When Do Puppies Open Their Eyes? (9 Cool Facts)

It is normal for puppies to be born with their eyes closed, that is why it’s important for a dog owner to know when do puppies open their eyes?

and also understand why are puppies born with their eyes closed? How many days does it take a puppy to open its eyes?

When do puppies eyes open fully?. To be able to provide the care needed for his newborn puppies.

I understand the excitement that comes with newborn puppies, and how a dog owner may become eager to look into his puppies’ eyes and welcome them to their new home. It’s okay to want to meet your adorable puppies, but then, it’s good to meet them when they can recognize you.

Therefore, it is wise to know when do puppies open their eyes and when they are able to recognize people. Opening eyes does not necessarily mean they can recognize you because it takes some time before they see clearly after they have opened their eyes for the first time.

For the time being, it is important to take care of their mother for your puppies to thrive, and when they are ready to interact you will relate with them confidently.

At birth, puppies cannot see nor hear, nor eat solid food nor walk because most of their body’s systems are yet to fully develop.

So when can puppies see clearly and when do puppies eyes open? It takes 8 to 20 days after birth for a puppy to open his eyes for the first time.

After the first time opening his eyes, it will take another 4 weeks for a newborn puppy to fully develop his seeing and hearing abilities.

Between the period when your puppies first opened their eyes and the period that their eyesight develops fully, a puppy’s vision remains blurry and hence he cannot recognize things.

Probably your dog has recently given birth to a litter of puppies and some days after birth you notice that their eyes are still closed. You start questioning when do puppies open their eyes and even wonder what will happen if my puppy’s eyes won’t open?

Well, in this article we will focus on answering your questions on, what do puppies look like when they are born? Why are puppies born with their eyes closed?

When do puppies eyes open? What if puppies’ eyes do not open? How long after puppies are born do they open their eyes? How long are puppies eyes closed?

Then, how to open a puppy’s eyes? When do puppies start walking and opening their eyes? Finally, When do puppies open their eyes and ears?

 Additionally, I will highlight important things you need to know to take care of a newborn puppy.

What Do Puppies Look Like When They Are Born? 

Having a litter of newborn puppies is as exciting as having a newborn child. And just like newborn children, newborn puppies depend on their mothers to feed them, keep them warm, move them around if need be, protect them from any danger and mostly take care of them.

Puppies are born with only two senses active, smell and touch. This is why at birth puppies know their mother’s smell and are able to respond when she touches them.

So when do newborn puppies eyes open?

As days progress, puppies’ body organs will develop, for instance, puppy eyesight development, and they will be able to see, hear, walk and even eat solid food.

When do puppies open their eyes? At birth, puppies’ eyes are always closed. Newborn puppies eyes open when they are around 8 to 20 days old is when we can answer the questions of: “When do puppies open their eyes?”, “When do puppies eyes open?”, and “Are the puppies eyes open too soon?”.

Common misbelief is that: puppy born with eyes open. The truth puppies are born with their eyes closed.

A puppy opening eyes for the first time doesn’t mean the puppy will immediately be able to see clearly and recognize objects around them. However, as they continue to grow, their puppy vision and puppy eyesight will also improve until they are fully developed and they will be able to identify people and objects in their surroundings.

You will notice that open puppies eyes’ are cloudy-like and grey-blue in color, however as they grow these colors will evolve.

After acquiring their vision, puppies hearing senses will start to develop. After answering the question of when do puppies open their eyes.

Why Do Puppies Take Time To Open Their Eyes?

The senses of hearing and seeing are developed some days after birth.  Still, most of the newborn puppies’ body organs are not fully developed at birth like their nervous system, digestive system, optical nerves, and even their immune system. 

For this reason, newborn puppies cannot walk, hear, see nor eat solid food at birth.

When Can Puppies See And Hear?

At around 14 to 24 days after birth, puppies’ hearing canals start to open and they can respond to sound. They will also be able to distinguish voices and react towards them.

Just like babies, at birth puppies do not have the strength in their legs to support their bodies therefore they cannot stand nor walk. At around the second week after birth, a puppy will start standing. Although he may not be able to walk at this time, his mother will come through if there is a need to move.

Another common feature of newborn puppies is that they do not have teeth at birth. Their deciduous teeth start to appear in the fourth week after birth.

Why Are Puppies Born With Eyes Closed?

The main reason why puppies are born with their eyes closed is that puppies’ eyes are not yet developed at birth and it will take around one month to fully mature. At this time their eyes are delicate and are sensitive to light. When do puppies open their eyes?

Too much light can damage their eyes since they have not developed the ability to control the amount of light in their eyes. So, when do puppies open their eyes?

Newborn puppy eyes should not be exposed to too much light. That would be puppies eyes open too soon.

Another reason why puppies’ eyes are closed for a few days after birth, is that to protect them from dust and particles that may damage their delicate membranes.

Since the tear duct, which is a natural eye cleaner, is not yet fully matured, a puppy’s eye is closed to allow ample development of the eyes.

When Do Newborn Puppies Open Their Eyes?

The most common questions asked by new puppy owners are: “How long does it take for a baby to open it’s eyes after birth?”, “How many days puppy open eyes?”, or “When do puppies open their eyes?”.

Well, Some puppies start opening their eyes as early as they are 8 days old. The exact time when puppies open their eyes for the first time slightly varies in individual puppies and even different breeds of dogs.

On average, a newborn puppy takes 8 days to 20 days to open their eyes. Although when puppies open their eyes they do not see well immediately. It takes another two weeks to three weeks after when the puppies open their eyes for the first time to fully mature their seeing capability.

