7 or 8 weeks.....that is the question!!

[beachdreamer]

Hi, I am new to Boxerworld and have a question...not sure if this is the right place to post??

My question is this........I have read so much about when the right age to get your new baby is, and I am absolutely confused. Most people say not a day before 8 weeks, but then I read that 8 weeks is when puppies hit a "fear" period. Wouldn't that be tramatic to introduce a new puppy during that period?

Help!! My little boy is 7 weeks today and I would like to go get him, should I wait until next week? I have 2 weeks before I go back to work so I thought this would be ideal. I can spend every minute with him and he'll have 2 weeks to get to know his big sister as well.

Thanks everyone!
Sonya

 

[Cami]

It is actually illegal in MANY states to take a pup home before 8 weeks of age. If your breeder is even considering doing so and there are no problems with the mother I would be quite leery of this breeder. At any rate....
The next week spent with mom and litter mates will provide MUCH more of what he needs in a form that you can't ever offer. He would benefit greatly by staying where he is for another week AT LEAST.

 

[beachdreamer]

What your saying reiterates (sp?) what I have read. I was just hoping someone could clarify what I had read about the 8 week "fear" period. We had talked about getting him this weekend, he would be 7 weeks and 5 days.....

I can wait until he's 8 weeks, I want to do whats best for him; however there is a LOT of conflicting information out there saying 7.5 is good because of the 8 week fear thing. Just hoping someone here new exactly what that meant.

Thanks,
Sonya

 

[gmacleod]

The first fear imprint stage is not at 8 weeks, but typically at about 10 weeks (and lasts a couple of weeks). It is nowhere near as intense as the second fear imprint stage (at around about 7 months or so). Nonetheless, it is the reason that 8 weeks-ish is the recommended time to bring home a new puppy, rather than waiting till he is older (so he has lots of time to settle in before the fear imprint stage starts).

It is not a reason to bring things forward still further and bring the pup home at 7 weeks It could be a reason to delay bringing home a 9-10 week old though, that is, waiting till he's 11-12 weeks instead.

 

[xayden]

what is this "fear imprint"? i have read about it before but never fully understood what it was.

 

[gmacleod]

Fear imprint stages are just phases in the puppy's life when he is more sensitive, or tuned, to learning what he should fear.

There are two main fear imprint stages: the first (which is kind of the topic of the OPs question) occurs after 8 weeks of age, usually around 10 weeks. This is the point in a young pup's development when he is (or would be, in a natural/wild environment) gaining more independence from his mother. So he needs a little information about what he should be afraid of and give a wide bearth to.

The second fear imprint stage occurs in adolescence. This one is much more intense and longer lasting. Again, it has a developmental reason - this would be the age that adolescents start to be involved in the more dangerous pack activities such as hunting. It is vital that the young dog understands what he needs to be frightened of.

In both cases (though again, it is usually FAR more apparent in the second fear imprint stage) the dog learns by first being afraid/hanging back/avoiding - and then watching his mother or other more senior members of his pack (or in modern day pet environments - YOU) for information on whether there is really a need to be afraid. When he establishes that there is or isn't - that belief will stay with the dog for life (or at least, would require a lot of convincing for him to change his mind ).

Naturally, any bad or frightening experiences a pup has during one of these phases is going to have a far greater impact than if the same event happened outside of the fear imprint stage. That is why its generally not the greatest time to take a pup away from his mother (or to schedule his early vet visits) as you need to work quite hard to ensure that the experiences are all fairly positive for him.

 

[Cami]

Glad you have decided to wait??
After a little checking I found that it IS illegal in your state (California) to sell a pup under 8 weeks of age UNLESS approved by a licensed vet (as of 2006).
Age to Sell Puppy Table