When to get
 Hello,
Wondering ast what age you all have gotten your sheepie pups and what was your experience ( i.e at 4 weeks, 6. 7, etc) ? If you picked up your puppy as early as 5-6 weeks...how did that go for you ? Any recommendations ? Thank you for your input. ....possible OES pup on the horizon for freind !  |
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| My first oes was 14 weeks when I got her, and she was a very well adapted, well balanced healthy little brat who housetrained super fast.
My second oes was 7 weeks when got her, and although she is not housetraining quickly at all (she is 6 months and we are still working on it) she and I developed a very special bond, stronger than I have ever known with any other dog. She still sleeps curled up with me, is very loving and protective, very smart and quick to learn commands (except pee outside!) She is a little submissive with other dogs, but not overly so, and seems to understand her place in the world quite well. Right beside me  |
A puppy should not leave it's mother until it is at least 8 weeks old. A breeder who will let you have a pup any sooner than that is NOT a responsible breeder.  |
| Thank you all. Am eagerly reading all responses. |
| A pup really should be with mom till at least 8 weeks. They aren't nursing by then but do need to many other skills mom has to share, like socialization, how to treat other dogs and people etc, as well as watching mom go pee outside, and keeping themselves clean. When I brought Dancer home I guess she was 7.5 weeks, The date she turned 8 weeks was not one that I could go pick her up due to mine and my husbands work schedule, so we opted to pick her up a few days earlier. |
| 8-10 weeks is the recommendation of most! Any earlier than that - the chances of having socialization issues and behavioral issues increase.
I think depending on the situation the pups are raised in - if they are kept longer - you can also end up with issues. Alot depends on how the litter is raised from the very beginning - but I would not get a puppy from a breeder who would even consider allowing them to leave at 4,5,6 or 7 weeks! (With the exception of Willowsprite - I don't consider that an issue - she was only a few days shy of 8 weeks and considering the experience of the home she was going to - that would be appropriate). JMHO. Kristen |
| Thank you Kristen, though sometimes I do wish I had picked her up later. I think housetraining issues would not have been as difficult if the pup had even a few more days of watching and following mom. Also, Dancer was very frightened of new things. I spent some time every day making something look strange in the house. The way I found out that she had this anxiety was because my purse was hanging on one of our kitchen chairs and Dancer tugged on it and the chair tipped over. She started barking madly at it and would not stop until the chair was set right. So from that day on I would purposely do things like that, lay a chair on it's side, then upside down, move the coffee table diagonally, leave cupboard doors open, things like that. I took her for walks down the main street on the busiest day (we have a farmers market once a week, lots of people, sounds, smells) She is fine now, I can take her into any situation confidently. One day there was a minor car accident at the corner down from my house, after I ran down to see if anyone needed anything or needed me to make any phone calls, and seeing that everything was fine and someone had already called 911 (just a matter of protocol, no one was injured) I went back to the house and got Dancer. I walked her down there, and she not only sat calmly during all the noise, the firetruck,ambulance and police, she was a comfort to those in the accident. The one woman was very shook up, and she seemed to calm down just by having Dancer sit beside her on the curb.
Anyway, I was lucky, things have turned out all right, Dancer seems to know her place with other dogs, responds to other dogs body language, and responds well to tones of voice etc in people. However, the housetraining is taking forever! I would have preferred she stay with the mom longer, regardless of my experience with animals and the breed in general. Unfortunately, I think it will be the same situation with Sky, the pups have to be picked up by a certain date because the breeder already had plans to be going away by that date. Sky will probably be coming home with me when she is only going to be exactly 7 weeks old, or 7 weeks and 2 days depending on the day I go to pick her up. I think it may be ok with Sky though, because she will have Dancer to dog-socialize with. I'll start getting her used to strange things and noises right away, and housetraining will be very different. Because I'll be home I'll be spending as much time as possible outside with the pup with me at all times. Dancer too, and maybe we can get this peeing-on-the-kitchen-floor-is-proper mindset changed! |
| I picked Carl up at 7 weeks and 4 days. Our breeder thought that the socialization wouldn't be an issue because our older sheepdog, Norman, is so well adjusted. Unfortunately, Carl cried off and on for 2 days no matter what we did. I don't know if the extra couple of days until 8 weeks would have made a difference? He had no medical problems and Norman did try to take care of him but after a hours of nonestop crying apparently he thought he was too old for that nonsense.
Like Dancer, Carl was very much afraid of strange things. Maybe it's just a coincidence but could the 7 weeks thing play a part in that? |
| If I remember correctly from reading "The Dog's Mind" - 7 weeks is the beginning of the socialization period - so it may play a big role in their behaviors.
They learn so quickly - that one week may mean all the difference in the world. I know alot of breeders prefer 10 weeks - but this can also vary depending on the puppy themselves - and a good breeder can judge when a puppy is ready! One pup may be ready at 8 weeks - and another a little behind and be ready at 10 weeks. Of course, with poor breeding practices, regardless of the age of the puppy - there could be problems! Presley was 12 weeks (maybe that was too old) when we got her and she's as neurotic as they come - because of how she was raised until that point! Kristen |
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