worried

[dove slayer]

we have a 7 week old ylf.i was wondering if all pups that age are timid she is not afraid of everything just some times she will hear a noise and take off running.i was hoping she would make a hunt test dog also cant get her to fetch anything

[Cedarswamp]

Relax she's a puppy She's getting used to a new place with no siblings for the courage in numbers. If she wasn't around a lot of loud noises before you got her, she's going to be more reactive to them than a pup that has heard lots of things. Her attention span is also very short right now. Try rolling a ball, it will be easier for her to follow and focus. If she chases it, great, if not try one or two more times then try again later.

Good Luck!

Alison

[Devlin]

dove slayer, she's only 7 weeks old! Don't worry about it...really! She's a puppy and needs to acclimate to new surroundings, her new "Daddy," and the absence of her siblings. Play with her...love her...roll that ball...praise her...and let her grow up a little. There's plenty of time to worry about serious training later. Right now (and for a good while longer), everything should be couched in terms of "play"...learning her name and responding to it, beginning to learn simple commands (come, sit, down, etc.), and getting her tuned in to retrieving. Be consistent, be gentle (especially right now), and enjoy her being a puppy...they grow up waaaaay too fast.

Good luck.

[Kristie Wilder]

Just a note on what to do when she IS scared....

1) do NOT coddle her -- don't respond by petting her and saying "it's ok, it's ok" in a wimpy, pitiful voice. Instead, act happy, excited, playful and confident. Give her a cookie or pet on her CONFIDENTLY (like a few stronger pats to her ribs or bum, like we might do when we tell them they're a good dog -- do not stroke and cuddle) or throw a toy. Something to DISTRACT her and help her be CONFIDENT when she is otherwise nervous.

2) Do things around her that are increasingly startling or distracting. Be very careful with this. Drop small, less noisy items or lightly bang pans. Do this when she's alert, awake, playful.

3) Introduce louder noises (like guns) farther away, in the distance, as background noise.

She IS only 7 weeks old, as others have mentioned. This behavior isn't uncommon. But it's now your job to help her be confident and brave by socializing and acclimatizing her properly.

-K

[brandywinelabs]

They say that pups have a fear period around 7 weeks and again a lesser one around 10 weeks. Just love and encourage. Start teaching the little things. Expose her to lots of simple new things. As Kristie said, keep the loud noises more as background noises. A good book on this is
How to Raise a Puppy You Can Live With. by Rutherford and Loveland

[D Osborn]

Mine go everywhere there are no dogs at this age.I carry them(literally) shopping, drug stores, clothing stores, and let people pet them. As long as they are clean, people love it. They go to soccer games, baseball games, where ever there are kids. Always in my arms, so they feel secure.
If it is cool, they live in my car with me after school.
I take them to my friend's houses who have kids, and they learn about children at a really early age. I really should pay my one friend, her kids are awesome with my dogs, and my dogs adore her kids.
I am a horrible puppy raiser, (i vow to raise my next one better) except for this one thing. My puppies are a pain, but socialized to the max.

[brwndg/yelladawg]

I was worried too about my YLF. She jumped at everything! Just keep things positive. Now she loves guns and will walk up to a Harley revving its engine to say hi to the rider.