ABSTRACT: The veterinary nurse is an essential source of advice for many new puppy owners and advice given at the start of the creation of the human-pet bond will affect not only the quality of that relationship, but also the development and behavioural repertoire of the young dog. Advice on choosing the correct pet, ensuring confidence in the environment, creating a clear communication system and building a relationship that is built on predictability and trust, should be as much a part of the veterinary staffs' introductory information patter' as the essential nature of vaccinations and parasitic control.

Members of the public understand that veterinary practices offer telephone advice and nursing clinics at no – or low –   cost. While the UK crawls out of recession, pet owners continue to ‘feel the pinch', and advice from veterinary nurses, offered over the telephone or reception desk, is going to play an increasingly important role in the welfare of pets.

Despite a general shortage of money, families are still willing to invest considerable sums in pets – particularly puppies, while an ever-burgeoning market is willing to breed and supply these pets. ‘Designer puppies’ remain popular and small handbag-sized dogs continue to claim owners’ hearts and wallets.

Which puppy is best for me?

In an ideal world, prospective owners would contact their veterinary practice with this question before even opening the web page that shows an array of endearing prospective pets. Potential owners should carefully assess their lifestyle and what their normal, daily home life can offer a puppy – as incompatibility may lead to misery for both family and pet.

If owners don’t already have the appropriate lifestyle required by a breed, then they are not going to suddenly acquire it just because they’ve spent several hundred pounds on a puppy. So, the first priority is to have a realistic look at the family lifestyle and to match it to general breed requirements. Then – and only then –   should the family look at the pictures!

What age should the puppy be?

The current legal minimum age for the sale of a puppy is eight weeks of age. Many private breeders will try to sell younger puppies, particularly if the mother has struggled to cope with her litter and the exhausted breeder has had to shoulder the responsibility. Show breeders often want to keep hold of puppies until they are about 12 weeks of age to enable them to assess their show potential and decide which ones they wish to retain; and there can be a myriad of other reasons for the early or late sale of puppies.

Arguably, the period between three and 12 weeks is the puppy’s most important learning period – a time when its brain can lay down information about social and inanimate stimuli that it has met, and learn that they are simply part of the normal background to the environment and pose no specific threat to the puppy’s safety.

In general, puppies are unlikely to be ready for a new home prior to six weeks of age, but after that age new owners should consider the pros and cons of the puppy staying in the breeding environment. The longer the puppy stays with its mother, the more she will be able to teach it, conveying social and environmental coping skills. However, this is only an advantage if the mother is a suitable teacher, living in an environment that offers a rich array of learning opportunities that are appropriate to the puppy’s needs in its future home.

If the breeding environment is relatively uncomplicated, offering only a narrow range of habituation and social opportunities, owners may be better advised to bring their puppy into their own homes during the six- to eight-week period.

Bringing the puppy home

Many puppies will have spent their entire early development alongside their mother and siblings – separation can be traumatic. Although the initial excitement of entering a new and stimulating environment may keep many puppy brains distracted from any sense of loneliness and isolation, this will eventually catch up with them once the family goes to bed (Figures 1 & 2).

Figures 1 & 2: New homes can be very frightening for young puppies

Some puppies, particularly those that have been bred in restricted environments, may find entering a new home extremely distressing. Added to this, the excitement that is aroused in younger family members can be extremely difficult for children to contain, but it can also be traumatic for puppies to cope with, so careful monitoring of noise and activity levels may be required.  

All puppies need to have a reasonably quiet and predictable environment with regular opportunities for 'time out’ in a safe place that is away from the hustle and bustle of the family.

Families generally locate their dogs bed in a place that is convenient for them – for example, behind the kitchen door. Such sites are often busy family thoroughfares and certainly don’t represent a safe and quiet place to which a frightened puppy can retire.

Members of the family should locate a place where they can keep an eye on the pup, yet that offers peace and quiet – preferably with sides and a roof (a covered puppy crate or even an upturned box will be fine). If the puppy regularly selects an alternative site to hide or rest, relocate the bed to a site that more closely resembles the one selected by the puppy.

‘First night’ blues

No matter how tired a puppy is at the end of its first day in a new home, it will inevitably feel distressed and anxious once it is left alone. Vocalisation, scratching of floors and doors, soiling and destruction of items that are left in accessible places are to be expected. 

