What should puppies be doing at 8 weeks
At 8 Weeks, puppies are reaching a major milestone and discovering their world. They’re developing their socializing skills, beginning to explore stimuli, and improving coordination and strength. Puppies at 8 weeks of age should be focusing on basic commands such as sit or stay as well as mastering potty training and housebreaking habits.
Puppies this age should also be enjoying socialization with other animals and people in order to become well-adjusted members of society. Exposure to new environments and sights is key in this brief window of time when the brains of puppies are rapidly growing and responding to new experiences. Owners should introduce their puppy to loud noises such as thunderstorms or vacuum cleaners in order for the puppy to become comfortable with them later on in life.
Training is also essential during this formative stage of development. Keeping up with consistent training methods like leash walking will create proper behaviors that will set your puppy up for success throughout their lifetime. Enrolling you puppy in positive reinforcement classes can help you further build the trust between you two so that the training experience is an enjoyable one for both of you!
Feeding a healthy diet is important at any age but since 8 weeks old mark a huge milestone, it’s even more paramount that your pup gets all the nutrients they need at this crucial stage. Puppies should be fed small meals three or four times a day so that their energy levels remain steady throughout the day. This will also keep them from feeling sick since young puppies cannot process large amounts of food easily yet due their still developing digestive systems making portion control key!
8 weeks make up a turning point in which puppies experience many changes both physically and emotionally so ensuring they have plenty of love, attention, exercising, playtime, fresh water available, vaccination records updated and medical check-ups performed regularly is essential for welcoming a healthy puppy into your life!
Introduction
At 8 weeks old, puppies are tiny balls of energy, usually full of curiosity and ready to explore the world around them. It’s important to ensure that you give your little pup all open the right experiences right from the start. Not only will this help build a strong bond between you and your puppy, but it will also set the foundation for a well-socialized pup who is less likely to develop problem behaviors down the road. Here’s what puppies need at 8 weeks old:
Early Socialization & Exposure to New Surroundings
At 8 weeks, puppies should be exposed to as many social situations, people and places as possible – this is known as early socialization. It’s important for puppies to have positive bonding experiences in their young age so that they growing into happy and well-adjusted adults.
To promote good behavior early on, take your puppy out on walks or to the park, introduce them new friends both human and canine, attend puppy classes and even allow them to explore new surroundings in the home. All of these experiences will help prime your pup’s brain develop an understanding of what behaviors are expected of them and how they should behave when they come across new sights and smells 80 weeks down the road.
Exposing your pup to a variety of outside influences at such a young age helps give them the confidence they need later on in life when encountering various situations. Remember: practice makes perfect! And let the exploration begin!
Basic Puppy Obedience Training
At 8 weeks, puppies are ready to start their basic obedience training. This is an excellent time to introduce your puppy to new commands and behaviors that will help him become a well behaved adult dog. Obedience training can also help lay the groundwork for developing a strong bond between you and your pup!
By this age, puppies have had all of their shots and are relatively comfortable in their new environment. This is the perfect time to begin introducing commands such as “sit,” “come” and “stay.” You should also strongly enforce the use of a leash when out in public with your pup.
Positive reinforcement is key during this stage of a puppy’s development. Reward-based methods (treats, praise, scratches behind the ears) should be used as opposed to punishment-based techniques in order to encourage good behavior down the line. Be patient and consistent when it comes to training, but keep sessions relatively short since pups tend to get easily distracted at this age.
Teething & Chewing Habits
At 8 weeks, puppies will be entering a new stage of life – teething! During this time their milk teeth are falling out and their adult teeth are growing in. As a result, puppies should start developing strong chewing habits now.
It’s important for us to provide puppies with the right kind of chew toys so that they can help break down the discomfort from teething and strengthen their jaws. Chew toys not only help ease discomfort, but also prevent destructive behavior such as chewing on furniture or other objects!
We should also encourage our puppy to explore different chew textures by offering them different types of chew toys. This helps them acquire new skills while entertaining themselves, ultimately helping to diminish chances of destructive chewing once they have reached adulthood.
Additionally, make sure you never give your puppy anything made of hard plastic or anything that may splinter in the mouth and get lodged in her throat – these items can be choking hazards or cause intestinal blockage if swallowed.
Developing Appetite & Eating Habits
At 8 weeks old, a puppy will typically be teething and their adult set of teeth should start to emerge. To ease the pain of teething, puppies will start to develop a healthy appetite for food.
Feeding your pup at 8 weeks should include small amounts of mushy wet food and dry kibble. It’s important to keep the portions small and give your puppy frequent feedings throughout the day – generally every two or three hours is best. Also make sure that your puppy has access to fresh water at all times.
This is also a great time to introduce your pup to different flavors, textures and consistencies of dog food. This will help him develop good eating habits that will last throughout his life. Offering rewards after meals and treats between meals can help reinforce good behaviors as well.
Puppies aged 8 weeks and older should also begin getting used to being handled by children and new people in general, as this can encourage better behavior when it comes time for socialization training whenever he’s older!