How a Puppy Develops
Puppies are like children in a lot of ways. They develop in stages and with each stage, they learn to do certain things. Their faculties like seeing and hearing are not fully developed in the first few weeks of life.
Here is a brief run down of how a puppy develops:
- First 2 weeks: Puppy cannot see or hear yet but sense of taste, smell and touch are already strong; puppy can also cry and suck but entirely dependent on the mother
- 2 – 4 weeks: Puppy can hear from the first time although sense of hearing is not fully developed yet; can also see for the first time but very limited; puppy is starting to learn basic behaviors from mother and litter mates; learns to walk and first teeth appear; puppy’s sight and hearing continue to develop; some referred to this stage as the “toddler” stage
- 4-12 weeks: Puppy starts to socialize more with litter mates and learns about social structure, ranking in the pack, etc.; sense of hearing and sight already well developed; also begins to be afraid of startling sounds and sight; around week 6-7, puppy can now shift from mother’s milk to formula; week 8, the puppy can already be adopted out
- 3-6 months: senses and physical coordination already developed; some refers to this stage as similar to the “terrible twos” ; puppy will try to determine the ranking in his/her new pack so you have to be sure that you don’t allow your puppy to dominate you; puppy is also ‘teething’ so provide him/her with a suitable chew toy, otherwise, he/she will start to chew your shoes, edge of sofas or anything within his reach that he/she can chew; puppy is also starting to sexually mature and most vets say that 6 months is a good time to spay or neuter a puppy
So there you go. In 6 months time, your puppy has developed fully. But whether he/she turns out to be an angel or a …. is up to you – the responsible pet owner and loving guardian.
