Youngest age to get a Puppy?

[sinecurea]

Hi Folks,
I'm looking to get a puppy from a breeder, and was just wondering - what would be the youngest age you could get a puppy from a breeder at? I'd like to bring it home pretty much as soon as it's able to be seperated from it's mother. I've seen photos here of dogs being brought home at about a month old. Is that about right?

Cheers,
Steve.

[brid kenny]

Puppies should be at least 8 weeks before they go. This is very important for their development and if gone from litter too early it affects their behaviour with human family.

[WoodHaven]

Hi Folks,
I'm looking to get a puppy from a breeder, and was just wondering - what would be the youngest age you could get a puppy from a breeder at? I'd like to bring it home pretty much as soon as it's able to be seperated from it's mother. I've seen photos here of dogs being brought home at about a month old. Is that about right?

Cheers,
Steve.

Curious minds would like to know WHY??
I belong to two clubs that require breeder to keep pups a MINIMUM of 8 weeks. 10-12 weeks is preferred. Why would anyone want to deal with a weaning pup? A pup that hasn't learned any dog or house manners. A pup that still HAS to at least urinate every hour or two? At a month - some of my pups are still nursing.

[sinecurea]

Well, with house manners and stuff like that - I'd like to get the puppy started into learning where to go to the toilet at etc before it gets too acustomed to the breeder's "way", if you know what I mean?
We did that with my previous dog, and we *never* had any problems with her, she would always wait until we let her out, and came and asked if she really needed out.

Steve.

[WoodHaven]

Well, with house manners and stuff like that - I'd like to get the puppy started into learning where to go to the toilet at etc before it gets too acustomed to the breeder's "way", if you know what I mean?
We did that with my previous dog, and we *never* had any problems with her, she would always wait until we let her out, and came and asked if she really needed out.

Steve.

I guess I don't know what you mean-- My pups go outside to eliminate- they start housetraining between 5-8 weeks of age (weather can be an issue here). I know other breeders who litter box train pups-- this is great for the urban dog.
Cavaliers can be rather slow to mature- the earliest I've place a pup was 12 weeks -- she was almost 100% housetrained. Sandy

[GudrunTheRed]

I would not recommend getting a Cavalier that was any younger than 10-12 weeks. Any breeder that would offer a pup under 8 weeks is in my opinion a lousy breeder and very irresponsible. I also recommend you read this forum and do more research on Cavaliers before you decide to bring one home. They are very special little dogs and you should really know as much as you can about the breed before bringing one home.

Good luck!

[Karlin]

Hi Steve:

I think you are just confused on ages, if it was a while back when you had your last dog. Two months would be the minimum -- indeed even the difference between homing at seven weeks, which some people will do, and eight weeks, can mean the difference between a poorly socialised, problem puppy that doesn't have much self control (learned from mom and siblings), to a puppy that is on its way to be being a well adjusted dog. The mother gives a lot of behavioural guidance to a puppy between 5-8 weeks in particular and thus taking on a puppy earlier than 8 weeks is risky (and no responsible breeder would consider homing a puppy before then anyway).

I'm quite sure you wouldn't have had a puppy at four weeks -- at that age, they are usually still feeding off the mother and only just learning to eat solid food -- a month old puppy on its own would be an emergency rescue case!

Cavaliers bond so well with people and respond so well to positive, rewards based training that a few weeks either way in age (over 8 weeks up to 12 weeks) is not going to make much difference in how the dog bonds to you or its willingness to learn. Indeed most reputable breeders generally will not consider homing cavaliers until between 10-12 weeks as they are so small -- AND because it is actually EASIER to housetrain them once they are slightly bigger and easier for most people to manage a slightly older puppy. They are so small as puppies that they can easily squat and go in carpets etc without anyone seeing and every mistake like that is a step back in housetraining. Those few weeks extra over 8 weeks with the breeder mean you don't need to be taking the puppy out every single hour as you will need to with an 8 wk old. It is a much, much easier task with a 10-12 week pup. Also a good breeder will have helped the puppy start to learn housetraining, not teach it poor habits! So that will get you off to a good start. Any breeder who isn;t starting the puppy off with housetraining in a very positive and beneficial way for the new owner would be questionable, too.

Be sure to research breeders very, very carefully. There are health issues that can affect lifespan and quality of life in the breed and a good breeder's breeding programme will be designed to work for longevity and good health. There are lots of links in the Library section of this site with advice on finding a good breeder. For me, a breeder willing to home before 8 weeks would raise red flags.

[Nisha]

oh no way. i would defintely not recommend you gettin a dog till after it is 8 weeks old. the first 8 weeks are crucial to the life long worldview, or perspective, of a puppy..... This is also their socialization period. The puppy learns social interaction with his littermates, learns how to play and learns bite inhibition A puppy that is taken too early can have behavioral problems later because he never learned these early social skills. He'll also learn discipline at this point the mother will begin weaning the pups around this time, and will start teaching them basic manners, including accepting her as the leader of the pack.

anyway, good luck

[Maxxs_Mummy]

I did PM you last night but tbh I too think you need to research this a lot more thoroughly.

I agree with Gudrun, they are very special little dogs indeed. Probably THE most special dogs in the world

My eldest was 13 weeks when we brought him home. Almost completely housetrained (except for a few accidents until he realised where the door was). We have never had a problem with bonding, training or anything else with him.

I think it's the difference between researching the breed and going to a good breeder rather than just picking up a pup from any old breeder.

Tbh, if a breeder was letting his/her pups go at such an early age then i wouldn't touch them with a bargepole and would think it was actually animal cruelty.

Good luck with your search for a good breeder and your perfect puppy

[Bruce H]

I'll add my voice to the choir.

One month old is WAY too young; in fact, I happen to believe that 2 months is too young, although I know a lot of breeders let them go that young. I think the youngest we have ever let a puppy go was around 10-1/2 weeks and that was a very special puppy and circumstance. More typically ours go between 11 and 12 weeks. I can't imagine a reputable breeder letting a puppy go that young.

Cavaliers tend to take longer to mature than some of the other breeds and I believe they need that extra time to mature and learn to be dogs from the other adults in our house. Weather permitting, it's around 8 to 9 weeks when we start taking puppies outside to pee and poop so our puppy people have a bit of a head start on house training.

I know the wait is hard. I've done my share of waiting for puppies we have bought from other breeders. And I see what people go through that buy puppies from me. You wouldn't believe some of the pressure we get to let those puppies go home early. Or maybe you do.

Besides, it gives me more time with those little guys