23. Puppy Development 8-20 Weeks: What To Expect

You survived the first week. Well done.

Now comes the real work. The first 6 months of your puppy's life set the scene for the rest of your life together.

Why This Stage Matters More Than You Think

At 12 months, your puppy is the equivalent of a 14-year-old teenager. They go through a huge amount of physical and emotional change which determines their personality for life.

If you lose control in the first 6 months, you have a serious uphill battle.

Here's what happens when you get it wrong:

You allow your 20-week-old puppy to jump up when you go walking. At 10 months, you have a dog you cannot control on walks.

You don't rotate who feeds your puppy. At 8 months, your dog starts to develop significant food aggression around your kids.

You don't allow your dog to be left alone. At 8 months, your dog barks whenever you leave the house.

Months 1-2 (8-12 Weeks)

What you're teaching: Name. Sit. Basic lead skills. Toilet training. Crate comfort. Basic socialisation.

What's normal: Lots of accidents. Mouthing and biting everything. Change in routine for you. Needs constant supervision. Sleeps 18-20 hours. Very mouldable and eager.

Managing this phase:

This is the ideal time to begin house training. Introduce routines that help your puppy understand where and when it's appropriate to toilet.

Crate training is also important. It provides a safe and comfortable space that helps with both security and future independence.

Puppies are highly receptive to learning their name during this period. Consistent use of their name paired with positive reinforcement helps with recall and attention.

Basic handling exercises are crucial. Gently touch their paws, ears, and mouth. This prepares them for grooming and vet visits.

Early socialisation is critical at this stage. Expose your puppy to a variety of people, gentle dogs, sounds, and environments. This helps them develop confidence and reduces the risk of fear-based behaviours later in life.

The biggest errors:

Error #1: Only focusing on commands

Lots of owners focus on commands. This is quite a small part of overall dog behaviourism. Your goal is to raise a well-behaved dog, not just have them sit for a cheese bribe.

Error #2: Not sticking to the plan

Everyone starts off well, then people get slack. The more consistent you are at the beginning, the quicker you get through this phase.

Error #3: Pushing their puppy too hard

At this age, your puppy has maybe 1 minute of concentration. You cannot do a day's worth of training in one go. Small consistent sessions done multiple times a day will get you moving faster.

Important point: The biggest mistake we see people make is not educating themselves. Don't get caught up with all the hype about command training. Owners who learn how to develop their dog's behaviour end up with a dog they can take anywhere, not a dog they're embarrassed about leaving the house with.

Not sure if you're focusing on the right things? Our community has age-specific training guides and experienced owners who can help you understand what actually matters at this stage versus what's just for show.

Support To Consider (8-12 Weeks)

At this stage, support can be quite varied and is ultimately down to your experience.

Pre-puppy school: Generally, these are a complete waste of time (don't confuse with puppy school at 12-16 weeks). At this age, your dog isn't vaccinated and has the attention span of a potato. People are mainly sold this to get them to sign up for full puppy school.

Group online support: Usually, you join a puppy cohort and get access to online courses and lots of Q&As. It's like having a support group for puppy owners and can be really helpful if you're a first-timer. Ideally, you're looking for courses that are 6-12 months long.

1:1 coaching: Available for people who want extra help, but can also be excessive for some people. Usually, the difference between this and group classes is cost.

Puppy board and training: Highly uncommon but is used. Your puppy can stay with a trainer for 2+ weeks and learn the basics before they get to you. Our general point on this: if you don't think you have time to train your dog now, you shouldn't be getting a dog.

Months 3-4 (12-20 Weeks)

What you're teaching: Sit. Stay. Walk (off and on lead). Down. Beginning of practising recall. Basic socialisation.

What's normal: End of 16 weeks - biting needs to be dealt with differently. Stroppy teenager phase. Socialisation goals need to ramp up here, can be difficult for some owners.

Managing this phase:

This is the perfect time to start teaching basic commands such as sit, stay, come, and down. Build the foundation for good manners and communication.

Lead training also begins here. Help your puppy learn to walk calmly beside you rather than pulling or lagging behind.

Socialisation should continue in full swing. Ongoing positive experiences with people, dogs, environments, and sounds will shape how your puppy responds to the world as an adult.

This is also the stage to focus on bite inhibition. Teach your puppy to use their mouth gently through appropriate play and redirection.

As their confidence increases, gentle independence building becomes important. Encourage your puppy to spend short periods alone to help prevent separation-related anxiety later in life.

The biggest errors:

Error #1: Insufficient socialisation

Your goal is to have your dog meet 100 dogs in their first 6 months. Most people are nearer the 20 mark, and this has massive long-term consequences.

Error #2: Ignoring behaviourism

You should be following a school of behaviourism at this point. Getting your dog onside now will save you a lot of suffering in the long term.

Error #3: Helicopter parenting

Your job is to make the environment safe, not make your dog into a robot. Puppies need to play and get told off to learn. The biggest mistake is around yelping. Owners get freaked out by this, but usually it just means "I don't want to play anymore, please go away."

Important point: At 12 weeks, your dog is starting to realise the world is bigger than your home. This is a massive change in their world. Your job is to put them in scenarios to help them navigate this world by being a trustworthy owner. The best way to show your puppy this is by being a well-educated owner.

Support To Consider (12-20 Weeks)

If you're going to get support at any stage, this is it. This is where most "puppy schools" come into play.

Puppy school: 100% recommend. These are available in person or online (if you can prove you can sufficiently socialise your dog). Signs of a high-quality school: you're taught about behaviourism (not common), you get long-term support, and some form of online component.

Online programmes: Online programmes can be very useful to give you help through puppy time. This is more than learning commands. They'll help you with puppy challenges AND they can teach you how to identify problem behaviours before they come up.

1:1 coaching: This can be a great supplement if you have the money. Just make sure they're giving you something above and beyond your puppy school (this is not a replacement for that).

Get Ongoing Support For Your Puppy Journey

The 8-20 week window is critical. Having support as you navigate training, socialisation, and development makes all the difference.

That's why we created our free Skool community - to give you continuous support every step of the way.

Inside the community, you'll get:

• Weekly live Q&A sessions where you can ask about YOUR specific puppy's development stage
• Complete puppy courses broken down by age with specific guidance
• A supportive community of owners at the same stage sharing experiences
• Age-appropriate training guides so you know what to focus on when
• Troubleshooting help for teething, socialisation, and teenage behaviour
• Updated resources including development trackers and milestone checklists

Best part? It's completely free. No subscription. No catch. Just dog owners helping dog owners.

Join The Toe Beans Co community today and get the ongoing support you need to navigate the critical 8-20 week period and set your puppy up for life.