Puppy Problems?

Sitting around the house on a Sunday morning, I decided to call over my dog to play with him—only to be rejected. This got me thinking on why some dogs are so friendly and outgoing, even though my dog is so lazy and tired all the time. The majority of Twinky's days are spent sleeping, barely moving—but the only time he seems to be full of energy is around my dad and sometimes mom. Most of the time, he could care less whether I come home, or leave.

In the end, all dogs are dogs, but how are they so different? What affects the behavior of dogs so that some are violent and aggressive, while others are happy with any form of companionship. I began to think that maybe dogs function in similar psychological ways to humans—what happens to the puppies at a young age leave a lasting impact on the grownup dog they turn out to be. I’m always hearing about people who had an incredibly rough childhood growing up to be antisocial, and lonely—maybe the same applied to dogs, and other animals!

That’s when I came across an article discussing how puppies that are separated from their litters too early can develop behavioral problems as an adult. It discussed a published study where researchers observed that dogs who were separated after staying with the litter for 2 or more months displayed less behavioral problems such as excessive barking, attention seeking, aggressiveness, fear, and possessiveness. It also talked about how early separation can affect the puppy in adjusting to new settings and relationships as an adult dog.

So dogs really are similar to humans! They almost seem like excessively furry people that walk on all-fours—maybe they’re even better than people, since they have crazy smelling and hearing skills. So who’s better—us or the animals?Guess we’ll never know, since nobody can ever experience both.