For example, one marker signifying the beginning of the socialization period is ear movement in response to sound. Average age for this time marker is 19.5 days with 95percent of the pups showing this characteristic between 14.9 and 24.1 days. Another marker is first teeth eruption at 20.8 days with 95 percent limits from 15.0 to 26.6 days. So according to these time markers the average age for the start of the socialization period is about 21 days but can vary from 15 to 27 days in terms of developmental criteria.

Scott and coworkers delimited four critical periods of social development. I– Neonatal, birth to two weeks; II– Transition, two to three weeks; III– Socialization, from three to 12 weeks; IV– Juvenile, 12 to 32 weeks. Beyond 32 weeks dogs were considered sexually mature. We might add to the front end the prenatal period which the research group did not consider, but which includes from implantation to parturition. Also, we could add a period on the tail ind which would include the time from one to two years and call it a period of emotional maturation similar to a post teenage child.

During the prenatal period the developing embryonic pup is influenced by visceral stimuli and hormones from the dam. Drugs. X-ray, chemicals, diseases, parasites, nutrition, all happening to the mother to be can be dangerous to the pups, especially in the first trimester. Severe stress to the pups in the final trimester from temperature, nutrition and other physiological and physical conditions impinging on the bitch can result in later pup problems such as increased emotional state, extremes in behavior and reduced learning ability.

The neonatal period is characterized by nursing and sleeping, at this time pups develop an olfactory imprint of the mother, her breasts, the nest, and each other. The senses of smell and touch (olfactory and tactile senses) are better developed during this period and are the only ones useable by the pups to get information from the outside world. Humans handling pups at this time provides a mild stress, which acts to improve pups physically and emotionally. Pups handled during the first two weeks grow faster, mature faster, are more resistant to diseases. They are more stable, handle emotional stress better, are more exploratory and learn faster than pups not handled during this period.

The transition period from two to three weeks old is when pups gain the use of the remaining modalities of sight, hearing and proprioception. Eyes open at around three weeks, hearing begins about ten days later at about the same time as walking and this coincides with one-spot defecation outside the nest. The onset of social interactions with mother and siblings begins at the end of the transitional period.

The pup goes from the little fat blob that grunts to an animated live little guy in these two weeks. Pups have no fear at this time so any large objects like a person hovering over them or a loud noise as in any typical home, machinery, appliances, dropped pans, stumbled over buckets, voices, all perceived for the first time do not evoke fear responses. Rather they are associated with low anxiety and get little notice except a mild startle response and a glance in the noise direction. Fear is still three or more weeks in coming.

The socialization period begins at three weeks and extends to week 14. During this period pups learn to be dogs. Through play fight, play sex, play hunting, catching and guarding prey, they develop skills needed later in life. They learn the “language” of dominance and submission such as soft bite, head turn, threat intensity. They also learn to associate with and bond with people. Generally most students of dog behavior consider socialization of dogs with dogs coming first, from three to six weeks, and dogs with people following, from six to 14 weeks. In reality the two types of socialization overlap just about totally. Dog on dog or primary socialization begin during late gestation stages and continue through juvenile into sub-adult stage. People socialization, or what I have called secondary socialization in another Gun Dog article, starts with the basic associations formed from handling shortly after birth until six or seven weeks, before the fear response escalates. Unless socialization on dogs and people is well underway by then, it has only a small chance of happening at all.