Maywood Retrievers

09/24/2026

YES. Good information for those of you with new puppies!

𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗭𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗗𝗢𝗘𝗦 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗠𝗘𝗔𝗡 𝗟𝗘𝗧𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗣𝗘𝗧 𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝗣𝗨𝗣𝗣𝗬

You take your new puppy to the hardware store.

Within five minutes:

“Oh my gosh! A puppy!”

“Can I pet her?”

“Can my kids pet her?”

And suddenly three adults, two children and somebody's shopping cart are descending upon your puppy while you're thinking:

Look at us socializing!

Maybe.

Or maybe your puppy is learning something entirely different.

One of the most common misunderstandings about puppy raising is that socialization means interaction.

It doesn't.

A puppy does not need to meet every person.

A puppy does not need to play with every dog.

A puppy does not need to be passed around like an appetizer at a cocktail party.

😂

𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗭𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗜𝗦 𝗔𝗕𝗢𝗨𝗧 𝗧𝗘𝗔𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗔 𝗣𝗨𝗣𝗣𝗬 𝗛𝗢𝗪 𝗧𝗢 𝗙𝗘𝗘𝗟 𝗦𝗔𝗙𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗙𝗨𝗡𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗜𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗟𝗗.

And sometimes the best socialization experience is simply watching that world go by.

The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior identifies the first three months as the most important socialization period and recommends safe exposure to people, animals, environments and stimuli without causing excessive fear, withdrawal or avoidance.

That last part matters.

𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗢𝗦𝗨𝗥𝗘 𝗜𝗦 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗔𝗠𝗘 𝗔𝗦 𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡

Suppose I take a puppy somewhere and she sees:

A man wearing a hat.

A child running.

A shopping cart rattling.

A person using a wheelchair.

A delivery truck.

A friendly dog.

Automatic doors.

A strange floor.

And she observes all of it while eating treats, checking in with me and remaining relaxed.

That puppy just had a very productive socialization experience without a single stranger touching her.

In fact, one of the skills I want my puppies to develop is:

“I can notice something without needing to interact with it.”

That's neutrality.

And neutrality is enormously valuable in an adult dog.

I don't necessarily want my dog thinking:

PERSON! PERSON! PERSON! MUST SAY HELLO!

every time somebody appears.

Or:

DOG! DOG! DOG! THIS IS CLEARLY MY NEW BEST FRIEND!

😂

I want a dog who can notice another person or animal and think:

Oh. That's there.

…and continue functioning.

AAHA's current puppy guidance makes essentially this distinction: good socialization includes learning to remain calm around people and other animals, and puppies can benefit simply from safely observing them without pressure to interact.

𝗤𝗨𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦 𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡 𝗤𝗨𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗧𝗬

I would much rather a puppy have five excellent experiences with strangers than fifty overwhelming ones.

Socialization isn't a scavenger hunt.

You don't win because your puppy met:

☑ 10 men
☑ 10 women
☑ 10 children
☑ 5 dogs
☑ 1 person with an umbrella
☑ 1 suspicious-looking garden gnome

😂

A checklist can remind us to provide variety.

But the important question isn't:

“Did my puppy experience it?”

It's:

“What did my puppy learn from the experience?”

Those are very different questions.

AAHA specifically cautions that exposure without evaluating the puppy's response can result in sensitization rather than successful socialization.

In other words, more exposure isn't automatically better exposure.

𝗪𝗔𝗧𝗖𝗛 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗨𝗣𝗣𝗬 𝗜𝗡 𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗡𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗬𝗢𝗨

One puppy may march confidently toward something new.

Another may stop and watch.

Another may startle, move backward and then approach.

Those puppies don't necessarily need the same experience.

I pay attention to things like:

Is the puppy willing to explore?

Can the puppy eat?

Can the puppy engage with me?

Is the body loose?

Does the puppy approach voluntarily?

Does the puppy try to create distance?

And one of the biggest things I watch:

How does the puppy recover?

A confident puppy isn't necessarily a puppy who never startles.

The world is surprising.

