Dogs have this phenomenal ability to fill a need in our heart. They have a way of healing our emotional pain, of making us feel their unconditional love, of accepting us faults and all, of showing us that we can have trust in them, of giving us confidence when we need it, and of having the ability to assist us with our medical needs in a very different way then machines can. They share their gifts with us during our happy times, during our darkest times, when we are healthy, and when we are unhealthy. When we reflect on how much they freely offer to us, the most essential thing we can do for them in return is to help them grow into confident, healthy, and happy puppies. This requires both good genetics and being raised in a safe and enriching environment with their needs being met at each stage of their life.

The stages of development in a puppy’s life and the influences on the puppy during that stage may vary slightly from breed to breed and each puppy within a litter can go through learning stages at different rate then its siblings. In order to raise the best puppies possible, the activities done during these sensitive periods are all adapted to meet the needs of each puppy.

The neonatal period is considered to be the first two weeks after birth. Puppies are born with their eyes and ears closed, and with the inability to regulate simple body functions such as body temperature and elimination. It is during this time that puppies are diabetic scent imprinted and begin Early Neurological Stimulation and Early Scent Imprinting protocols.

The transitional period is considered to be from days 14 to day 21. This is an exciting time because the puppies begin to open their eyes and shortly after their ears open. The puppies begin to have a greater awareness of their environment, begin to have more control over their movements, potty training begins, and teeth may begin to emerge. It is during this phase that vocalization begins to be intentional and puppies begin to show interest in playing with their littermates.

During the first part of this stage of development puppies enter into their first fear period. We slow things down a bit with socialization and enrichment curriculum and ensure that during curriculum time puppies have adequate places where they can go to retreat from over stimulating areas. Enrichment curriculum experiences continue, however just slower with less stimulation. Feeding from Kong toys is introduced during this phase. Kong feeding has many benefits including equal food delivery and slower eating. Each piece of kibble that the puppy extracts from the toy rewards him for chewing on something appropriate to chew on and for lying down calmly and quietly. A line is tied to the Kong in order to have the ability to attach it to the side of their toddler gate to keep the Kong in place. This allows the puppy easily lay down and enjoy their treat without it rolling off.