Best Age to Start Puppy Training and Socialising

When your new puppy comes home at 8 weeks old, they are like little sponges. Now is the perfect time to start working on the things that are important to you. Starting off on the right foot means they aren’t rehearsing behaviours you don’t want, and you’re showing them everything you do want from them.

Every puppy owner has different goals. If you’re looking for an assistance dog or a working dog, certain skills may be crucial, like loose lead walking or teaching them to use their nose for scent work. If your goal is a happy, contented puppy who fits seamlessly into family life, you might focus on teaching them to keep all four paws on the floor so they don’t knock anyone over.

Whatever your puppy’s future holds, whether a sofa dog or a mountain rescue dog, the absolute key thing to teach every puppy is relationship and communication with you. This is the foundation of all training and should never be forgotten early on. At this stage, fun, trust, and communication are more important than obedience and that is coming from an obedience dog trainer.

There’s much debate around critical socialisation windows, but what we do know is that puppies who safely experience the outside world and new situations under careful guidance are much more likely to handle these events well later in life. At this age, they can also learn appropriate play skills with other puppies and dogs in a safe, structured way.

At Furry Tails Dog World, we hold social sessions for young puppies at our venue. These sessions are carefully managed and they are not just a pile-on of puppies with a nervous pup surrounded by 10 boisterous dogs. Groups start small with gentle introductions to other similar-minded pups. How do we know if they are a good match? Thousands of puppy behaviour sessions have been monitored to learn the subtle and sometimes not-so-subtle behaviours that guide our groupings before they even enter the session.