The period of a dog’s development as a puppy is divided into five distinctive stages, but puppies grow through their own pace and timelines may vary. The foundation for having a great dog begins by training the puppy well during each of those stage. Moreover, you need to have this dog properly socialized so that it becomes more useful in terms of guarding your home other than just being a good play partner. Moreover, every single phase of your pup’s life needs to be adjusted.
1st Stage: Neonatal period (0-2 weeks)
This is the first stage of puppy development which starts at birth. Puppies can only sense taste and touch and will depend on their mother for everything.
2nd Stage: Transitional Period (2 – 4 Weeks)
Sensory development continues with hearing and the sense of smell. Puppy teeth start coming through and their eyes will begin to open. Also, this is the age when your puppy will develop his or her personality. They interact with their litter mates; wag their tails, stand, walk a little, and bark.
3rd Stage: Socialization Period (3 – 12 Weeks)
This is the most important stage in puppy’s development because most puppies go home between 7-12weeks into their new owners’ families. During this time rapid changes start occurring.(usually between 7-12 weeks) falls right in his socialization period after which he starts becoming more cautious so that you do not end up with an adult pooch afraid of his own shadow.,so introducing him to as many dogs, people ,objects & environments as possible is crucial at this point.Puppies are becoming much more consistent in their reactions to objects during this point in development.They also start focusing on people who are not family members more frequently and should have an easy-going disposition towards strangers.
4th Stage: Testing Period (3 – 6 Months)
This is when your puppy starts to test their boundaries within their world. They will test the limits with their owners and other animals. At this age many adult dogs will start to enforce manners. Problematic behaviors can begin to arise in this period. Additionally, they do a lot of chewing as puppies at this age usually go through teething.
5th Stage: Adolescence (6 – 18 Months)
This could be the hardest period during a puppy’s growing up phase. Your cute little puppy is becoming a teenager and will start producing hormones which may result in changes in behavior. Dogs go through adolescence much earlier than people; for small breeds, it can be as early as six months old while larger dogs start at nine or 10 months of age. The bigger the dog breed he more time he would take to grow.
Signs of Puberty in Canines
Meanwhile, during adolescence stage puppies often show some puberty signs such as starting inappropriate chewing (furniture, shoes etc.), racing around like crazy people, acting aggressively with either people or other dogs among others. One way of dealing with an adolescent dog throughout this phase is by giving him plenty of daily exercise that will tire him out and keep him awake during training sessions that are positive all along.
Fear Periods
Puppies experience an average of four fear periods during their development. This means that these fear periods typically occur between the ages of 8 – 10 weeks, 4 – 6 months, about 9 months and then around 14 – 18 months. During a fear period, your puppy will suddenly be afraid of something they were fine with before or things that they never cared about. Being able to identify these periods can make it easier for you to manage them.
Biting, Nipping, and Rough Play
Whenever you start training a new puppy, you need to include some component in it which teaches them not to bite or mouth people or other animals as well as any form of destructive chewing including rough play. However, this is natural behavior among puppies and punishing them is useless. Instead use redirection. This helps puppies learn how to reduce biting pressure so that play can continue in a softer way. This way you won’t turn into chew toys for your dog or family members by investing in the right chews and directing your pup towards those.
When Do Puppies Start to Calm Down?
Most puppies will calm down as they reach maturity at around one year old although for larger breeds this may be closer to 18 months-2 years.
How to Manage Your Puppy’s Energy
There are many easy things that can help mitigate your puppy’s extra energy but still assist in keeping you sane! Your puppy will know what their day holds if there is a schedule or certain times for feeding them; such schedules should also incorporate walking times, pee and poop breaks as well as playing sessions too. You may also want to try crate training which gives your puppy a safe place where s/he can relax while distinguishing ‘chill time’ from ‘go time’. Finally ensure that he gets appropriate amounts of exercise for his age.
By understanding each stage of puppy development, we can anticipate developmental milestones as well as problematic behaviors. This will also help you better care for your puppy through each of its stages and reduce the chances of it ending up at a shelter. A stable routine, consistency, positive training methods and lots of socialization and exercise are essential to having a healthy, well-adjusted, safe dog.