Originally published by Julia Weaver for Redfin, June 10, 2021
Redfin asked us to contribute our most important thing to do when prepping to bring home a puppy- so naturally, our minds went to socialization!
Here's our excerpt below and you can read the full article, here.
"It’s critical to plan how you’ll socialize your dog. This is something a lot of people don’t know enough about and too often fall short, leaving the pup with preventable challenges.
Puppies need to meet 500 new people, places, and things before they are 17 weeks to have the best possible start in life- so planning how you can do this before you even have your new pup will provide the best advantage.
You can play socialization games to make sure you consciously provide exposure to new people, places, and things. The majority of socialization needs to happen outside your home. You can also socialize and teach your puppy that the world is a fun place even when you’re not around by taking them to daycare. Prepare your home physically- and prepare yourself and your dog mentally for a happy, well-balanced life through socialization!"