Blanket with mum’s scent for puppy

[Bourneolou]

Picking our poodle pup up tomorrow, at 9 weeks. Breeder is sending him off with a blanket with mum and siblings scent on. Breeder is a well-known, reputable waiting list breeder and has always done this. Breeder is also giving him a picture book of him, mum and siblings over the 9 weeks, though obviously that’s for our benefit rather than pup’s! We’ll be placed in a WhatsApp group with the sibling’s new owners and the breeder herself.

Anyway, blanket seemed like a lovely, logical idea but a couple of things online say it’s no use, makes them pine for mum, and that it’s best to ‘rip the plaster off quick’, so to speak. But that seems mean to me. I think (hope!) he will bond with us quickly but I think having his ‘mummy blanket’ for for first few nights at least will comfort him and provide some familiarity. I assumed the smell of mum will help him sleep. We’ve got a crate set up in our room (I’ve always had dogs on the bed, I honestly don’t mind our room being his sleeping space), and have made it nice and cosy for him. DH says in the wild he’d be distancing himself from mum at 9 weeks anyway so the blanket is pointless but I think a domesticated dog that’s grown up in a house, snuggled up to mum and siblings all the time is a different kettle of fish, she is his familiarity.

Any thoughts? I just want him to have the calmest and most comfortable adjusting period possible. I’ve always had rescues (7 over the years, mostly being a retirement home for senior dogs who haven’t lived long), so this whole thing is new to me. DC all flown the nest so he will have mine and DH’s full, undivided attention.

We had a blanket pup loved it and snuggled with it for a while. Still have the blanket now (altho it’s been washed a few times)

Sorry the blanket had mums smell on it

I took our pup in the sofa bed for the first night. She howled, but I was able to comfort her. After that, she slept on the bedroom floor on a cushion for a few weeks, then we moved it into her sleeping room and she's been fine ever since. Basically, did it gently and without any crying.

As for the blanket - we took one, but she didn't really seem that bothered by it one way or the other.

Our breeder gave us a blanket along with two soft toys, that all the puppies had played with. I think it's a great idea! When we went to collect her, I took a soft toy with me and the breeder rubbed it over the mum. We put the blanket and toys with her and she settled. She had us up, crying for just two nights. We took her out for a wee but since then she's slept peacefully all night.

Enjoy your poodle, what size is she? Ours is a miniature and completely adorable.

Hoping this will post okay - from the Facebook Dog Training group that was invaluable:

www.facebook.com/groups/dogtrainingadviceandsupport/learning_content/?filter=2450317961691783&post=844965550233641

For our latest pup (now nearly two) we had the mummy blanket, a bone she was chewing on from the home and a couple of toys. We left her with just the blanket at night and slept next to the crate for the first few nights, and then withdrew, bringing in the older dogs to sleep alongside her.
For a breed that is notorious for disliking being alone, this worked well

Thank you. I think even if he is naturally going to be not needing mum at all at this age, the ‘mummy blanket’ still has the scent of all he’s known so far in his life, his first home, mum and the litter, so we’ll deffo be keeping it in his crate.

I think it depends on the pup to be honest. My first dog like to snuggle right into it. Latest hooligan couldn’t give a stuff.

I sent my last pups off with a special padded blanket with the smell of the litter and everyone said that it was a great help to get them to settle. Anything to get them to feel safe and secure in the first few days is a help.

We had a blanket from the breeder and our puppy peed on it the first night 🙈

It went in the wash and he seemed fine without it 🤷‍♀️

We had a blanket with mum's scent on it too. It definitely helped him settle in the car home - until he peed on it

Please post a pic when you get him!

Ours is a miniature too! I’m so excited to get
him tomorrow, feel like a kid on Christmas Eve. We’ve seen him twice and are absolutely in love. I’ve adored all of my older rescues but had a niggle that I’d like to experience the ‘raising’ stage with a dog and watching them grow, and I don’t think I could go through falling in love with another elderly rescue and losing them almost immediately, even though that’s what we signed up for.

Breeder here. We give a decent sized piece of vetbed. It's not just the familiar scent of the litter, mum and breeders house it's the texture and feel of the bedding they've used since birth. Once you've needed to wash it yourselves after a few days the smell will go but the familiar texture will stay

It does not depend on the puppy. A scented blanket or vet bed scented from the litter will help ALL puppies be calmer when removed from their litter. I would keep it for sleeping on to avoid puppy weeing on it but after a few days they will no longer need it.

It also works the other way so if you had time you could have given a t shirt you had worn to the breeder which your puppy could have had near them when they were eating for a few days and this would also help the puppy feel great when they where with you.

Your DH is correct it is not so much the Mum the puppies miss but usually the other puppies. They will have been sleeping in a puppy pile with the other puppies scent and bodies for warmth so having the scent will help with this.

Hopefully a good breeder will have been encouraging a short time alone for each of the puppy to make this transition easier for them. However lots of cuddles and warmth from you and the puppy will soon transfer their love

Good old Pavlov and classical conditioning- OP the website you were looking at is incorrect.

I remember reading that when a pup remains living with their mum into adulthood, the relationship changes. It’s no longer a ‘mother/child’ dynamic and they stop seeing each other that way, they see each other just as they’d see any other dog in the home. Surely that’s not true? The mum may not feel maternal anymore but surely at least the mother knows she gave birth to the other dog and that it’s her biological child?

It’s topic from my OP but I find dog psychology fascinating.

Yeah it is interesting OP. We own 3 generations, all female. I think the maternal bond must fade but they are incredibly close. Our youngest are nearly 2 now and I think it took a good few months for mum to stop cleaning and teaching them to submit etc.

Pierre is home! Seems to like the blanket, he cried in the car but the blanket helped. He’s having a nap now. He’s gorgeous

I had asked for part of the blanket that was used to comfort my pup who has just turned 8 weeks on the day.

From the first day, she wasn't interested in it and wanted something with my scent.

I guess they really are all different.

Mine is 3 years old and still loves his 'mum' blanket. Had to wash it a few times though.