The last few months we have had a very interesting opportunity for comparison. Our Dalmatian/Pit bull litter has been joined by a single orphan Shih Tzu. The first Dalmatian/Pit bull litter raised by the Dark Moon Puppy Project is now 8 months old. All but two have found forever homes. Whey have a full range of personalities and energy levels, there are several remarkable similarities that seem to come from the way they were raised: They are not afraid of obstacles. They have a great ability to focus and remember. They have a very strong desire to cooperate with people, and they use this connection to accomplish tasks.
While we know the pups from the Dalmatian/Pit bull litter are remarkable dogs the question remains: how much is from their breeding and how much is from the way they were raised?
Along comes a puppy that is pretty much the opposite in every way! A purebred Shih Tzu orphan who is raised without any siblings- the Hamster!
This little guy was raised by us from 3 days when his mother died. He is a toy breed who will grow to 10 or 15 pounds as an adult. And because he was raised by himself after his mother and littermates were lost he did not have the experience of living in a pile of puppies the way our first litter did. He had the same infant exercises, the same socialization to other dogs and people, and early toilet training where he was encouraged to differentiate between toilet areas and living areas starting about 3 weeks.
He went to his forever home at 10 weeks, but by this age he was already showing the same remarkable level of focus, ability to cooperate with people, and confidence around obstacles as the other puppies from the project.
The Hamster also shows more of the problems that orphans and single pups are prone to. He cries for attention, something only one of the older litter ever learned to do. He throws great tantrums if he is thwarted in any way.
Our conclusion so far: we are noticing certain traits in all of the puppies we raise that are not present in dogs that come to us when they are older- the ability to focus, cooperate, and negotiate obstacles confidently may actually come from the way we raised them and not from their genetics. It is likely that these traits can actually be taught as a puppy develops. Now we are wondering how these abilities affect the pups as they go through adolescence into adulthood. Stay with us as we explore the possibilities!
