Picking up new puppy too late?

[Bittle]

I feel stupid posting this but am hoping for some reassurance (but fearing I will get the opposite!). We are picking up our new lab puppy from the breeder in a couple of days. Before now we have only had older rescue dogs. We were originally thinking that we would get a puppy later this year. But for reasons I won't go into here, we decided just recently that now would be better. A breeder I'd been looking at happened to have a few puppies ready to go straight away: they'd had two litters close together of almost exclusively males, and so a few people on their waiting list who wanted females passed on these litters. We met the puppies - now 12 weeks old - and the mum, etc and have now signed up and paid for one. We knew he was slightly older than normal to be heading off to his home, and accepted that meant we'd missed the cuteness of the very tiny puppy stage. But I've only just focussed on the importance of the socialisation window, which is basically over. I'm now so worried that, despite our best efforts, he won't grow into a well-adjusted dog. Any positive stories please?

12 weeks is fine, house training should be much easier and the bitey phase won't last as long. Don't worry at all. 12 weeks is still super cute!

Agree with PP. 12 weeks is ideal, if I could go back I would tell past me not to collect our GR until she was 12 weeks 😂

12 wks is fine. So very cute and lots of training to do and will be socialised from the rest of the litter.

Don't panic.
We got our first puppy at 12 weeks old - the breeder kept her for us so that I could get the DC back to school and have the time to devote to her. This was >20 years ago and I knew nothing about socialisation windows etc.

She grew up into a tremendous little dog, brilliant with children, confident around other dogs. The socialisation window is open until I think 16 weeks, and the breeder might well be doing things anyway.

With regard to socialisation, it's a case of exposure to new experiences rather than anything else. So you can sit in the boot of the car with the puppy near schools at the end of the day, or in supermarket car parks etc etc. Also different surfaces different noises, different scents. You can do a lot even if vaccinations haven't fully kicked in.

More time spent with mum is good. You should benefit from a more confident pup. Kept mine crated by the bed at night for the first few weeks and she settled in really well. Good luck!

It’ll be fine and much easier for you. The breeder will have been socialising the puppy and hopefully will have him almost house trained.

It’s ideal. His dog manners will be great.

There's a growing school of thought that keeping pup with mum until 10-12 weeks does wonders for their confidence. Things like normal household noise, hoover, postman and all the rest of it can become a lot more normalised to pup if mum is by their side. I think this is a good thing actually.

Also can we have a pic? 😂

Are they a good breeder and do you trust they’ve given your puppy the best start? If the answer is yes to both - it will make your life slightly easier having a slightly older puppy as they should be well on their way to being house trained for a start.

I know a breeder who has a litter every 3-4 years (they keep one or two back for themselves) and they have started house training, socialisation, recall training etc so have the absolute best start in life. This and good genetics is key!

I got my puppy at 12 weeks last summer and she is absolutely fine.

I actually think she benefitted from being with mum for a few more weeks.

Who decided eight weeks was the cut off?! It's the legal minimum that enables excited new owners to get their hands on their tiny balls of fur asap but isn't a magic number.

Thanks for all the positive comments! I guess I'm particularly worried because the breeder has working dogs, so the puppies are not in a domestic setting. He's definitely getting exposure to other dogs (although almost exclusively labs) and there's a radio on and even builders nearby, but not the experience of living in a house or being out and about (e.g. being carried around local streets / shops, vacuum cleaner, etc.).

Why do they have two litters ready at the same time?? That is fairly weird in itself unless they are a commercial gun dog breeder or have mated mum and daughter or two female siblings at the same time.

More important than any of that, have you seen verified hip and elbow scores for both parents, KC reg documents for both parents, gonio results, etc? If not, walk away and lose your deposit - it is not worth the potential pain and cost.

I lived in Germany for many years and had pups from both Germany and Belgium, where the earliest that a reputable breeder lets them leave is 12 weeks. Yours will be fine 👌🏻

yep my pup brought home at 12 weeks was also from a working farm. I knew she had never been on a lead because she was so confused when I put one on her 😂

we were off up the pub on day three of her being home. I just ... took her out and about as I meant to go on and just got on with it.

Don't over think it. Puppy will be fine if you're chill about it. (And there's no reason why you should not be!)

Enjoy your little land-shark! 😁

Yes, have seen details of both parents on the KC website, including hip and elbow scores.

I’d be more concerned about a pup that wasn’t used to living in a home than the 12 weeks .

Okay I see your latest post. Do you want and need a working dog? If not, be cautious about getting them from a working kennel who breeds multiple litters to sell on.

Pet dogs need pet socialisation and pet breeding. Working dogs are highly driven and if not properly socialised can be reactive - yes, even labradors.

I have a friend who bought a black lab from working lines abd he is bloody insane. So noisy, hard to settle, really driven, not that affectionate. Dont buy a dog because it’s available: bide your time and buy one that has good breeding and suits your lifestyle.

I’d be very suspicious of this breeder, but 12 weeks is ideal. Puppies are often taken at 8 weeks which is far too soon.

Are pups’ parents working gundogs? Do they have lots of red in their pedigree I.e FTCH? Do you want a working line dog? A working line Labrador is almost like a different breed to a show line Labrador. I would never have a show line Labrador because they are (in my opinion based on what I do) lazy and laidback 😂

Make sure you see actual paperwork, not just names you check out on a website. There is a load of pedigree fraud around, people claiming their dogs are registered and then who have endless issues getting paperwork out. 9/10, people are who they say they are but some are not and are dishonest.
if anyone ever tells you their parents are KC registered but the puppies won’t be because xyz run away and never look back.

I can’t stress how important it is to do proper due diligence. Fully check them out, check out COI, the medical history of both male and female lines. Badly bred dogs can bring so much heartache and can also cost you thousands of pounds in vet and behaviourist bills.

Mum's dad is FTCH. On the dad's side, one set of (the dad's) grandparents were both FTCH. We are hoping for an active family pet, but no, we don't need a working dog.

Our 12-week old puppy came from a working farm, though she was brought up in the house (well, in the study and kitchen). (See upthread for how she turned out, she was great.)

One of my dogs spent most of her first 8 weeks kennelled - kennelling doesn't necessarily = neglect, it very much depends on how it's done (her litter got lots of outside playtime and so on). It's possibly connected that she was a PITA to house train, but she has turned into a very happy house dog. (Currently sleeping on the sofa.)

As a PP has pointed out, working labs are not the same as pet/show-line labs: much busier, and need more mental exercise. Are you prepared for this? Even if you think you are, it might be worth signing up with a gundog trainer even if you never plan to work your dog - they're used to pet owners who want to give their dogs a bit more.

And as a PP said, if there is lots of red in the pedigree (FTCh, working test wins etc), you might be getting a Ferrari when you really need a Ford.

(I have working line HPRs, which make even working-line spaniels look sane.)

Actually looking back on your posting - no, dont do it. They are outside in a kennel with no domestic environment or proper regular human contact. A radio and builder noise doesn’t cut it.

No good breeder of pet dogs leaves their puppies outside in a pen away from the household. It suggests a lack of care and little interest in improving the breed, which is not what you want in a good, ethical breeder.

Your instincts made you post here - listen to them.

Thanks - food for thought....

I’m sure you’ll do your own research but if you don’t know where to start. Look at Mordor Gundogs videos on YouTube.

They give you a little insight into what a working line gundog will need in terms of breed fulfilment to be a happy content pup 😊