(We posted on the tibetan terriers forum earlier, but would be interested in some more opinions please, since wasn't much traffic there!) Hi, We are looking at adding a tibetan terrier to our family and would appreciate thoughts from others regarding the puppy's age. First about us: one of us is almost always home so the dog will have plenty of company, we have two girls (seven and nine), both quiet and caring children. This will be our first dog, though one of us had dogs as a child. We are considering a puppy who is a tibetan terrier. Our point of concern about her, is that she is 16 weeks old and will be 17 weeks by the time we bring her home. We met her this weekend and she has a lovely personality: calm and friendly, independent, curious, seemed very happy - and interacted with us all very well. The pup has been raised in a household where the parent TTs are family pets. This is the second litter they have bred. The family seem fairly well off and raising the puppies seems as much a labour of love as a money making exercise. They say it has been a huge amount of work and that they aren't planning on breeding again. Both parents in the household are huge dog enthusiasts and they have two children, 5 and 7 year old boys. The pup is one of eight in the litter, there are three remaining. (One is accounted for, but isn't picked up yet, another is a quiet, shy smaller male, and the female we are considering). The dogs are all in the open plan kitchen/dining room, (including the pups mum and dad), very much part of everyday life in the family. It's a busy household (with two children) in a rural setting on outskirts of a country town. We live a busy but green city suburb, with a decent sized walled back yard (about 40x40 feet). The pups currently sleep in a crate. We spent two hours with both families and all the dogs together and got a good vibe about the family and all the dogs. Knowing that advice is generally to get a puppy in the 8-12 week range, 17 weeks is old. However this puppy seems to have had some relevant socialization (in a family home). Some of our friends (including two vets) think the longer period with the dog's mother and a family with kids will be a solid grounding for a happy puppy, and we should be able to introduce other experiences successfully over time. There is lots of commentary about why to avoid going under 7 or 8 weeks, but little about why to avoid going older. How easily is this puppy likely to adapt to other quite different things she hasn't been exposed to (city trains rumbling past, busy street markets, being in our car, etc)? How well is this puppy like to bond with all of us at that age? Our alternative is likely from a specialized breeder and while we could optimize the age better, the dog would likely have not have been as well socialized in everyday life of an actual family. Also the breed is rare here, so could take a long time to find one. Any thoughts/advice here? Many thanks!! TG Family
Hi there! I got my springer spaniel cross at 12 weeks and she had troubles adapting to different things such as cars and trains but on regular outings over a few weeks she soon got use to it although being a skittish dog. I don’t think the pup should have any problems adapting to you as my springer cross soon got attached to me and loves being around me and being introduced to new people. I hope this helps although being very different breeds
