** Puppy Vaccinations. PhD Dogs encourages each and every owner to have a wonderful relationship with their puppy’s vet and to work closely with your vet to prevent communicable diseases among our family pets. It’s becoming more widely accepted by veterinarians that early socialization and learning in a controlled environment far outweigh the small risk of disease. Many veterinary colleges are educating their students on this aspect of dog behavior. PhD Dogs do require proof of initial vet care and exam to come to class.

The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior has realized the importance of early socialization and issued a new position statement, “The primary and most important time for puppy socialization is the first three months of life. During this time puppies should be exposed to as many new people, animals, stimuli, and environments as can be achieved safely and without causing overstimulation manifested as excessive fear, withdrawal, or avoidance behavior. For this reason, the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior believes that it should be the standard of care for puppies to receive such socialization before they are fully vaccinated.” (Emphasis added) Your veterinarian may not be aware of this change, so please let him know. PhD Dogs takes as many precautions as possible before each of our classes for a disinfected training environment, clean and healthy fur students coming to class and our best defense against sickness is educating the guardians – YOU.

Please decide for yourself about the benefits of his social development vs. the medical aspect. Is there a risk in letting your puppy be with other puppies? There is some risk — but think about it for a minute. His classmates will be other puppies who have the same care and attention that yours has — they’re up to date on their vaccines and are in good health. There are options and benefits to either stance – private and in-home lessons are always available.