The inevitable disruption to family sleep patterns often results in owners eventually coming to rescue the pup, only to teach the puppy that such behaviours result in reconnection with the social group, ensuring that they are re-used the following evening. Tiredness will result in some owners becoming cross and frustrated at the puppy’s responses – further enhancing the puppy’s anxiety as the owner’s behaviour becomes increasingly inconsistent and potentially frightening.

Owners should try to get the breeder to provide them with a small blanket, towel or soft toy that has been present in the nesting box. These will enable the puppy to feel a little less isolated.

As the puppy becomes more attached to the family, an old towel that has spent 24 hours with the family’s soiled laundry may be useful in the bed. A puppy crate can restrict the area of destruction and soiling, while covering the crate with a thick blanket or old duvet can reduce the level of novel noise that the puppy can hear, as well as making the crate more like a safe den.

If a warm water bottle can be made safe, this may also assist in comforting the young pup and a toy that can be safely chewed will help the puppy, as well reducing the level of stimulation prior to preparing the pup for the night.

The provision of a diffuser of dog- appeasing pheromone (Adaptil, CEVA) close to the opening of the den or crate may assist in reducing the night-time and isolation nuisance behaviours of puppies.

To socialise or not to socialise?

New owners need to understand
that this essential opportunity to become competent at relaxing in the presence of a wide range of social and environmental stimuli has to occur gradually, yet immediately. Staff should explain the relative problems of potential disease challenges – contrasting these against the number of dogs re-homed or euthanased annually for behavioural reasons, and then helping owners to devise ways of gradually exposing their puppy to the environment outside the home while waiting to complete the puppy’s vaccination programme.

Advice on socialisation and environmental referencing is often left to the veterinary nurse, but as the concept is often novel to owners, it can be difficult for them to take the issue seriously if the veterinary surgeon has not mentioned it during their consultation.

A vet simply stressing the importance of the owner discussing socialisation with the nurse can make all the difference to the effort that is subsequently made to comply with the advice. Several pharmaceutical companies provide excellent free socialisation advice and inexpensive socialisation CDs to help new puppy owners to make the most of this learning opportunity.

First and second consultations are also important in terms of what the puppy learns about visiting the veterinary surgery. If the pup’s first experiences of the veterinary environment are positive, filled with treats and praise from staff members, the puppy is more likely to continue to be relaxed when subsequently coming in for check-ups or treatment, rather than becoming fearful and potentially aggressive later on in life.

Building a communication system

Puppies have an innate range of communication signals that they use whenever they feel unsure of their safety, and owners frequently ignore or misinterpret these signals. Early advice on canine communication can prevent puppies being forced to use growling and nipping in situations where they feel threatened and it is never too early to initiate frequent, short, reward- based training exercises to create a communication system between the family and their new pup (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Puppies should learn communication skills as soon as possible

Conclusion

We forget how difficult it can be for our pets to behave appropriately in a world that they often fail to understand. Providing a consistent, yet stimulating, environment that enables the puppy to accurately predict a lack of threat or conflict will ensure that it settles into its new home with the minimum of fuss – until it becomes an adolescent!

And remember, these puppies will be your patients for the next 12 to 15 years, so time spent assisting your clients in these early stages of their relationship with their pet can only enhance your job satisfaction in the future and assist client bonding to your practice. 

Author

Claire Hargrave BSC MSC PGCE CCAB

Claire is a Certified Clinical Animal Behaviourist and a Member of the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors who has worked in veterinary practice in numerous capacities for over 30 years.

Claire runs a specialist referral practice for companion animal behaviour cases and is located in South West Wales. www.petbehaviourwales.co.uk

To cite this article use either

DOI: 10 1111/j.2045-0448.2011.00134.x or Veterinary Nursing Journal Vol 27 pp 22-24.

 

Further reading

BAILEY. G. [2004] Choosing The Right Dog For You. Hamlyn.

BAILEY, G. [2008] The Perfect Puppy. Hamlyn. PEACHEY. E. (2001) Dog Behaviour Parragon.

 

Veterinary Nursing Journal • VOL 27 • January 2011 •