ENS is the next big thing in dog breeding

A couple of days ago, a Dire Wolf Project Inner Circle subscriber popped over on email with a great question.

I thought perhaps you may have wondered about the same thing, so here’s how the conversation went.

“I have seen this done a couple of times for some litters; I haven't done any research on it but it does seem interesting. I was curious of your opinion on ENS (Early Neurological Stimulation) and if you have done it in the past or even implement it now with your litters. Does it aid any part for your goal or if you don't implement this practice, would it have any benefits for the future of the Dire Wolf Project? Apologies if I sound ignorant, genuinely not my intent, I am curious of your view on the practice. Thank you kindly for your time in advance.”

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For those of you who don’t know, ENS is a specific way of training a neonatal puppy from 3-days-old to 3-weeks-old (so before their ears/eyes open). The aim is to help puppies be more resilient to stress among other things.

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My answer:

This is an excellent question. 

Just like you, I have also seen an emphasis on ENS from several breeders now. It will probably be an increased trend moving forward because it seems like such a wonderful, responsible breeder thing to do... and the majority of dog breeders want to obtain the ever elusive "responsible breeder" title, even though there is never an official reward. So, my prediction is that ENS will become almost mandatory... with some breeders eventually being shunned or ridiculed if they don't perform ENS on their puppies. 

It looks very intriguing. I agree with you on that. And... the founder claims there is evidence ENS provides puppies with just the right amount of stress to overcome the initial discomfort and learn to handle stressful situations with more confidence and self-assuredness. They also claim it stimulates brain development and improves circulation among other things. Quite the list of positive benefits.

Certainly, breeders who practice it religiously will have a much better awareness of their puppies during this time period... monitoring them more carefully for any weak puppies that need a little extra care.

Puppies in the neonatal developmental stage require a few things to grow well.

They need sleep, regular feeding, and mother's stimulation. 

Despite their lack of eyesight and hearing, young puppies also learn a great deal from their mother and siblings. A good mother will teach her puppies the following during this time: 

1. How to remain in a group/pack
2. How to use touch and smell to find mom and warmth
3. Cleanliness
4. Submission to authority
5. Resilience/tenacity
6. Persistence pays

Among other things specific to canine culture. 

In my opinion, breeders should not interfere with that natural process... or think that somehow we, humans, can raise a puppy better than a momma dog can. 

I imagine ENS will have an effect on puppies' abilities in some way; if it's performed uniformly and as directed. 

But breeding wonderful dogs with great temperaments is much more difficult and more effective in the long run. 

Dog breeders who have uniformly consistent stable temperaments in their puppies (and can prove it) would be the ideal candidates for ENS. 

Uninformed breeders who lack the fundamental understanding of inherited temperament in dogs or how to identify inherited temperament in their puppies probably should be focusing on first learning how to breed consistently great inherited temperaments. 

Training of any kind, especially during the neonatal developmental stage, MASKS the genetically inherited temperament. 

Without generational temperament consistency, performing ENS on puppies may alter a breeder's pick pup. Choosing instead the pup that learns well over the pup that is naturally great may fundamentally alter the inherited temperament of the breed. 

ENS is such a relatively new thing... so if it does go mainstream, it'll be interesting to see how things shift in the dog world. 

I know, for certain, that the Dire Wolf Project would never employ it. We MUST perform RAW PUP standardized temperament testing on our puppies at 3 weeks old. ENS would significantly alter any raw scores. Since we are a breed in development with regular and systematic crossbreeding at strategic intervals, we must be able to experience the genetically inherited temperament of our puppies. We cannot compromise on that. 

But, a long-time established breed with a breeder who consistently produces per standard temperaments... they could probably get away with employing ENS. 

Having said that... after 3 weeks old... then, yes. All of the socialization training a breeder wants to perform in order to help the puppies learn how to live better in a human world is perfectly acceptable. We use what we call "Lap Therapy" to help our puppies understand how to interact well with humans before they go to their new homes. We begin this training routine just after the 3-week-old temperament test. I have also begun to specifically teach stairs, uneven surfaces, and tunnels during this time. 

It'll be interesting to see where ENS goes in the next few years. Thanks for the fun question. I hope you are enjoying this lovely spring weather. All the best to you and yours. 

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Speaking of ENS, we are looking at offering a “Puppy Training Bundle” of initial puppy training essentials.

Even if you no longer have a puppy or your puppy purchase may be a little ways off yet, click the link below if you would consider having all of your puppy training supplies right there the moment you receive your new puppy.

Yes to the Puppy Training Bundle!

Jennifer Stoeckl is the co-founder of the Dire Wolf Project, founder of the DireWolf Guardians American Dirus Dog Training Program, and owner/operator of DireWolf Dogs of Vallecito. She lives in the beautiful inland northwest among the Ponderosa pine forests with her pack of American Dirus dogs.