Socialization and human bonding are the reasons I have never gotten a dog from anyone but an AKC recommended breeder/kennel with a good reputation-especially since I am not into small dogs-I love the large guarding/working breeds-and I don’t care that they are on the bad dog list-that just means they must be properly trained and taken care of from the beginning so they are a well-adjusted pet and not a psychotic monster-I buy only a puppy 8-9 weeks old that knows what indoors is and has been played with by kids and socialized with adults and other animals-especially cats-no adult dogs.
I only have one dog at a time, and they are a member of the family pack-but I’m the alpha and I make sure they know that-since my cub was a baby, I have had 4 dog companions-2 German Shepherds, a Chow and a Siberian Husky. They all protected the family-including “their” cats-but I never had a biting/threatening incident with a neighbor or other guest-my dogs were never outdoors unsupervised-even though I always have a fenced yard-especially the Husky was an escape artist, and this is the country where the mountain lions and coyotes just love pets as fast food. My dogs were never put in a kennel and were indoors whenever I was and always at night-they were our loved companions-all died of old age-the last one, my Husky girl was nearly 18-it has been several years, but I still miss her...
That’s pretty much the way I do it. Socialization is all about them becoming socialized canines...not people. A well socialized dog is eager to please. Most of the rest takes care of itself. Somewhere I’ve got pictures of two adult cats curled up on the pitbull. Shared warmth on a winter day.