Have you ever seen the young adult dog who acts terrified, almost like they'd been abused in some form, as people often assume? While that does sometimes happen more likely the cause of the fearful dog is lack of socialization during the critical period of development. In the first 8 weeks of their lives, breeders or the responsible caretaker of the puppy should be providing the litter with enrichment activities such as different under footings, noises, and people. Once you come to own your puppy it is your job to continue to positively expose your dog and socialize them to the world. It's more than being around other dogs it's different places, people and things to help build and create a confident, stable, adult dog. This is more important than teaching your dog any basic commands. You can always do that but you only have a short window to socialize.

Here is a list of ideas of ways to socialize your puppy.

Different Types of People - Your puppy needs to be socialized with at least 100 different people before they are 16-20 weeks old. If you don’t have access to that many people, consider hanging out with your puppy at a busy shopping area. You need to do that more than one time. Make field trips fun and keep them short. Not every trip needs to result in greeting every person. Calm behavior should be encouraged during these interactions.

Men (men with beards, men without beards, men with beards that wear hats, wearing hats and sunglasses, etc.)
Women
Boys
Girls
Shuffling people
Slouched people
People with glasses
People on crutches
People with walking sticks
People with walking frames
People walking strangely
Babies
Parties
People on roller blades
Joggers
Wheelchairs
Heavy people
Thin people
Tall people
Short people
People costumes
People in big coats
People with beards
People with sunglasses
People of all races
Bald people
People exercising (running, jogging, star jumps, etc)
Children and babies (See NOTE)
Dancing people
Busking people

Note: It is really important that your puppy interacts with kids of different ages. Infants are very different than a crawling or semi walking baby. Most dogs are fine with infants but when a baby become a little more mobile is when most families see signs of growling and other aggressive displays. Please go out of your way to find children who will follow direction well and not hurt or scare your pup by accident.

Different surfaces

Bean bags
Tile floors
Wood Floors
Bubble wrap
Different walking surfaces
Wobbly bridges
Heights
Agility Equipment
Gravel
White floors
Child’s plastic sled
Leaves
Metal street grates
Plastic tarp
Cookie tin
Walk through a ladder on the ground
Tippy board
Mud
Puddles
Foot bridge
Stairs, closed and open back

Note: Be creative here! Your puppy will not need to walk on all of the above.
You can pile the treats on different weird surfaces and gently encourage your pup to step on. Never force your puppy to go on something. Help shape the puppy to think that this is their idea.

Water

Sprinklers
Hoses
Being wet by the hose
Water
Shower
The beach
The bath
Swimming pools
People swimming
Water feature
Rain

Note-Just because you got your puppy in the winter does not mean that you don’t have to go out of your way to find things that they will see in the summer.

Places

Airport
Skate park
Bus depot
Bus stop
Train station
Shopping malls
Loud fun places
Football game
Supermarket
School
Coffee shop
Building site
The gym
Tennis game
Office
Speed way
Place with crowds
Main roads
Your place of work
Playground (start at a distance and work your way closer)

Note- Many large stores like Home Depot and Lowes or greenhouses allow puppies to come and train. Check with your local store before going. This will cover many things on your list. You need to go more than one time!

Moving and making noise

Lawn mower
Bikes
Children playing with various toys
Shopping carts
Vaccum cleaner
Skate boards
Scooters
Bus
Train
Tractors
Ride on lawn mowers
Cars
Hammering
Trucks
Motorbikes
Chainsaws
Fork lift
Helicopters
Airplanes
Sirens
Hair dryer
Suit cases
Remote control cars
Ceiling fans
Mirrors
Glass sliding doors
Boats
Automatic doors
Garage doors
Construction sites

Noises

Fireworks from a great distance
Storms (e.g. thunder and lightning)
Parties
Musical instruments (piano, guitar, saxophone)
Gunshot
Cheering
Yelling
Singing
School bell
Sound effects CD and/or on line
Saucepans
Radio
Lawn mower
Loud noises

Note- Fireworks -please do not take your puppy to fireworks. If you know a holiday is coming like the 4th of July, be ready to make it a positive experience with lots of yummy treats, your jolly voice and a soothing music. If your puppy lives with a noise phobic dog, consider having the pup in a different location during these holidays. You can also find noises on line that you can condition your puppy to. Start at low levels.

Situations

Leash
Harnesses
Muzzle
Loom overhead
Collar grabs
Opening mouth
Cutting nails
Grooming (as appropriate to the breed)
Clippers
Being tethered
Having ears cleaned
Having eyes cleared
Having every part of the body handled
Being picked up
Teeth cleaning
Being carried on a stretcher
Being bandaged
The vet

Note – Please make arrangements to stop in to your vets several times for some treats and love at times when your puppy does not have an appointment. This will make visits less stressful for everyone.

Weird things

Big plastic objects
Plastic bags
Balloons
Umbrellas
Mirrors
Big balls
Thrown things
Shopping carts
Baby stollers
Fast movement
Kids toys
Brooms
Vaccuum cleaner
The wind
The wind blowing bushes/trees
Flags
Balls and frisbees
Tents
Flashlights

Travel

Escalators
Elevators
The car
Planes

Other animals

Puppy school
Big dog
Little dog
Shaggy dog
Smooth dog
Farm animals
Bull breed dogs
Rabbits
Birds

When socializing is done properly you build the confident and stable dog. Therefore your dog will quickly recover from any instance that might startle or scare him. You may not need to socialize to every item on this list but if you can check off most of them you will find your dog is able to roll with new encounters or weird objects. Socializing is for life but it is best received at the young age of 8-16 weeks. It is always a good idea for the first 6 months when out with your puppy to bring tasty treats. If your dog sees something that makes him uneasy you have your tasty treats handy to work him through it and turn it into a positive experience.

What are you waiting for, get out there and start helping your dog cope with the world.