Best Age to Get a Puppy

[dwarflop]

What is the best age to get a puppy, or sell a puppy, The Book of the Bitch on page 119 said 7 weeks as 8 weeks move the puppies into the sensitive period.  I thought that was a bit young!!! So it would be really nice to hear what people think.
Other people and book's say 8, 10, 12, how do you do the best thing if they all say different ages.  
I think I may have put this on the wrong page, but I dont know how to move it sorry. !!!

[Hurtwood Dogs]

Generally it's 8 weeks that's recommended for cockers now, although with the other breed I own (Weimaraner) it seems to be 7 weeks.

I've had two cocker pups at 8 weeks and it's been perfect. The second pup I got in the summer and because of the set-up the breeder had, was virtually toilet trained by his lovely mum at that age and he's still cleaner than all my other dogs - he always finds a 'tidy' place to go somewhere because that's what his mum taught him Pup's need to learn enough 'stuff' from their mothers and as long as they're with a good breeder that's helping to socialise them with domestic things too, then I'd never take a pup earlier than 8 weeks.

[elaine.e]

All of mine have come to me between 8 and almost 10 weeks. The 10 weeks was because he was from a litter that we'd been waiting on for some time that was eventually born at a time when getting him at 8 weeks would have been over the Christmas & New Year period. That would have been fine if we'd been on our own but OHs family had already arranged to come and stay and they're not dog lovers so Sam's breeder agreed to keep him a bit longer. She was keeping one of his sisters, so he had puppy company, but he was also one of about a dozen Cockers and they were in the house some of the time and in kennels and runs some of the time. I doubt that he had much attention.

When Sam came to us he was very nervous about things like the vacuum cleaner, but on the positive side he bonded with us very quickly. By the time he'd had his vaccinations and was allowed out he was about 14 or 15 weeks and he found the big wide world quite overwhelming. He was afraid of cars, children, other dogs, dustbins and loads of other things.

I'm sure that some of the fear was down to the age he was when he came to us. He missed out on so much during a critical time (this was 20 years ago when the idea of carrying unvaccinated puppies around in public was pretty much unheard of).

If I had another puppy now I would prefer to get it at 8 weeks or just over that. If for some reason it was older I'd work extra hard at socialising as soon as possible.

[Ninasmum]

Yes as Hannah said....8 weeks. 

Ime 7 weeks is too early for them to go to their new homes. 

[jennyspin]

I'm sure that if dogs are KC registered a breeder signs up to say that they will not let them go before 8 weeks of age. I know that I never let any of mine go under that age. I think as well it depends on the pups whether they are ready to leave at that age or not. If I am keeping a baby myself I sometimes keep them longer to see how they turn out, but would not leave them too long as to the critical stage. I was disgusted when my sister went out and bought a shih tzu puppy who turned out to be just under 6 weeks old when she brought him home! x

[Colin]

Puppies of different breeds develop/mature at different rates so for some breeds 7 weeks would be fine, for some toy breeds they wouldn't go to their new homes until they are 10 to 12 weeks old. The Cocker Breed Council Code Of Ethics states that for Cockers 'no puppies should leave the breeder before the age of eight weeks of age'.

http://www.westofenglandcockerclub.co.uk/breederguidelines.htm

[Uli]

Here in Germany it is not allowed to give away any puppy dog before it is at least 8 weeks old. I think this is the absolute minimum age at which a puppy should be separated from its mother.

[RoxyRed]

We got Roxy on the Friday and she was 8 weeks on the Monday, she only had one brother and the breeder said she was very independent from about 7 weeks, eating all her puppy food. Think her mum had sort of had enough by then as her mum hadnt bothered with them after that. I was abit suprised to get her earlier than 8 weeks but shes been fine ever since we brought her home

xx

[supergirl]

Misha came at 8 weeks and Roly at 10 weeks, but that was more to fit in with my work arrangements.  Roly was pretty much housetrained by the time he arrived and was clean in the house.

[Pip895]

We got Saffi at 8weeks which I think is about right - some friends of ours got their working cocker pup at 16 weeks - I think the breeder had held on to the litter in order to be able to pick out the most promicing pups for working, and then sold of the rest.   

I think this late is not ideal, particularly in this case, as the pups were kept in kennels not the house.  He has turned into a lovely dog now, but they had a real uphill struggle with his house training.  He still has such an aversion to the vaccum cleaner that he has to be put out in the garden every time it comes out - great excuse, no vaccuming - its raining.