So by now, you should have an idea of when do puppies open their eyes and why puppies are born with eyes closed. Now let us see what you should do if your puppies’ eyes do not open.

When Can Puppies Open Their Eyes?

Wait for 16 days until puppy naturally opens its eyes. If by the 16th day you don’t have the puppy eyes open, try massaging his eyes with wet and warm cotton wool. 

Now that you know when do puppies open their eyes, you should be speculating what happens if my puppy does not open his eyes. Does that mean some dogs are puppies born blind? What if puppies eyes don’t open? What if my puppies eyes open too soon?

Probably it is a puppy opening eyes problem. a little massage should help him open his eyes.

What If My Puppy Won’t Open His Eyes?

You can also help in cleaning your puppy’s eyes using a clean cloth to remove dirt that may have built up from birth fusing the eyelashes together.

While massaging or cleaning your puppy’s eyes, always use a ball of clean cotton wool immersed in warm water to avoid causing infections to your puppy’s eyes. Also, remember to be gentle and tender with your newborn puppy.

If you notice any pus or swelling, gently clean the pus using a ball of clean wool dipped in saline water, however, if the pus or swelling remains persistent, make an appointment with your vet.

If after the 20th day your puppy has not opened his eyes, then you can make an appointment with your vet to determine the reason behind your puppy not opening his eyes and save your puppy from having lifetime eye impairment.

A puppy not being able to open his eyes by the third week is a sign of a serious eye problem. Do not assume, seek for professional input to rule out any eye illness.

It is important to take note that, you should never force your puppy to open his eyes. Be patient with your puppy.

Once he is ready to open his eye, he will open. However, if you suspect that your puppy not opening his eyes is because of an underlying medical reason, then take him to a vet to confirm your suspicions.

This was your guide towards dealing with questions like the following: “ When do puppies open their eyes?” and “What if my puppies eyes open too soon?”.

How Many Days Does It Take A Puppy To Open Its Eyes?

Puppy eyes generally open between two-and-a-half and three weeks old. Be patient with your puppy and soon they will open their eyes and start playing with you.

3 Week Old Puppy Hasn’t Opened Eyes – What To Do?

We had the same thing happen with one of our GSD’s. They can’t see anything in my opinion until their eyes open fully. So for now, I would keep a close eye on him so he doesn’t get into anything or hurt himself in anyway.

Our puppies eyes were closed from the beginning all the way up until after they were 4 weeks old, then one day they just popped open!! I guess he was tired of sleeping! If your pup is well and happy, don’t worry too much about it. Just make sure he doesn’t get into anything or hurt himself.

If after 4 to 6 weeks puppy still didn’t open their eyes, it’s time to consult your Vet.

When Do Puppies Start Walking?

Now you know “When do puppies open their eyes?”, “Can puppies see with their eyes open?”, and what to do if your puppy does not open his eyes.

Let us explore when puppies walk.

Puppies are not able to walk for few days after birth. They are assisted by their mother to move around if they will need to move around.

At around the second week, they start standing, then by the third week they can try moving around and by the fourth week, they should start to walk normally.

Vets and breeders often give general guidelines for what to expect of a growing puppy. The most common advice is that your pup will begin to walk between the two-and-a-half-week mark and the fourth-week birthday. But don’t worry: Even if your pooch doesn’t learn how to walk until he’s a month old, he’ll probably catch up in no time.

If you get a premature puppy, one who’s delivered by surgery or naturally before his mother can deliver the placenta and milk, he won’t be able to walk for several weeks. And since such pups usually stay inside the first few weeks of their lives, they probably won’t be up and walking until around their eighth week from birthday.

Final Verdict On When Do Puppies Open Their Eyes

I hope by now you understand when do puppies open their eyes, why are puppies born blind, and what to do if your puppies do not open their eyes.

Many answers were covered in this article to plenty of commonly asked questions like:”When do puppies start opening their eyes?”, “How long do puppies eyes grow for?”, and “When do chihuahua puppies open their eyes?”.

When puppies are born, they have their eyes and ears closed. Furthermore, they cannot move around therefore they spend most of their time drinking their milk and sleeping. It takes a few days for their hearing and vision to develop.

When do puppies open their eyes?, it happens around 8 to 20 weeks. Different puppies have different timings. Some breeds can open their eye as early as the eighth day of their lives while others can take up to the 20th day to have their eyes open.

Having puppies’ eyes closed at birth is important because eyes are not fully matured at birth. They take another 2 to 3 weeks to mature. 

During this time, eyelids remain closed to protect the eyes from infections and impairment by either too much light or dust.

Puppies’ eyes have to fully develop before the puppy becomes independent. Therefore it is important to keep puppies protected from anything that can harm the vision during the first few days as their eyesight develop.

After puppies have opened their eyes for the first time, they are only able to recognize light and shadows because their vision will remain blurred until their optical nerves are fully developed.

Even though you may become impatient to know the color of your puppy’s eyes, never force your puppy to open his eyes. This may damage his eyes or make your puppy’s eyes susceptible to infections.

Most of the development stages come naturally, however, be careful to monitor the growth of your newborn puppies to ensure that your puppies are well taken care of.

This was your complete guide with answers to: When do puppies eyes open? All the best raising your newborn puppies!

Rajkumar Ravichandran

Welcome to Learn About Pet. My name is Rajkumar Ravichandran and I love all pets, travel, and amazing food. I write about my passion and personal experience caring for multiple pets in this blog! ❤️