Socializing Your Golden Retriever
Socializing is important for your golden retriever. All dogs behave differently in front of strangers. Some dogs tend to ignore people. Some choose to glance at someone and then go on and pay no attention to that person again. Then again, there are some dogs that love to meet and interact with everyone they can. These dogs crave for attention and will do almost anything just to get it.
Some golden retrievers get along well with the members of the family they have come to know or those they have befriended. Some are happy being around those of the same sex. Generally, golden retrievers like children. On the other hand, due to the way they are raised or bred, there are some who like adults more than children, but this occurs rarely.
Socializing is important to golden retrievers that are 8 weeks to 8 months old. During this time, you should provide your dog plenty of opportunities to socialize with people and other dogs. It may be shy and choose not to interact at first, but it will come around in time. You just have to be patient with your dog and encourage him to socialize during this early stage.
The dog’s parents also play an important role in its socialization. Parents that interact well with people and other dogs pass these traits through genes to their litter. On the other hand, shy or aggressive parents produce litter with the same traits. Since puppies inherit the traits of their parents, you should make sure that your puppy is bred from dogs that share a passive temperament and are compatible with each other.
If your pup was separated from its mother before it turned 7 weeks old, it won’t be able to learn the social signals from its mother and siblings. Normally, golden retriever puppies that are taken to a new home before they turn 7 weeks old tend to be aggressive towards people. These dogs lack the social skills needed to behave properly, making them aggressive around people and shy or fearful towards other dogs.
A puppy that was injured or terrified when it was young sometimes ends up being traumatized. Trauma experienced by a puppy leaves a huge scar in its mind, making it very hard for the pup to forget the experience. Some puppies never get past the traumatic experience at all. This might cause them to fear humans in general or become aggressive towards people when they feel frightened. Thus, it is important to make your puppy feel welcomed and secure when you take it home for the first time.
Always provide your golden retriever puppy plenty of opportunities to interact with other people and other dogs of the same breed. That way, it will learn to socialize while it is young. It will grow up carrying its socializing skills. Always provide your golden retriever with shelter, proper amount of attention, and the interaction it needs to prevent it from being shy or aggressive towards people and other dogs.