Something crashes.

A cart rattles.

A motorcycle starts.

A weird object appears where there wasn't one yesterday.

Startle happens.

What interests me is what comes next.

Does the puppy recover?

Can she think again?

Does she investigate?

Can she reconnect with me?

Can she move on?

AAHA's behavioral-development guidance specifically includes recovery from startling noises among useful indicators of normal versus concerning responses.

Resilience isn't never being worried.

It's being able to recover.

𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗭𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗦𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗟𝗗 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗕𝗘 𝗙𝗟𝗢𝗢𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚

This distinction is incredibly important.

Imagine a puppy is afraid of strangers.

So someone says:

“She needs more socialization!”

Then they take her somewhere crowded and allow person after person to approach, reach for her and pet her.

The puppy tries to back away.

“It's okay!”

She hides behind her owner.

“Go say hi!”

She freezes.

“See? She's getting used to it!”

Maybe she isn't.

A puppy becoming still is not necessarily a puppy becoming comfortable.

Flooding involves exposing an animal to something frightening at an intensity that triggers the fear response and keeping the animal in that situation rather than working below that threshold. AAHA warns that flooding can worsen fear and lead to shutdown rather than genuine comfort.

Forced exposure can make fearful puppies worse, not better.

That's not the lesson I want to teach.

𝗦𝗢𝗠𝗘𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗔𝗡𝗦𝗪𝗘𝗥 𝗜𝗦 “𝗡𝗢, 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗧𝗢𝗗𝗔𝗬.”

You are allowed to tell someone they can't pet your puppy.

Really.

The Puppy Police will not arrive.

😂

Sometimes I'll allow an interaction.

Sometimes I'll ask the person to let the puppy approach them.

Sometimes I'll give them instructions.

Sometimes we'll simply stand there and have a conversation while the puppy learns that a stranger can exist nearby without touching her.

That is valuable too.

And if my puppy tells me she has had enough?

We're done.

I don't need to squeeze three more “socialization opportunities” into the outing because we're already at Lowe's.

The goal isn't to collect strangers.

The goal is to build confidence.

𝗚𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗭𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗖𝗔𝗡 𝗟𝗢𝗢𝗞 𝗦𝗨𝗥𝗣𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗟𝗬 𝗕𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚

Sit on a bench and watch people.

Stand far enough from a playground that your puppy can observe children without being overwhelmed.

Watch bicycles go past.

Walk across a different surface.

Hear a truck.

See someone carrying an umbrella.

Walk through automatic doors.

Visit a friend's house.

Hear appliances.

Experience grooming equipment.

Ride in the car.

Meet a calm, appropriate dog.

Go somewhere new and simply exist there for ten minutes.

No meet-and-greet required.

AAHA recommends planned, managed exposure to novelty and describes positive socialization as helping puppies become calm and relaxed in varied situations, rather than merely accumulating interactions.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗢𝗔𝗟 𝗜𝗦𝗡'𝗧 𝗔 𝗣𝗨𝗣𝗣𝗬 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗦 𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚

This may be the most important part.

I don't need my adult dog to believe every stranger is wonderful.

I don't need her to play with every dog.

I don't need her to investigate every noise.

I want her to be able to function comfortably around ordinary life.

Notice.

Process.

Recover.

Check in.

Move on.

Sometimes engage.

Sometimes don't.

That's a much more useful skill than:

OMG, A HUMAN! RELEASE ME IMMEDIATELY!

😂

So yes, socialize your puppy.

Take them places.

Let them safely experience different people, animals, sounds, surfaces, environments and situations.

But don't measure your success by how many hands touched your puppy today.

𝗠𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗨𝗥𝗘 𝗜𝗧 𝗕𝗬 𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝗣𝗨𝗣𝗣𝗬 𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗗 𝗔𝗕𝗢𝗨𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗟𝗗.

Socialization isn't teaching your puppy that she has to interact with everything.

