of itchy red bumps from these annoying flightless insects.

When you are ready to get a puppy, it is not uncommon to purchase the puppy from the breeder before the dog is even born (or as soon as breeder makes the litter available). Most websites that set potential owners up with breeders will have a listing of puppy availability within days of the puppy being born, allowing each puppy to be claimed before it has even opened its eyes.

There is a strong temptation to want to pick up the puppy right then and there – to drive down to the breeder and have the tiny little animal in your hands. Puppies, however, need time with their mother before they can be safely taken away and brought to your home.

When is the Best Time?

Experts have differing opinions on when the best time to pick up a puppy is. However, it is widely believed that the best range for picking your puppy up from the breeder is within a 6-8 week window after the puppy is born.

The first weeks of your puppy’s life are about survival. You want the pet to be feeding from its mother, getting the nutrients that it needs as well as the love and care of its parent. After it has gained some of its health, the next few weeks are dedicated to continued wellness as well as interacting with its parents, brothers and sisters. This time is valuable for creating a well behaved dog (and one that understand other dog behaviors/communication).

Around 7 to 8 weeks the puppy has started to learn proper dog behaviors, and while it is still young and in need of a great deal of care and affection, it has also picked up enough good habits to be a happy and healthy dog.

What Happens if You Pick up the Dog too Early?

Dogs that are taken too early from their parents may not be in the best of health, may have behavioral issues, and may not understand how to interact and communicate with other dogs. You can still have a loving member of the family, especially if you maintain good feeding habits, but a dog that doesn’t understand how to interact with other dogs can be trouble when it gets older.

Also, it is important to note that many states have laws that forbid a puppy from being picked up before EIGHT weeks, so check your local laws before you pick up your pet.

What Happens if You Pick up the Dog too Late?

Though the 6 to 8 week window has been considered the norm for many years, there is a consensus among the dog behavior community that any time between 9 to 11 weeks is still perfectly adequate, and may even be preferable for ensuring your pet understands dog behaviors. However, after 12 or so weeks, it is best to try to get your puppy to its new and permanent home, as around that time the dog will start to form permanent attachments, and you want your puppy to feel more of an attachment to you than to its parents.

Overall Thoughts on Picking Up a Puppy

Though 6 to 8 weeks has been the norm and acceptable time period for many years, the best time to pick up your new family member is around the 8 week mark, and possible weeks 9 or 10. Some breeders like to keep the pets until as long as 6 months to help teach it good behaviors, but it is better if your dog is in its permanent home before than to help create attachments to your family members. If the breeder allows you to pick up your dog before 6 weeks, you may not be working with a reputable breeder.