The first day of ENS (early neurological stimulation and ESI (early scent introduction) for the puppies today! The origins of ENS are from the US Military, “Super Dog” program. They learned that early neurological stimulation exercises could have important and lasting effects - their studies confirmed that there are specific time periods early in life when neurological stimulation has optimum results. This first period involves a window of time that begins at the third day of life and lasts until the sixteenth day. It is believed that because this interval of time is a period of rapid neurological growth and development, it is of great importance to the pups and gives them a superior advantage. The exercises are designed to stimulate the neurological system. Each workout involves handling puppies once each day. These exercises impact the neurological system by kicking it into action earlier than would be normally expected, the result being an increased capacity that later will help to make the difference in their performance. Secondary effects that are noted from pups doing ENS are their skills in simple problem solving tests using detours in a maze - non-stimulated pups became extremely aroused, whined a great deal, and made many errors. Their stimulated littermates were less disturbed or upset by test conditions and when comparisons were made, the stimulated littermates were more calm in the test environment, made fewer errors and gave only an occasional distress sound when stressed.
Early scent introduction (ESI) is designed to enhance the pups ability to identify, and react to, specific scents. Each day, they are introduced to a strong scent for brief intervals, and their reaction recorded. For practical purposes, these results mean the potential for even better companion, service, and therapy dogs 😊
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