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In the collective imagination, dogs are (s) objects that are born, live and at a certain point they are no longer there. Beings that during their life eat, play with the ball, bark and if they are bad they bite. It goes without saying that there is obviously a galaxy between this conception of dogs and who they really are.
Today, somewhat surprisingly, we are dealing with a simpler part of the reality of dogs. Not their behaviors, their communication, who they really are, their nature, their important mental, physical and emotional needs and what they entail for us humans. No, today we keep on the descriptive we observe the stages in the life of dogs .
Yes, because even quadrupeds, like humans, albeit at different times from us , have different stages of life. Having said this, it might seem that the stages of a dog’s life are a less important topic than others. Actually not: knowing that dogs have different life stages is essential as well as knowing what they are and what they entail. Remembering that to calculate the age of dogs in human terms, the known rule that 1 human year = 7 canine years does not apply, here are the stages in the life of dogs.
Index
- Childhood
- Adolescence
- Adulthood
- The third floor
Childhood
The childhood of dogs lasts up to about 4 months and the first 8 weeks of life spent with their mother and siblings are essential for puppies. They are so important that it can be said that they lay the foundation for how little ones will grow up (and that is why you shouldn’t take puppies that are too small, separating them prematurely from their mothers).
By interacting with their mothers and siblings, the little ones learn what it means to be a dog and learn the fundamentals of how to behave like a dog: for example, they learn discipline, bite inhibition, and learn to interact with others.
Babies taken away too early from their mother risk very serious problems including reactivity, excessive possessiveness, fear, anxiety, aggression, cognitive and learning problems. Instead, at 8 weeks the puppy is ready to go to the humans who become her parents and still has a very precious period of about 4 weeks in which it is open and available to everything.
These weeks are to be used wisely and wisely by humans to socialize the little one. What she knows now remains for him when he grows up, which is why it is very important that he knows, positively, as many things as possible. The puppy is like a child, small and defenseless, with body and mind to develop. His energies are limited, as are his strength and ability to concentrate. It needs to be loved, cared for, protected, protected, guided, educated, supported, followed, positively exposed to the world. Adolescence
And then, here it is: almost from one moment to the next, the tender puppy dog ​​goes from being a loving fluff to being a kind of savage who among other things, no longer remembers anything he has learned. He obeys nothing, focuses on nothing, and always distracted , mounts everything, and quarrelsome, he seems to want to test the patience of his humans, and irritable, has mood swings. He’s gone mad
No! He entered adolescence because yes, even dogs have adolescence. Canine adolescence begins when the creature is between 4 and 18 months old . It all also depends on the size of the dog: the little ones mature much earlier while the large dogs mature later.
As can be deduced from the “symptoms”, it is very similar to that of humans , albeit much shorter (luckily for the owners). It can be so complicated that it leads many owners to feel overwhelmed by the adolescent dog: many abandonments occur at this stage of age.
Just like human teens, canine teens need to find themselves, understand who they are, what they want and what they can do, they must learn how to live. To do this, and therefore to become calm and balanced dogs, they need the reassuring presence and commitment of their humans, by whom they must feel understood and who must offer them the direction and guidance they need.
Which for the owners requires, in addition to the aforementioned commitment, time, patience, imagination, a sense of humor, flexibility, positivity, humility and objectivity. The latter, necessary to ask for help from an educator, who must be a serious and prepared professional , in case there is even the slightest doubt that the situation is getting out of hand. Adulthood
Dogs spend a large part of their life in what for us is adulthood. The beginning varies (as we mentioned before, the size of the creatures matters a lot) and can range from 12 months to 3 years. These are the years in which the dog is in full force and mental capacity. He must live a healthy life, be physically and mentally active. The third age
Even dogs like humans have a chronological age and a biological age. And, as happens for humans, the chronological age is influenced by the biological age, on which genetics and style and quality of life weigh a little.
The third age of dogs begins around 6-10 years(Here too the size of the creature counts, for large dogs it starts earlier). Both the body and the mind weaken, nutritional needs change, sleep more, there are joint pains and more or less serious ailments.
As with humans, prevention is important , which is why it is good to follow a regular health check plan. They further increase dependence and attachment to humans. The dog wants and needs to be engaged both physically and mentally but since the body and mind are not what they used to be, it is important that the activities are adequate to his abilities. The third age of dogs is a poignant period and for the owners it is emotionally and practically very demanding.
