The first twelve weeks of life are the most important in a dog's life. The neonate grows from a few hundred grams and with no sight or hearing, into a puppy that is ready to fly the nest! This time corresponds to the 'Critical Socialisation Period'.
This window is our chance to imprint onto the puppy how it will experience the world, and once it's closed, it's gone forever. After that point, we can still teach the dog things, but we can no longer fundamentally change the relationship they have with the world.
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After raising Collies and seeing their unique needs, strengths and weaknesses, we've prepared our list of 'beliefs' we want our puppies to take to heart, and grow up with. We manage and fine-tune our puppies environment during their CSP to give them the best chance at learning them, because puppies learn from experiences, not lessons we try and teach verbally! We call these our 'Puppy Tenets', and we've modelled them to get the most out of a Rough Collie.​​​
Our puppy tenets​
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The world is exciting and you are safe
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Novel things and environments are positive
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You have the power to get things, and to do things
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If you need help from a human, you can ask
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Focussing on your human gets you good things
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You are deeply loved
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With this knowledge a puppy can grow into a well-adjusted Collie, and it tackles some of the challenges Rough Collies particularly face - namely an over-reliance on human intervention (leading them to become frustrated), lack of focus (leading to reactivity when in public) and nervousness. These traits are all partly genetic, partly environmental, so we will never breed a nervous Collie.
Socialisation
Socialisation doesn't mean exposing a puppy to as many people as possible. We feel this can do more harm than good! For us it's all about showing a puppy how to react to different scenarios, at a developmentally appropriate time.
We are a Puppy Culture breeder. We tailor PC protocols to each litter and individual puppy and also to the needs of our breed. This takes careful observation of each puppy to watch how they are currently interacting with the world and their family, as well as an understanding of developmental stages and signs. I love 'puppy watching'!​
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Among others, our puppies experience:
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'Startle / recovery' exercises daily, showing them how to recover from a startling experience
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A new novel object every day, from the moment their eyes open
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Noise desensitisation, including to drills, fireworks, hoovers, and barking dogs
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Anti-resource guarding exercises
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Learning different 'pictures', for example learning to have quiet, independent time when their human is working
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Handler focus exercises
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Items to develop different physical and mental skills - at least one of each type of: wobbling surface, rolling surface, different floor types, tunnel, enclosed spaces, ramps, swings, raised surfaces
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These must be introduced when the puppy is developmentally ready. A breeder can overdo these as much as underdo them so we always observe our puppies to watch for signs they are ready for new things.
Just take a look at the videos above to see our puppies in action. Most of the videos are the puppies first exposure to each item, and just look at how they take it in their stride.
Early Neurological Stimulation
We start working with our puppies just after birth. ENS is a set of protocols usually done daily, however the schedule depends on the needs of each puppy. Some examples include tickling the feet with a cotton bud, or allowing the puppy to experience a cool towel, called thermal stimulation. Remember, these are done before the puppy can see or hear.
ENS has been shown to improve a dog's stress response later in life. In essence, it's about adding slight stressors to a neonate's life, where they aren't experiencing it. Think back through the history of the dog, and what the life of a newborn litter would be like. Rather than the warm, clean, dry, and protected surroundings of a whelping box, the puppies would experience environmental stressors as well as their dam leaving to feed. Our puppies don't experience these and instead have a cushy life, which is where ENS steps in - to kickstart their neurological systems through a series of very short, daily activities.
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We do ENS on puppies that haven't already experienced stressors. For example, we do not advise performing it on puppies that had a long or difficult birth. When it's best for the puppy, we start later or don't perform it at all.
Weaning
I follow my mentor Angela Harvey's weaning process. I aim to keep things as natural and species-appropriate as possible. Weaning is led by the pups and their mum, healthy puppies give us indicators they are ready for each developmental stage, and a bitch with good maternal instincts will allow things to progress at the puppies pace.
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We start weaning when the puppies have cut teeth. This is the marker of when they're ready to taste their first foods. Until then, their dam's milk has provided them with the nutrients a growing pup needs as well as immune support.
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Our pups are weaned onto chicken muscle meat and green tripe. As they grow they will try new foods such as eggs, and start to experience small bones. By the time the pups are 8 weeks they are dextrous and will pin down and manipulate carcasses and wings to tear through the meat and crunch the bones. It's also a very enriching activity for them. It is adorable to hear their squeaks as they enjoy their food!
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We also introduce kibble, so new owners can move them easily onto either a full raw or full kibble diet. The benefit of this is that the stomach has a full set of enzymes, some of these are lost in kibble fed dogs and digestion suffers. The changeover should be relatively easy if done appropriately e.g. a staggered transition over the space of a few weeks.
I have fed kibble in the past, trying many different brands. However the results I have seen on raw have proven it's the ideal diet for them. It may be a bit more complicated to prepare, but it gets the best results during this critical time. I'm very happy with the condition of our puppies on this weaning schedule and I'm sure you will find the same.
Games and Fun
When the puppies reach 4 weeks, they are actively looking to play games. We take each puppy out of their den for individual time; the quick developers will start trying to play with you at 3 weeks, whereas some of the late bloomers may take longer, and will sit back pondering the others' games!
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Our pups enjoy different types of toys, we try to introduce a new toy daily between the ages of 3.5 - 5.5 weeks. They also get out-of-pen playtime once they're old enough and really enjoy exploring this new environment. We then allow them time outside on our enclosed patio and (when the weather permits) garden, with lots of smells, sights and sounds - their first taste of the outside world.
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Some days we set up other enriching and novel experiences such as a ball pit. Most of all, we enjoy them and give them lots of love and attention.
Healthy Start
A lot goes in to giving puppies a healthy start. Socialisation and diet alone won't cover up poor genetics or environment.
We will only breed from Collies that are free from the Kennel Club Breed Watch Scheme's Points of Concern, and who have a healthy, typical skeleton. Issues with the hind- and forequarters not only prevent easy movement, but also stop correct musculature from developing, as they're knitted to the skeletal frame.
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Research has shown that a lack of traction in the whelping box can cause Hip Dysplasia. HD is believed to be 60%+ environmental, so it's important that the pups have grippy surfaces for their feet. When we have puppies, our living room becomes a puppy room, and you'll see that the floor is covered with (ugly) black rubber mats. These provide a great amount of traction and can't be shifted around by pups or a nosy mum, so it helps protect them from the risks of slipping.
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Temperament is also extremely important. I think of temperament like building a house. Socialisation and rearing make up the walls and can create beautiful details. However it's the inherited genetics that make up the foundation. With a crumbling foundation, the walls of socialisation will fail.
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A bitch contributes even more to her litter than genetics alone. A well-adjusted mum with good maternal instinct will leave her puppies wanting for nothing, if the reverse happens they can grow up instinctively unsure. She also helps teach them the rules of the world alongside the breeder, you are both collaborators in raising your brood.
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Hopefully you can see that we take temperament seriously, as well as the physical aspects of our puppies health. Things like genetic testing are important, and are a pre-requisite for us, but it's only one aspect that provides dogs with a great quality of life.
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