Bear in mind that the milestones can happen at different times depending on the individual puppy. There are around also two fear periods that can appear somewhere on this timeline, usually one around 5 - 6 weeks and then anywhere between 8 - 16 weeks. 

 

The Early Neurological Stimulation period is the time gap in which the five stimulating exercises we do will have an effect on the puppies. We do these stimulations every day to improve the pups mentally, physically and physiologically. The effects include stronger heart beats, more resistance to disease, more emotionally stable and better able to cope with stressful situations as adults amongst other things.

 

The Transitional period begins when their eyes start to open and ends when they first hear a sound! This is a very sensitive time as they are just starting to become aware of their surroundings so we are very careful in what we do with them at this fragile stage.

 

The true Socialisation Period starts at 3 weeks old and ends at around 12 weeks old. This is our chance (and yours) to responsibly expose the puppies to as many novel things as we can, the aim being for the puppy to be familiar with the maximum number of things. After 12 weeks old it becomes more difficult for the puppy to accept novel stimuli as safe, as the puppy will now treat all new situations and objects with caution. As you can see the the majority of Socialisation Period is when the puppy is with the breeder, this is why we put so much work into each and every one of our puppies.

 

All puppies naturally go through fear periods, usually one at 5 -6 weeks old and another anywhere between 8 and 16 weeks old. These fear periods are a natural part of your puppy's development and may last a week or only an hour! During these periods it is important to proceed with caution and address any fear individually using counter conditioning and desensitisation to overcome the puppy's fear.

 

From 6 - 8 weeks old is the puppies' period of highest curiosity and lowest fear. This is the best time for to introduce new experiences, such as meeting children and car journies. 

    

From birth to 12 weeks is the most important part of a puppy's life, most of this time is spent with the breeder.

Whatever happens to your puppy during this time will stay with them for the rest of thier life and effect every aspect of yours, so please choose your breeder and puppy wisely. 

We cannot stress the importance of carefull socialisation and stimulation enough, if something goes wrong at this crucial age it can ruin a puppy and change the way they think about the world for the worse.