True or False? Your opionions

[jgtrain4]

Some people say hunting dogs are ment to be kept outside. Some people keep their hunting dogs inside. I've always kept my dog inside. Your thoughts?

[Chippie Dog]

Inside definately. Labs need to be with their people. And don't believe that old tale about it ruining their noses.

[1tulip]

Labs are such fantastic animals, they will want to please you, hunt for you, retrieve for you, even if you only interact with them episodically. But both owner and dog are impoverished if the dog is kept outside and away from the family the majority of the time.

I sort of wonder if the folks that insist the dogs stay in a kennel know that much about the breed in general, and their dog in particular.

(Having said all that... my dog has spent a lot of time with a pro and was not a house dog for many, many months. She wasn't traumatized by the experience. But we're both happy that she's home.

[Tasha13]

Inside most def....Some people have there dogs outside....but i firmly believe that labs want to be with there people...so why take that away from them....I would never keep my dog outside....But to each there own i guess.

[Presidential]

We have both situations. My house dogs would HATE being in the barn and my barn dogs would NEVER want to live inside. It is a very personal decision.

If kept correctly outside, your labs will not suffer emotionally, will not be held back in training.

However, if kept incorrectly inside (too many table scraps, too little discipline, not enough exercise), it can be very damaging.

Just do right by your lab in either situation.

[EvanG]

This is interesting. The question wasn't whether or not to keep a hunting dog in isolation! All year my gundog is in the house...right up until cold weather begins to set in. He's going to have to hunt in that. More importantly, he's going to have to swim in that...sometimes when there is skim ice; cold water.

Now, you acclimate that dog to 72 degrees, then get him up in the morning and go make him swim in ice water. How fair is that?

I still have him in for frequent visits. We still spend tons of time going places in the car. He isn't isolated. He just spends more time in the climate he'll hunt in, and is therefore accilimated to it.

EvanG

[4thelove]

I totally agree with the last post. We hunt in the fall and it is important that the dogs be use to the weather. We have a out door run/kennel where they stay when we are not home. But when I am home, I want the dogs with me, that's why I have them. My husband on the other hand when is home puts them outside.

[Seano]

I have worked closely with teams of avalanche dogs over the years and the one issue they tend to have with training is not that the dogs live in the house, but the overindulgence that tends to follow.

It also seems to me that one thing at work putting this idea out there may be (MAY BE) a bit more of natural detachment and therefore objectivity that also may be present when working dogs live outside the home. I'm in no way saying lack of feeling for the dog etc. etc., just a different relationship (maybe?)

I say this because we boarded our indoor dogs with a trainer who has outdoor kennels for about 5 weeks doing some training. Besides the fact that she is just plain good, I saw with her a simple objectivity with the dogs - no preconcieved notions. The dogs did great staying there, transitioned to the kennels fine and were very focused when working with the trainer.

[Fowl Play]

When we're home my dogs are in the house. When we're gone the dogs go in the outdoor kennel. They are sheltered from the rain, and for the most part from the wind. (Not entirely). They need to build their coat for hunting, but they're part of my family. Only during the coldest days do my dogs stay inside in crates when I'm gone. Honestly though, my dogs would and do choose to stay outside often. They're known for laying on the deck for hours, even though they could be inside.

[r6d]

My dogs need to be with their pack leader and that is ME . I could never keep a dog outside, even if he/she has company of other dogs. I want to be the most important thing in his/her life besides retrieving.

[jgtrain4]

I think when your dog stays in the house you and your dog have a closer relationship with your dog, so, the dog will most likely want to work or enjoy working for the owner/trainer more.

[Michael M]

Evan G. brought up a great point that I was also pondering as soon as I read your e-mail. My question is, how cold is cold enough for the dog to build a great base coat. I have a side room that I could keep my dogs in at night and keep the temperature much lower than the rest of the house. Are temperatures in the 50's low enough overnight or should it be in the 40's to get the coat thick. I live in very cold climate- Buffalo NY area- but do not keep my dogs outside overnight. Part of the problem are Deer, Fox, and Rabbits. We have even had a black bear roaming within a mile of my yard, so not looking to keep dogs outside. Any animal moving around at night results in barking from my Dogs, just to scare them away. I do live in a suburban neighborhood and that barking would definitely disturb my neighbors who are within 100 yards on each side of the house. Any feedback would be welcomed.
Michael M.

[badlandstucker]

Our dogs our outside the majority of the day, then come inside at night. Besides weather, we also have a healthy mountain lion population and we live outside of city limits. We have a chainlink fenced yard so do not have the tall kennels/runs some people use. It would be fairly easy for a big cat to hurdle our fence with ease. Normally I wouldn't worry about big cats coming too close to the house, but we did have an incident a couple years ago where one ran one of our horses through a fence. We have quite a few deer that feed right outside our yard at night which no doubt can lure cats even closer.

We also do not hunt ducks. If we ever move back to MN we likely will again, but here there are not enough sloughs around to hunt them. Then I would be more concerned about acclimating them to the cold weather.

[kdeckels]

Originally Posted by Fowl Play

When we're home my dogs are in the house. When we're gone the dogs go in the outdoor kennel. They are sheltered from the rain, and for the most part from the wind. (Not entirely). They need to build their coat for hunting, but they're part of my family. Only during the coldest days do my dogs stay inside in crates when I'm gone. Honestly though, my dogs would and do choose to stay outside often. They're known for laying on the deck for hours, even though they could be inside.

This is exactly the scenario with our dogs. Went hunting in wet snow & 32 degrees this morning; the pup loved it & us humans gave in to the conditions first.

[Baron]

Inside. Well I don’t really have a option because where i am from the burglars poison your dogs before they break into your house. It’s a sad thing! And it makes me so sad and mad to hear that someone has lost all their dogs because of poisoning. So there is no chance he is sleeping outside if there is a chance of him being poisoned.

And the crime is just getting worse because of our incapable government!!!