Gra Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 Read different views on this and just wondered what your experiences (good or bad) have been on when is the right time for pups to leave the parents and be taken to their new home. The pup i have bought was born on Dec 23rd and I have been told I should be able to pick her up at the end of Feb. Sounds about right to me. The pups are now feeding away from the mother as they are causing her distress now that they have proper teeth, they are feeding well apparantly. I understand that all litters are different but just wondered what was the norm and what if any are the advantages of staying with the parents any longer than 8 weeks. I cant wait to get her home but at the same time I am prepared to wait a little longer if it benefits the pup in anyway. Thanks anyway, Graham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smithy Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 The very minimum of 8 weeks, within this time the pup will learn such things as pack hierachy, bite inhibition and how to play with other dogs... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bec Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 Where I live it is the law in several states that it is illegal for a pup to leave its mum/litter mates before eight weeks. It is also part of the code of conduct for registered breeders that all pups must be 8 weeks before leaving home. I wouldn't take a pup younger than 8 weeks and I wouldn't buy from a breeder who sold one earlier than that either. 6-8 weeks is a crucial time for socialisation and development, pups learn a lot from their litter mates and mum in that time frame (i.e. bite inhibition). I do prefer to have the pup from eight weeks so I can socialise it before it's first fear period, but I know some breeders hold on to them until 10 weeks - this wouldn't bother me, extra time with mum and its litter mates isn't a bad thing, and some of them do it so they can desex the pup before it leaves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jules dief taz tor Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 dief was 8 weeks and taz was 11 weeks when we got them, tbh dief is more loving ,only difference it seems to have made Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rose Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 Desexing a pup b4 it leaves for its new home is too young i would of thought especially @ 8 or 10 weeks !!!!! our new baby was born dec 24th 08 @ we will be getting her @ 12 weeks but we got kavik, mishka @ 8 weeks. dosen't matter really if its 8 or 12 weeks i think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bec Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 Desexing a pup b4 it leaves for its new home is too young i would of thought especially @ 8 or 10 weeks !!!!! our new baby was born dec 24th 08 @ we will be getting her @ 12 weeks but we got kavik, mishka @ 8 weeks. dosen't matter really if its 8 or 12 weeks i think. Depends on the school of thought! Some breeders believe you should let larger breeds develop before desexing them, and that desexing them at 6 months is too young (ok for a smaller breed, but 12 months is more ideal for larger breeds). Some breeders are very, very worried about pet owners breeding with their dogs. They don't want their puppy buyers to add to the amount of dogs in the pound so they desex all their non-show puppies before leaving. I know a poodle breeder who found out one of her puppies ended up in a puppy farm and when she got him back he was in a disgusting state and almost died - he was skeletal. He was used to produce 100s of "designer dogs" I can especially understand breeders doing this when they own breeds that are commonly used in designer mutt breeding! She now desexes all her puppies before they leave. A 10 week old Sibe is bigger than a lot of fully grown small breeds out there so there is no issue with being able to do the desexing safely. I personally wouldn't desex a larger breed until it was around 12 months, but I can completely understand breeders who do desex puppies before they leave. There have been studies done on early vs later desexing and results are fairly inconclusive. All the pounds and rescue organisations here desex puppies before sale too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siberian_wolf Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 I believe that 7 weeks is the absolute minimum. Whn I was on my search for a husky puppy I found that most breeders didn't let the puppys go to new homes until they were 8 weeks old and only a few let them go at 7 weeks. Gizmo we bought home at 8 weeks and Marley and Bandit we bought back at 7 weeks. It would have been 8 weeks but the breeder said that she kept them until 8 weeks as they got their first injection there, but it was easier for us to book both injection with our vet so she let them go at 7 weeks and we got them their first and second injections. http://www.raisingspot.com/adopting/find_puppy_seven_weeks.php With the de-sexing, there are also many views on when a dog/bitch should be de-sexed. Some people think that with the bitch you should wait until she has had her first season and with males you should wait until both testicles have dropped. This is not a fact of life. You can spay a bitch at any age and you can castrate a dog at any age. http://dogs.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Best_Age_Neuter_Dog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bec Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 I believe that 7 weeks is the absolute minimum. Whn I was on my search for a husky puppy I found that most breeders didn't let the puppys go to new homes until they were 8 weeks old and only a few let them go at 7 weeks. Gizmo we bought home at 8 weeks and Marley and Bandit we bought back at 7 weeks. It would have been 8 weeks but the breeder said that she kept them until 8 weeks as they got their first injection there, but it was easier for us to book both injection with our vet so she let them go at 7 weeks and we got them their first and second injections. http://www.raisingspot.com/adopting/find_puppy_seven_weeks.php I guess it depends on the vaccination protocol you follow. Although, vaccination is just one part of it, there is also the important socialisation factors to consider (and like I said, where I live, it is the law they must be eight weeks of age so it's a moot point for many states). Obviously here, if a registered breeder sold a pup before 8 weeks they would be breaking their code of conduct if not breaking the law (depending on which state they live in). With the de-sexing, there are also many views on when a dog/bitch should be de-sexed. Some people think that with the bitch you should wait until she has had her first season and with males you should wait until both testicles have dropped. This is not a fact of life. You can spay a bitch at any age and you can castrate a dog at any age. http://dogs.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Best_Age_Neuter_Dog Yep definitely - like I said it depends on what side of the fence you are sitting on. I can totally understand breeders who desex pups before they leave their home, and I can understand breeders who would rather wait until the dog is older and have their puppy buyers sign a desexing contract instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siberian_wolf Posted January 22, 2009 Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 I guess it depends on the vaccination protocol you follow. Although, vaccination is just one part of it, there is also the important socialisation factors to consider (and like I said, where I live, it is the law they must be eight weeks of age so it's a moot point for many states). Obviously here, if a registered breeder sold a pup before 8 weeks they would be breaking their code of conduct if not breaking the law (depending on which state they live in). Totally agree with you there. Here in UK I don't think there is a specific law/code as to when a puppy goes to their new home but it is normally 7 to 8 weeks minimum. As you said it is different depending on where you are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gra Posted January 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2009 Thanks for the prompt replies, all very interesting. Sky will be about 9 weeks when we get her so sounds about perfect, we are not planning on breeding at all so the info about de-sexing was very helpful too. Its ok reading up on websites and books but to chat to 'real' people that care is far more beleiveable somehow, thanks again. Graham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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