What exactly is socialization?

Most people think that socialization is - hey, let's have my new puppy meet as many dogs and people as possible as soon as possible. And I would say no way to that because, although we certainly want your dog to be exposed to other dogs and people in a controlled environment, that's less than half of what socialization's really about. Socialization is starting to understand the world as a safe place. So we want your dog to be exposed to different types of environments—maybe the water, the woods, different types of surfaces, not just grass, concrete, rocks. These things might seem silly, but the more we can expose dogs or puppies to positive experiences early on, the better things will go for that dog. The critical socialization period in dogs is three weeks to three months.

There's a little bit of wiggle room on either end, depending on the dog, the breed, and genetics, but that critical socialization period starts around three to four weeks. These early life experiences make a profound difference in the rest of their life. So if you are looking into a breeder situation and are evaluating those breeders in terms of what they're doing for early socialization, this can make a big difference.

Other things to think about if you get your puppy at eight, nine, or 10 weeks or so, we have a pretty small amount of time to pack in those positive experiences. In addition to the environmental stuff, think about exposing them to people in different scenarios—a person in a wheelchair, a person wearing a hat, different clothing types, different types of people, people on crutches, and other types of things that may move around them in the environment such bikes, skateboards, and any number of things. So, yes, I want your dog or your puppy to meet other people and other dogs, but that's a tiny part of socialization. We have a great resource on our website sending you to Sophia Yin's website on socialization in the environment and even a great checklist, so that's an excellent place to start.