It's teaching her that she can encounter the world and be okay. ❤️🐩

𝗦𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗖𝗘𝗦 & 𝗙𝗨𝗥𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚

American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior: Puppy Socialization Position Statement (https://avsab.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Puppy-Socialization-Position-Statement-FINAL.pdf)

AAHA: What to Do When You First Bring Home a New Puppy (https://www.aaha.org/resources/what-to-do-when-you-first-bring-home-a-new-puppy/)

AAHA: Canine and Feline Behavior Management Guidelines — Age and Behavior (https://www.aaha.org/resources/2015-aaha-canine-and-feline-behavior-management-guidelines/age-and-behavior/)

AAHA: Changing Behaviors — Flooding and Desensitization (https://www.aaha.org/resources/2015-aaha-canine-and-feline-behavior-management-guidelines/changing-behaviors/)

𝗖𝗢𝗣𝗬𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧 & 𝗦𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚

© 2026 Standard Poodles of Forest Lakes, LLC. All rights reserved.

I’m happy for you to use Facebook’s Share button to share this post in its original form. Please do not copy and paste this article, reproduce it on another page or website, remove the attribution, or use my original photographs or graphics as your own without permission.

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝗳𝘂𝗹, 𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲.

09/23/2026

The dangers of leaving the step stool in the kitchen...you come back to a line of dogs who woke up out of a dead sleep and are now waiting to demonstrate the "feet" command they learned as puppies in hopes of earning lunch 🤣.

09/17/2026

Mug shots of the remaining kids. Who was responsible for peeing on the floor? Was it the same puppy who escaped the playpen? And who dumped almost an entire litterbox? Could it possibly be one of these sweet faces!? 🤔

(Yes, they all have homes.)

09/16/2026

I've had the same conversation with several puppy families over the past few days, so thought I'd share here, too...my puppy won't eat, just wanders off, cries in the crate now that I'm back to work, etc, etc.

Have you taught them to eat when the food is offered, on a schedule?

Have you just gone on one adventure after another since bringing her home and never asked her to be in a crate during the workday?

Puppies (and dogs in general) thrive on routine. And they don't come pre-programmed.

I know getting them home and immediately introducing them to everyone is tempting, but TAKE IT SLOW. I've done everything I can to give them a solid foundation and create stable puppies, but they were just ripped away from everything they ever knew. Now, their mom is gone, their siblings are gone, their humans they trusted are gone. Maybe they've suddenly arrived halfway across the country and the trees even smell weird. I promise you, puppies dogs don't understand air travel.

Absolutely nothing is the same, including the routine they could depend on.

Dogs thrive on routine. So, take a few days to establish a relationship and routine with your puppy first. That way, they know when and how to eat when food is offered, and have enough trust in their new person that if something scary happens on one of those adventures, they will look to you for direction. It's the first step in building a lifetime of trust.

A recent article from AKC on dogs and routine so y'all know I don't just make this stuff up 😜.

Dogs benefit from routines because predictability helps them feel safe, confident, and relaxed. Learn more from American Kennel Club.

09/12/2026

And the results are........

Eight puppies are from Gordie...

And two GIRLS are from Tycho!

We're so very thankful for every single puppy, but especially so for these two little miracles...the smallest puppy in the litter (Dazzle) and the biggest puppy in the litter (Sparkle). Yes, I called it on Day 1 (and I wasn't the only one) as their head shape was slightly different... honestly can't believe I was right!!

Now we navigate the long road to registering a dual sire litter with AKC 🙃.

09/10/2026

ETA: added pictures of the sires at the end of the album!

Back to the regularly scheduled programming now...

Happy 8 weeks, Light Litter!

And it's finally time for a little fun....

Did you know dogs could have puppies from different sires in one litter?

Well, that's just what happened with The Light Litter!

Story came into season and needed to be bred during the ONE WEEK Tycho was unavailable, out of the country. His owners were absolutely wonderful and we worked out sending frozen semen instead. It was proven, properly stored, and properly shipped. Unfortunately, when it was analyzed at my vet, it seemed to be a much lower count than we thought. No idea why, but these things happen sometimes. Still, it was proven, so it was put into Story.

