Is 13 weeks too old for puppy?

[Yellownotblue]

Hi, I’m currently visiting breeders and looking for a puppy (Havanese). I saw one today who is absolutely gorgeous (the pup, not the breeder 😁) and I have a good gut feeling about him. But he is just over 12 weeks (will be 13 this weekend). Is that too late for a new puppy? I keep reading conflicted advice about the best age to bring a puppy home and the dangers of missing the socialisation window. Thank you!

Why are they still there?

Why is he still with the breeder?

The mum had a big litter (8) and not all of them had been pre-reserved, so there are still 3 left (I assume possibly a result of Covid puppy frenzy and current cost of living crisis?). The breeder is lovely, she seems very professional and clearly loves her dogs and has been breeding for 15 years. She is clearly not concerned about having some left at this stage, she was not making a hard sale at all. She said she usually doesn’t let them go until second vaccination, so around 10/11 weeks at the earliest.

A professional breeder usually has homes lined up and a waiting list so would be unlikely to have pups left

that said with the cost of living crisis etc I could see why people aren’t wanting pups so it possibly adds up.

can you speak to people with previous pups at all?

It wouldn’t worry me if the breeder has been house training and socialising the puppy it will make you life easier! The cost of living crisis has slowed the market.

I’m not sure this is accurate, I contacted a number of KC assured breeders and all of them without exception had between 1 and 3 puppies available in their current litter.

I think it’s a market issue, tons of people got puppies these last two years so demand has dropped.

I’m not concerned about the puppy’s health or the breeder being dodgy. I’d be very grateful for replies to my question about the socialisation window. Many thanks again.

Thank you! Yes that’s what I think as well. I’ve got lots of time to devote to giving the little man new experiences while he’s still young, as long as it’s not too late…

You have missed the socialisation window and important bonding time. If the breeder has been socialising (I doubt it) then it's not so bad

When is the socialisation and bonding window?

We got our havanese pup at 13 weeks. Took him straight to puppy classes and have not had a problem with him at all.
He has been an awesome dog, very easy to train, but hates being left. They are nicknamed the Velcro dog, and bloody hell is it true.
Luckily I'm home most of the day, but he howls when I leave him. We did a lot of work pre Covid, then he had 2 years of everyone being home, and now thinks he's the boss of the house! We're working on it....

It wouldn't worry me. We got our puppy at 12 weeks and he was excellently socialised and partially toilet trained already.

I think the question you have to ask is where are the puppies kept?
Are they getting the full living in a home experience. Contact to the breeders other adult dogs?
As for socialising, the early weeks are very important- up to around 16 weeks.

So a lot is actually down to the breeders.

Bonding: a dog can bond to you at any age. Older adult dogs take longer but I'd say any puppies up to 20/24 weeks should be fine.

I got my shih Tzu at age 5, (dog not me) she is an ex breeding bitch who had only lived in a shed and never experienced anything outside the narrow confines of her farm. Having said that, she is the most chilled, friendly dog, unfazed by anything and takes everything in her stride, greeting all new experiences with curiosity and a polite wag of the tail. Her socialisation window was well and truly missed yet she is by far the most stable and unworried of all the dogs I’ve owned and fostered. She’s a diamond, maybe character plays a part?

I got my poodle at 14 weeks and he was a dream. The breeder had done a great job of socialising him and he was already clean in the house (had a few accidents but that was down to me missing his cues). We just started as we meant to go on by taking him everywhere with us and going to puppy training classes. He’s pretty much bomb proof and I don’t think getting him later has caused any problems.

Some of the replies here are crazy. Of course some puppies don’t leave mum bang in 10/12 weeks, not all puppies get reserved especially at the moment when puppy prices are crazy and people don’t have the money to spend. And as for the ‘socialising window’, what a load of rubbish. I had a rescue pup that I got at 12 weeks, he was then poorly and I was unable to socialise him until 15+ weeks, he had no issues, loved other dogs unlike my other pedigree dog that I got at 10 weeks and took to puppy classes.

I wouldn’t let it put you off.

Got our puppy at 14 weeks from a rescue centre (unwanted litter) I feel things have taken a but longer with him but he is coming along just nicely!

No one loves their dog if they are breeding from them. End of

It’s pretty normal for smaller breeds to stay with the breeder to about 12 weeks... but, in my personal opinion that’s why so many small breeds are regarded as barking at everything. So if it was me it would depend very much on what the breeder has been doing to socialise them.

We got our dog as a 16 ish week old puppy from Battersea , he was a stray who had very obviously never been in a house , he’s 12 now and the best family dog we could have wished for . He can be a bit reactive with large dogs when on his lead but offlead he is lovely and it’s not a problem for me .

No one loves their dog if they are breeding from them. End of

🙄MN at it's best!

No dog is too old for socialisation - I’m not sure what you mean really by your post… is he too old to be called a ‘puppy’? I’m not sure what the relevance of him being a puppy is - if he’s a dog you’d like I don’t think the age really matters. It’s a shame you can’t find a rescue. If it’s a specific breed you’re really set on you still might be able to find a rescue! Xo

We got our puppy at 15w and he's been a dream. He has been quick to toilet train because he was already past the "can't hold it for long" window. He's never destroyed anything or even tried. He loves meeting other dogs when out on walks and is very sociable. Great with our children (one of which is the same age as him). We'd happily get a slightly older pup again.

Our breeder did and great job with ours. Took him in car. Hoovered house noise. People coming and going including other dogs not living in the home.

She also left the pups alone for short periods

We Now have an extremely friendly and happy dog who can be left for a 8 hours a day on a rare occasion. We have 3 cats. One of which is his bestie and they sleep and play together so he is never really alone. Also have two teens so it's unusual for all to be out together. I only work one day a week but he is the perfect dog.

I'd want to know what the breeder has done to help with this.

I have had four dogs and two were twelve weeks when they came home. Both breeders had done a brilliant job of socialising them. As long as this has been done you should be fine. But ask!

Very true. Usually professional breeders don't breed until their waiting list is full.