The dog's behavior depends on average 20% of its heredity and 80% of learning: this shows the importance of experience in relation to genetics. The first three months of a puppy's life are decisive. and fundamental for its balance. The way the breeder takes care of a litter of puppies is fundamental, but this work must also continue with new dog handlers.
I At the breeder
Producing balanced puppies takes real work, especially during the so-called socialization and impregnation period. During this period, if the puppies are not stressed enough, they will develop a "sensory deprivation syndrome". This syndrome is characterized mainly by manifestations of fear in the face of any new stimulus, with a more or less inability to adapt to it. The later a puppy leaves a kennel, the more it will be disturbed. A fearful puppy will become a dangerous adult, difficult to predict and control for a neophyte. Difficult to control because panicked at the slightest novelty, dangerous because a fearful dog tends to attack, without inhibiting the bite: it no longer controls the pressure it exerts with its jaw.
A The choice of lists
It is important to choose a balanced bitch. Puppies, behaviorally speaking, are not born dogs, they learn to be dogs. They will become so, in part, by imitating maternal behaviors. The way in which they will have learned to react will be their reference behavior. It is therefore important to rule out lists that are too fearful or too aggressive. For example, if a bitch is fearful and flees from novelty, when the breeder stimulates his puppies it will be normal for them to react like her, by fleeing. If a bitch is particularly beautiful but fearful, she will have to be removed from her puppies whenever situations may frighten her. It is strongly recommended to replace it, during solicitations, by a balanced adult whose puppies will imitate the reactions. Lices which tend to attack their puppies should be avoided from breeding.
B The prenatal period.
A few weeks before giving birth, it is important that the contenders live in a reassuring environment for them. Stressful situations cause hormonal changes in the dog. Fogle * has shown that these modifications seem to have effects on the physiological responses of the puppies, on their reactions to novelty and on their learning abilities.Two to three weeks before giving birth, the belly of the bitch should be stroked regularly. in the place where the puppies are nested. Puppies stroked in the mother's womb will be more tolerant of handling. For health reasons 10 days before the puppies are born, the bitch will have to stay longer and longer at the place of birth. She has to get used to the bacteriological environment.
* "The dog's mind" Pelham books edition
C From birth to three weeks old. During the first three weeks of the puppies' life, two periods will follow one another: the neonatal period and the transition period. At birth the puppies are deaf and blind. They are guided only by two reflexes: the labial reflex and the digging reflex, this is the neonatal or vegetative period. From the second week we witness the transition period characterized by the development of the senses. From birth, puppies must be handled daily to get them used to human contact because they differ from those of the mother. Puppies are born in a place where the temperature must be high enough. Temperature variations are desirable because they accelerate the maturation of the nervous system which is incomplete at birth. touch.