In the hours that followed, I reached out to other trusted breeders, talked with my vets, and agonized over what to do. This was Story's last litter, and I had so many wonderful families who have been waiting for so long for a puppy from her. Sure, these frozen goods COULD produce puppies, but it was highly unlikely to produce a full litter and much more likely to only produce one or two puppies. And believe it or not, one or two puppies are actually a lot harder to raise than a full litter...plus, I'd have a lot of disappointed families.

Last year, we'd bred Story to a lovely show boy a few hours away and were really happy with the puppies. I reached out to his owner to ask if he was, by chance, available. Karin was also incredible and accommodated my late night drive to her house and a vet appointment the next day. All of us figured sure, let's follow up the frozen with a breeding to an older boy whose quality probably isn't spectacular, so it'll give us a great chance at having a full litter and puppies from both boys.

Well, it was Gordie's 11th birthday, and he said Story was THE BEST birthday present ever. He contributed 5 times a normal breeding dose of swimmers and taught all of us not to discount senior boys on their birthdays 😂.

I would like everyone to know that Story also thoroughly enjoyed all of this boyfriend shopping and was also infatuated with Niko, the flat-coat stud. She says next time, Niko...we'll find a time when the humans aren't watching 😜.

Fast forward and we have ten puppies! At 3 weeks old, I sent off their DNA to UC Davis (because they are faster than AKC) and we all anxiously waited for the results.

The results are in and new DNA collected to be sent to AKC so they can be confirmed and I can apply for a multi-sire litter registration... Who do you think is from which boy!?

And a huge thank you again to Pat, Charles, and Karin for being nothing but supportive and understanding in this endeavor. You all are the best of the best, and we ended up with a truly phenomenal group of puppies ❤️.

09/09/2026

Okay, after the last funny shared post about breeders (not) keeping a puppy, I’m going to share something that has been on my mind a lot the past couple of weeks between things going on in the dog world and things going on at home. Thank you to those breeders who have trusted me with one of your puppies - I appreciate you so very much 💖

The Keeper Puppy…

Most preservation breeders don’t ever breed a litter unless they would seriously consider keeping something back for themselves. And yet, each litter there comes a point where you feel in conflict. You look at your beautiful puppies and think about how each new addition takes a little bit away from the, probably many, dogs you already have. Adding another dog just isn’t fair to the five generations playing in the living room. The rescue sleeping on the couch. The much-loved senior who came back when her owner got sick. The new puppy you brought in, in hopes of new lines, who didn’t pass health clearances. The token “other breed” you got to try something new.

And in between the excited questions from new families, your messages are full of:

Are you keeping one!?
What are you naming yours?

How many dogs does this make, anyway?

I know, it’s just that friends and family members are really excited for you. But…you can’t be excited yet.

You’d like to keep one. You’d like to sit and daydream about names. But you have old dogs to walk, young dogs to train, a puppy pen to clean, new and old families’ questions to answer, dishes to wash, floors to sweep, and So. Much. Laundry.

If you have that many dogs, you probably have a 9-5 job as well.

Unless you’ve raised a litter, I don’t think people really understand the level of physical and mental exhaustion it takes. In the early days, you worry about puppies eating enough, being squished, getting too warm or too cold. You worry about your girl and her mental and physical condition, too.

The puppies grow up. You evaluate them. You match them to homes. And even after placement decisions are made, you lie awake at night wondering if you made the right decisions.

Sometimes, one is a Keeper Puppy.

She’s often not the one who has pulled on the breeder’s heartstrings since birth. She’s not the first to greet everyone or the one who tilts her head just so and makes you go AWWW. She’s not the one you spent hours making sure she got plenty to eat or took to the emergency vet at 2 in the morning because she was crying unconsolably (just to find out, thankfully, this time, nothing was wrong).

