Hi-New Breed for me in Boston- 11wks & can ALL this be Normal? I'm used to GSD's...

[Piper'sMom]

Hi and welcome!

You've gotten tons of good advice but one thing did stand out to me in your original post. The treating sometimes for potty. With Piper (our now 2 1/2 year old yellow lab) we treated every time she went potty outside and were super excited except for in the middle of the night (then we were extremely quiet and all business). Granted, she has always been very food driven but it worked wonders for her.

She was six weeks old when we got her and only had a few accidents in the house. I looked at it the same way I did potty training the human kids, GO OFTEN and make a ridiculous scene about how amazing they are. Hope this helps. Good luck! And what is her name?

[saraglabmommy]

I agree with Piper.

Our girls are almost 6 months and this was my main focus.. potty training.. I have a very strong nose and would go nuts if my house smelt like dog pee. We made sure to take them out constantly and encourage them big time "Go Potty" "Good Girls" also we gave them treats each time they went to the bathroom outside and now they are incredible.. they almost pee on command. haha Just often trips outside with encouraging words and a piece of dog food really worked for our girls.

[Jollymolly]

Hi and welcome

[Deacondog]

Hi,
Well, lots to think about. Thank you for all the thoughtful and helpful replies! It was actually the Breeder who told me to "pin" her down!!
It was 12yrs ago when I was taught to do this with my Shepherd (again though a very different breed and one I was having "litter mate" issues with) I'm pretty comfortable with overall dog training- I think I must have just been very lucky with previous housebreaking or just have amnesia. Though I know I never got up every 2-3hours for weeks on end- I would remember that while working full time... I think checking about a uti is a good idea just in case. Though just today- she held it for 5hours as I got stuck in traffic coming home from a meeting in the City and didn't go in her crate - which also might be just a tad too big for her size! She has too much space in there for sure. AND- as someone mentioned- I think she most certainly is getting overexcited and is like a little kid and then doesn't know what to do and starts literally bouncing off furniture and barks and bites at Everything- so placing her or leading her into her crate is a good plan. I've done it just out of sheer lack of options anyway. Re: her toys- she has SO MANY I can't think of more to give her. I've started to limit them actually. I tried the teathering thing a little and she eventually will just chew on the chair I'm in or on my feet/shoes/laces anything to engage ME. (which I feel badly as one can only play for so long) She doesn't like kongs but I will try with the frozen peanut butter as she is so food driven it might work. I found some large ?bully sticks? she really enjoys and let her chew those about 1/2 way down and so far/so good. I also think the advice about not always grabbing at her is VERY smart and makes sense that it WILL make her defensive!! It just seems like all I'm doing is using food ALL the time for everything- she's going to weigh a ton! I'll hold off on the "Off" command a bit. I just can't stand dogs that jump on people or up on counters. But it IS a hard one to learn...and yes, she is only 11wks. She barely makes great eye contact frankly. The breeder came with pretty good references- as mentioned I was not planning on the puppy as I would normally do. And, I am a perfectionist (I'm a nurse and we're a bit controlling- LOL) I'm used to a dog who wants to please because its in his nature versus just for a reward- but I can change my expectations...I can gradually mix in food with praise and eventually HOPEFULLY she'll like pats "almost" as much as a treat... (ya right!) I was just a little surprised to see the confrontational side to her- but heard from the Breeder tonight that it's just normal and she'll outgrow it (?) I do think the sooner we get into classes the better. (and I'm trying to get a good one vs just a local Petco~) I'd like to find someone who works with Labs but I may not be so lucky. I have no Hunting plans or anything official for her but would be good to have someone who is familiar with the breed. It worked out well with the Sheps- as they do all have such different traits. Also- Great idea to put my fingers in her mouth when there's NOTHING in there as well! Brilliant. I give her lots of positive reinforcement and cookies even when she's just lying quietly and say the "down" command... I don't know if she understands- but she takes the food. But she then gets up and starts looking for more. I'm happy to hear all of you are happy with your grown ups! A little bummed they have to be several yrs old to be trusted home alone though- yikes. I have a pretty small house with limited storage- (hence why some of my stuff is "around" for her to get at) I can only put so many things away or "up". no attic or basement. Closets full. Bathroom door won't close tightly and she literally throws her weight against it now that she knows! She's not dumb. She's done this with the barrier too! (so persistent it's unreal) Pet insurance! Yes- need to check that out for sure as bloat and sbo high risk for them as well (been there and $$) have to read carefully to be sure all that stuff is covered...I've hear they can be Tricky. I'm sure I'm missing some stuff but I'm super tired. She's asleep but due to go out soon and THEN I can catch a few hours myself... at least the rain stopped here- (I'm looking for ANY silver lining at this point) But glad to know most of you have been there or ARE there and this isn't far off from Normal- with a ways to go~ More Puppy Proofing to go I guess and more bribing as well. Why doesn't she get excited when she's praised I wonder? (still too young?) She's happy when I get home or when it's mealtime- or when I buy a new toy- but not when she does something new or pees outside? Well- I think the lightbulb will just go off one day and it'll just be like "that" and she'll understand. I'll be back with an update! And her name is Sasha- she didn't seem to like Ivy or Daisy (ignored me)- I guess not "fancy" enough for her... (she has quite the little attitude- lol) Once I figure out the pc i'll get her pic on here. She's a Black lab. Her Mom only with her for about 3-4wks full time then weane just at night for 2 more weeks (I thought that was a little odd) but I'm not a breeder. Again- not what my GSD's experienced- but this woman seems to know what she's doing and her Vet owns the Westminster Affenpinscher Winner- so... ???

