Puppies leaving home

- It is not good for the pup and against the law in many states to sell/give away pups under 8 weeks of age (Cindy Weber)

- My puppies [pugs] don't go to their new homes until they are 16 weeks old (Loretta Simpson)

- Wow! 16 weeks is awful old, a pup misses a lot of training, bonding and socialization time with it's new owner in that time. Most breeders release their pups between 8 and 12 weeks (Denise Parsons)

- Not true of toy breeds. Most toy breeders I know of do hold them longer than the usual 8-12. I believe it's because they mature more slowly, but Loretta would be better qualified to say what the reason is. When it comes to socialization, puppies with small, hobby breeders are well-socialized by the breeder, so it really doesn't matter when they leave. There was a big push not too long by obedience and other performance-oriented people to get puppies at exactly 49 days - seven weeks. This was based on research done by the guide dog people that said puppies kept longer than this with their littermates did not adapt as readily to new owners. However, [they were] plainly referring to kennel-raised puppies that were not handled a lot by the breeder or treated as individuals before going to new owners. Puppies well and properly socialized by the breeder can go to new homes at any time. We usually let ours [whippets] go at ten weeks but have had them leave at seven months just as successfully as the babies (it's just harder on me!). We start taking them to places and having other people handle them while they are still here and essentially do everything an owner would do (Sharyn Hutchens)

- Most decent breeders keep their puppies till they are about 16 weeks cause they do get socialized being with their siblings and mom till that age. It is better for the pup to not get separated too early (Diane Gaul)

- When breeders keep dogs that long, chances are they are waiting to grow them out for the conformation ring. It's impossible to know if you have a potential winner before 16 weeks and even that is iffy (Marianne)

- Some of mine can go at 9 weeks, whippets are very active and need to be in their new homes at that age. Each breeder has their own set of criteria regarding age the pup leaves, and I realize SOME breeds need different ages for this, so it is nothing for us to fight about. We all know the mills let the pups leave way too early like 6 weeks or so, poor babies (Donna Kelley)

- I think 16 weeks is too old unless the breeder is keeping the pups for purposes of evals for show puppies and if they are doing that, then they need to make sure they do all that would be done in the home of the new owner, which is training and socializing. Puppies are like sponges at this age and it's a perfect time to train. Most breeders think that keeping the puppies with littermates is socializing. It's not! Puppies learn a lot from their dam as well as their littermates, such as bite inhibition, as well as many other things, but 'socializing' is NOT one of them. Further, the window of opportunity for maximum benefit ends at 14 weeks of age (give or take). The optimum age to go (imo) is between 10-12 weeks but I'll take a puppy at 8 weeks any day rather than 16 if THAT puppy has only been around it's mother and littermates. Conversely, having puppies go at 6 weeks creates just as many problems (Cher McCoy)

- It's not considered socializing if the dogs being socialized are on lead or separated by a fence. So, group classes do very little good in this area if they are not allowed to be free to interact in a safe, fenced in area or room. It also does more harm than good if the puppy being socialized is socialized with an adult dog that isn't rock solid in several areas, one of the most being temperament. Adult bullies teach puppies to be bullies. Not good! There can be more problems down the road (18-24 months or even up to 3 years old). It can take some puppies, who did not receive proper socialization, that long to show problems. Many dogs that end up in shelters and rescue are an indirect result of improper socialization or lack of enough socialization as puppies during this window of opportunity. It gets glossed over as behavior problems, which is true - they have behavior problems - but the reason for the behavior problems is the real issue... Which is lack of proper socialization and/or training during the critical period, more often than not (Cher McCoy)

- In summary: The age a puppy should go to a new home is very dependent on the breed and on the breeder. Puppies need socialization and they need it while they are still puppies. A puppy that receives minimal human contact and minimal exposure to various experiences will not develop into the kind of pet most of us want. A breeder who prefers to keep her puppies longer and who provides the socialization they need in the meantime is doing a good job. A breeder who cannot do that much socialization should let them go at eight to ten weeks. Smaller breeds are usually kept longer with the breeder. This is fairly obvious when you think of the many, many adult dogs which go to new homes and make wonderful, well-adjusted pets. Even senior dogs adjust perfectly well to new homes. We've had several rescues over the age of ten who walked right in, asked where the food bowl was, jumped on the couch or found a dog bed and settled in happily for their final years (Sharyn Hutchens)

[Escrito entre dezembro de 2005 e janeiro de 2006 para a lista Petdogs-L do Yahoo Groups]