Sometimes, we’re lucky and we DO get to keep one of those special puppies. But often, those puppies go on to their new families, to be loved, cherished, and start their lives. We cry, but we say goodbye, and our heart remembers them forever. We get excited when we get an update about them and show everyone standing anywhere near us. “Look! Miss Green’s mom sent an update!!” One more reason why being a breeder is a bit alienating, but that’s a different post.

Our keeper puppy is the who makes the most sense to carry on for the breed. Maybe she’s got the best structure or maybe she will just fit in best with the other dogs in our house. Or maybe she’s a lovely representation of the breed and we just don’t have quite the right home for her, so she stays.

Either way, she misses out on a lot. As other puppies leave and start their lives, she’s stuck with us, where our focus and time is still spent on prepping the other puppies and sending them home.

Friends ask us if we are keeping anyone and what her name will be… No idea. All the other puppies have new families, new collars, new names, new lives. They’re starting puppy class and learning new things and meeting new friends.

Our puppy is still at home, without a name, a shiny new collar, and certainly hasn’t gotten to go to puppy class or learn many new things because we’re still deep into finishing up puppy raising, answering families’ worried questions, helping them find local vets and training centers, and celebrating in the joys of their new family member (and we wouldn't trade doing that for anything - we genuinely LOVE helping our new families - that's why we do this!). But if not that, then we’re cleaning up the aftermath, trying to put our house back together. We can’t go anywhere…because puppies.

And finally, FINALLY, when we announce our keeper puppy…when the littermates have gone on to their new homes and we can step away to go to a puppy class…people laugh because our puppy still has no name, has never been on a leash, and probably doesn’t even know how to take a treat from our hands. She missed the really early socialization window and might be in a fear period and we start out with having to work through that while people look at us and wonder why on earth we would have kept THAT one.

Many times when I’ve done well in a competition with a dog I’ve bred, I’ve heard the offhanded comment of “well, that’s because she’s been with you since birth.” I take it as a compliment, but not in the way people expect. They think it means she’s been subjected to some high level of training since Day 1 of her life. Sure, in some small litters, maybe that’s true. But in reality, if she’s done well, it’s probably because she’s an incredible dog and has made up for a severe lack of training since her owner’s time is so divided. As breeders, we pour so much into these puppies, preparing them for going out into the world with their new families…and sometimes there isn’t much left for those who stay behind.

So, the next time you see a breeder achieve something with their bred-by dog, please understand how truly incredible it is and know that our tears are genuine. That win releases us from the guilt we’ve carried since deciding to keep that puppy, and the fear that she would have been better off with someone else who could give her more. It means we’ve worked through it all and we’ve become a team despite giving so much to everyone else, and it’s all been worth it.

If you have a dog from a breeder you appreciate, tell her thank you and congratulations, and really mean it. Send her updates of your puppy and tell her all she’s added to your life.

And for the love of Dog, don’t ask how many dogs she has.

09/08/2026

How do you know you're in Week 7?

Because you peek in at the puppies and see:

- litter everywhere, even though you swept 30 minutes ago
- puppy passed out in food dish
- water bowl turned upside down
- puppy sleeping in litterbox
- another chewed up collar (just out of frame)

And that was right after the world's loudest wrestling match, which began at exactly the same time as an important work call, and ended at the same time, too. 🙃

But they sure are cute ❤️.

09/06/2026

Happy 8 weeks (and one day) to the Night Litter! Several went off to their new homes this weekend...I'm going to miss you all so much!!

09/05/2026

Today is the day...the Night Litter puppies start going home to their new families.

What a wonderful experience this has been, raising a different breed, and watching these kids grow and experience so much. We did a lot - in the past couple of days, they got a work visit in with John, and thanks to help from friends, both litters got to swim again! Nineteen puppies in the pool was a WILD time! Unfortunately not many pictures because we were all busy acting as lifeguards 🤣.

But now, it's all winding down. The tote bags are done (and I'm kind of in love with the way the sparkly flat-coats turned out!), the puppy packs are put together, and I've started making their little tug toys. I'm not sure my hands are going to get through 19 of them, but I'm going to try!

And soon, our house will be a lot quieter...