Every good breeder knows that nutrition and health are extra important during pregnancy. It is always wise to be careful, feed a high quality food, and keep mom in sound and healthy shape. We take daily runs, continue light hunting, and manage Momma Sky’s weight and diet closely. She needs extra calories, but staying fit and not “fat” is vital.
Inside, puppies are growing fast and developing rudimentary sensory and motor abilities. The research on prenatal cognitive development in puppies is limited, but there is strong evidence that maternal influences do affect the future behavior of the puppies. So our socialization program and early learning begins now, during this early developmental stage. Studies show that females exposed to highly stressful experiences during their pregnancy, tended to produce puppies that were more emotional, and that these influences occurred without relation to genetic influences (Serpall, 1995).
In dogs, the fetal nervous system is very immature, and yet there is also evidence that the mother’s corticosteroid hormones (stress hormones) do impact the development of the fetus (Serpell). According to studies by Fox, petting and gentle physical contact with a pregnant mother during her gestation leads to more docile litters. In specific, it activates the parasympathetic system, according to Fox (1978), facilitating relaxation, digestion, and emotional attachment, leading to increased socialization. The tactile sensory system begins to develop well before birth, and is one of their strongest sensations in utero. Puppies stimulated this way during the prenatal period, show a higher tolerance to touching than puppies born from mothers deprived of this tactile contact. Handling and manipulation of the mother before birth has also been shown to facilitate greater resistance to stresses such as cold and hunger, and even disease in the puppies following birth (Dehasse, 1994).
What does all this really mean? It means this is a time to help make Momma Sky comfortable, happy, and loved. Playing games like retrieving, “find it” and light hunting may help her and her puppies more than we realize. Gentle petting and stroking is a family friendly way to help the puppies and the Momma. Everyone helps out with this every day.
Perhaps I should also include some interesting research relating to olfactory development. Bird dogs and their trainers have a special interest in scent development and some recent work has been done with prenatal olfactory experiences. It was determined that when expectant mothers were exposed to a strong smell in association with food while pregnant, and the same exposure was continued during the neonatal period while their puppies were nursing, these puppies later showed a significant preference for that smell at 10 week of age. These puppies with both pre and neo natal exposure showed a greater preference than puppies with only prenatal or puppies with only neonatal exposure, as well, which does indicate that the prenatal influence exists, but may be quickly lost. (Hepper and Wells 2005) This research relates directly to food identification, as the smells likely also had a taste, and may or may not carry over to olfactory abilities like scenting for birds or following scent trails. Nevertheless, it shows that prenatal influences can have noticeable effects. Perhaps more work will be done to carry this on, soon. In the meantime is certainly cannot hurt to continue to expose the mother to the smells that we intend for the puppies to search out in the future.
Dehasse, Joel. “Sensory, Emotional and Social Development of the Young Dog “ The Bulletin for Veterinary Clinical Ethology vol. 2 (1994) : 6-29.
Fox, Michael W. The Dog: It’s Domestication and Behavior. New York, Garland, 1978.
Hepper, Peter G, and Wells, Deborah L. “ Perinatal Olfactory Learning in the Domestic Dog” Oxford Journals. Oxford UP, 2005
Serpall, James. The Domestic Dog, it’s evolution, behavior, and interactions with people. Cambridge, Cambridge UP, 1995.
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