Why do puppies need to experience new people, places and things?
Today I saw first hand, the result of a lack of socialization in dogs. One of our permanent resident dogs needed to see the veterinarian who does exams in another building about 75 feet from our 'old dog' building, as we call it. Jack has lived the last 3 years in that building and sees only that building, the dogs who live in that building with him, and their backyard. He plays with toys, is very sweet with the workers and enjoys the volunteers' visits but that's his world. Today I put a leash on him and attempted to lead him to the other building. HIs eyes turned dark with fear and he reluctantly made it to the door and then lay down on the ground and froze. There was no budging him any further so the vet came to the door and examined him there. His exam turned out fine and then we had the task of getting him back to his building. He's a large dog and, with fear ruling his emotions, we did not want to carry him if we could avoid it. Two of us had to half drag, half push him until he saw familiar walls, then he jumped up and trotted quickly back to his room. I would guess that in his early formative months as a puppy he also had few opportunities to experience the world so that he could learn to feel confident in a new situation. That's probably why he can not easily adapt to a home environment as a pet. Socialization in the early months is so very important to raising a happy, confident dog.
