So, my little puppy (13 weeks) got pwned by a larger yellow lab at the dog park yesterday. After that, when any larger dog came near and or touched my pup, he squelled and yelled.

I didn't want to coddle him and run him out of the park, but I also didn't want to throw him pack into the pack so we hung around a smaller pack but still much larger than my guy.

Now, my guy will grow to be a big pup, but while we wait, do I take him back to the park and stay in smaller packs or wait until he is bigger?

What I fear is that I will stunt his emotional development but not taking him back to something that scared the poop right out of him. at the same time, I don't want to foster some agression for when he becomes a larger dog.

Im not sure what to tell you- instinct keeps saying dont force but keep it in the picture-
an 80lb lab jumped my baby girl when she was like 10-12 weeks and she was traumatized- my other dogs dont like dogs so the park (dog) is not an option unless I take her alone and I am not crazy about that idea. I just want her to meet nice calm dogs first........she is a big scardy cat and its taking its good ole time to work thru some issues

Thanks for you response,

Did your baby recover enough to go back to the park and how long before you went back? Did you try smaller groups with smaller dogs after until she grew up or is she still smaller in size?

Mine is a Lab/Terrier so he will grow be a medium dog, I just don't want him to be afraid of big dogs now as it could become agression when he gets older.

This is what I think you should do for now: 1) Start networking with other doggy "parents" and schedule some play-dates, one-on-one, or just three at a time, for your pup and their dogs. This way you can regulate just what kind/how big of dogs he is socializing with, and he will have a better opportunity to learn how to play safely and courteously. 2) If/when you do take him back to the park, do put him in a smaller, calmer group for now, whether that "smaller" means in number of dogs, or literally the size of the breeds. When going to a dog park, it can be a little bit tricky to "place" ones dog in the appropriate section for his size, energy level, age of development, and temperament. For example, sometimes it is better to put an extremely shy, timid, 50 lb dog in with the mini schnauzers, because the other big dogs would frighten him and make his anxiety worse. On the other hand, you might want to put a hyper active dog, like a whippet or a Swiss Cattle Dog in with the labs, even though it's a lot smaller, because his energy level would be too much for the Yorkie to handle, and he could injure the toy breeds. Does that make sense? I know you are concerned about "coddling" your little guy right now, but really the most important thing is helping him build his confidence and trust in you, so he can grow up to be a secure, well-adjusted dog.

Wow,
Thank you two for your responses. I was hoping for some good advice from here so thank you for not disappointing.

[puppylove2009]

First of all I will say from my experience I feel the dog park is not a place for a dog that young (13 weeks way too young)

I feel that the dog park is not a place to learn socialization but to go when your dog is able to handle, has a good recall, and is already well socialized.

I feel at this point if I were you I would stick to a more controlled situation.

Maybe puppy classes and arranged play dates.

And when your dog is older then take him back to the park.

But it needs to be when he is ready. You may have already had a setback.

The dog park set back our dogs and we will probably never go back because we (the humans will never be ready)

We stick to our arranged play dates

I'm in agreement. We won't be going back to the park until he's quite a bit bigger.

Because I didn't want to suffer a set back in his socialization, I took him over lunch hour and enrolled him in a puppy day care. I'm happy to say that he is frollicking with dogs and pups his own size.

We'll go back to the park, just not right now.

Thanks again everyone for your advice.

[wishbone]

Just like others said, you need to socialize him with other friendly dogs in happy ways. Look for dog parks, starts with dog owners to give your dog some treats then introduce to their dog, also along with yummy treats.

13 week old puppies have no business in a dog park. They are susceptible to diseases and they are at a vulnerable place in their emotional development at this age.

But, what is done is done. You did well to find a puppy socialization group. Don't coddle the puppy -- you don't want to reinforce the fear. If the puppy is having good experiences now with dogs, that one bad experience is in the past.