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Rule of 7
We at Golden Meadows Retrievers have discovered a great socialization technique known as the Rule of Seven. We think all puppies should go through the puppy
socialization called the “Rule of Seven.” The rule
of 7 is a trick we learned to help introduce our golden retriever puppies to new
environments and get them used to many different things they may
encounter in their lives. Much like ENS (early Neurological Stimulation)
the Rule of seven introduces the pups to small stresses that will help
boost confidence, social behavior, and their train-ability.
The
rule of 7 works by introducing pups starting at 4weeks of age to 7 new
things they hadn't had a lot of contact with before, four days later we
change these to 7 new items. So by the time you pick up your golden retriever
puppy they have been introduced to 49 different or new things/ changes.
So when your puppy goes home they can be a cute confident pup ready to
trek across carpet, tile or wood floors. Play with balls, squeaky toys
and chase sticks. And begin to work on obedience.
Here is an excerpt from our rule of 7 form:
Choose a Number (1-7) from each Category (A-G) and this litter gets introduced to these 7 things for the Next 4 days. On the 5th day choose a different Number (1-7) from each category (A-G) and this litter gets introduced to these 7 things for the Next 4 days. Etc…. Put the start date on each choice. Cross of the ones you chose on the last day so we don’t have a repeat. By the time puppies are 8 weeks old they will have been introduced to all of the above items. This improves their ability to cope with stress, socializing, and train-ability.
A. Different types of Surfaces:
1. Hard Wood Floor _____
2. Vinyl, or linoleum flooring _____
3. Fake Grass _____
4. Real Grass _____
5. Dirt or Sand or Gravel _____
6. Carpet _____
7. Tile, or stone, concrete _____
B. Different Toys:
1. Different sized balls _____
2. Squeaky toys _____
3. Hard plastic/ rubber or metal items _____
4. Soft fabric toys _____
5. Natural items, sticks _____
6. Water, pools (weather permitting) _____
7. Ropes _____
We hope to encourage those who purchase our wonderful golden retriever puppies to continue to introduce them to new things every week or every month. It keeps them happy and helps them explore their world in a safe prepared way.