• Nadine Whittal, dog trainer writes:

Recently I have noticed a number of puppies being adopted at a very young age, so I thought I would dig into what is the best age for a puppy to leave its mom.

Before we get into the nitty gritty, lets just state that puppies should not leave their mothers or litter mates before eight weeks of age. It would however be preferable for the puppy to be with its mother until nine to 10 weeks.

So why is this?

Firstly, just like people, puppies need the social and maternal comfort provided by mothers and litter mates. To remove them from that would be detrimental to their health. Secondly, just like with people, appropriate behaviour is best learnt from one’s parents.

A mother’s ability to discipline puppies is well modulated. It is neither too harsh nor completely without effect. Without this parental influence, puppies tend to develop behavioural problems almost immediately.

Separation anxiety is a common problem that develops when puppies are removed from their mothers too early. They do not develop the ability to self-soothe effectively and become anxious when left alone. Another common issue is biting. Puppies learn bite inhibition when their mothers discipline them for biting too forcefully. We as humans tend not to discipline with the right amount of intensity and show, and so we are not always effective in teaching bite inhibition.

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Finally, dogs go through various fear stages during the course of their life. During a fear stage, negative experience can result in the development of behavioural issues.

One of these fear stages hit at around eight weeks. Mothers are a great comfort during this and help the puppy navigate the fear stage effectively so that issues do not develop later. So, removing puppies before eight weeks is problematic to this process.

So, when looking at getting your own puppy, try to insist that said puppy remains with its mother and litter mates until at least eight weeks. However, nine to 10 weeks would be preferable. If this is not an option, contact a behaviourist when you adopt the puppy to help you navigate this very sensitive period in the dog’s life.