One of my favorite things about having a litter in our home is watching personalities blossom. I say the word “blossom” instead of “change”. You may be wondering why I’m pointing that out and here’s why… From early on in a puppy’s life, I can see a lot about personality.
At only 5 days old, one of the babies in our current litter was already starting to show her confidence and some of her dominance as well. I love a super confident, happy, outgoing puppy. She caught my eye immediately. She was the first to find her momma, she was the first to growl when nursing and the first to find her voice. When I say she found her voice, boy did she! She would bark and whine almost constantly. I love a vocal dog, and if you’ve ever met Nova, this statement is very much true. She talks to us and occasionally complains about things not going her way. But, she also isn’t the first to announce company. I like a dog to talk to me but not be incessant about it. So, this puppy in our litter was obviously vocal. She has proven to be the most confident of the litter in everything she does. She was the first to go over the low side of the whelping box (and the reason we had to put up the barrier at only 2.5 weeks). She is the first to grab toys and bring them to us. She always approaches the novelty items at introduction and will either grab them with her mouth to move them, or she paws at them. She will definitely be one of the pups who scores with more confidence in a couple weeks, too.
So, when I hear people say they love watching their personalities change, I almost want to cry. We are all born with our personality; it’s our experiences and environment that shape those personalities. So, keep blossoming little personalities. Don’t change.
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