[smartrock]

The breeder's vet owns Banana Joe? Oh my gosh, what a cute and funny little guy he is! If I was going to get a tiny dog, he looks like just what I'd want.

We've had boxers and bullmastiffs and I found our labs much easier to house train but at 11 weeks, they were still having a rare accident. I'd ask your vet to check for a UTI and also check for a recessed or inverted vulva. I only mention it now because some girl pups who have issues with frequent UTIs also have what's called a recessed or inverted vulva. If that turns out to be the case, you'd want to know it early because having a girl go through at least one heat cycle often corrects the issue naturally and can save you and her years of discomfort/surgery/utis. It's just something that many owners and apparently some vets are not that familiar with and it's something you'd want to know about so that you don't rush to an early spay, if that's been your habit with your previous dogs. I'm a nurse as well, not that other puppy owners don't want to know these things, but it feels like something you would want to know.

When a pup is ready to stay uncrated depends a lot upon the pup. My boy couldn't be left uncrated until he was over 2 years old because he'd chew on things like table legs or door frames, my girl was under a year old when she could be trusted uncrated while I wasn't home. She was never a big chewer.

As for training treats, I measured out the daily allotment of food and subtracted some to be used as training treats. For other treats, I used tiny pieces of cheese or cut a chicken hot dog into maybe 30 dime sized slices, then cut them in half and microwaved them briefly to get some of the fat out (so about 60 pieces from a single hotdog), or store bought treats like Zuke's mini naturals that are about the size of a pencil eraser or Charlie Bears. The treats can be tiny and still work for you. Half a puppy size Milk Bone treat is plenty. For a food motivated puppy, as many labs are, you can probably train without treats but things can progress more quickly if a treat is involved. Eventually you will be able to phase out the treats but she's still a baby and if the treats get her excited to do whatever you're asking, that's not necessarily a bad thing.

I got some treat dispensing toys to feed them meals from because mealtime would last about 7.8 seconds and they'd be back looking at me as if to say, "Now what, Mom?" It would take them a little longer to get through a meal and they had to use a little brain power and energy to get all their food. A couple I've used include the Omega Tricky Treat ball, the Kong Wobbler, and the Planet Dog Snoop ball, all of which are probably available on Amazon, through chewy.com or any other dog toy site if not at your local pet supply place.

So, those are my thoughts. I hope things progress well with Sasha. Our first lab was quite a shock to the old system for me, too. We hadn't had a puppy for probably 12 years or so, and Chase was much more energetic and demanding of attention than I had anticipated. Now he's 9 years old and the kind of calm, friendly labs you dream of. Lark is 3 years old, and still very puppyfied in her demeanor but also delightful to be around. It'll come.

[swanska]

Congratulations on your puppy, Sasha. Everyone has given great advice to you. The only thing I have to add is that even for my 70 lb dog, I cut all of his treats into tic-tac size pieces. He believes that food is manna from heaven and size of the treat doesn't matter. Sometimes, I wonder if he even feels the crumb as it ends up in his mouth.

If we plan to do extensive training and I feel he has or will eat too much, I short his meals a bit. Sometimes, even I use his entire dinner for training.

[barry581]

Deacondog, first welcome to the board!! I had to laugh when I was reading your original post!! What you've described is a very typical Lab puppy. In general they are pretty horrible and will test your patience at every turn. The reason Lab pups are so cute is so you don't kill them before they grow up!!!

A lot of good advice here. Here's a couple things I'd like to add.

1. Always have treats on you. Labs are food driven, and I swear they would sell you out for a cookie. I do like Smartrock does and cut them into very small pieces. String cheese, low fat chicken or turkey hot dogs, banana chips are all good. I also use the Zukes treats, and I cut those in half too.

2. When Sasha goes potty outside have a party with her like she just did the greatest thing ever. Before long she will be doing it on command. If she does go in the house, don't react at all. Immediately take her outside, and then clean the spot with an enzyme cleaner like Natures Miracle. The second she wakes up, or finishes eating, take her out. It is odd for a female to take this long to potty train so checking for a UTI is probably a good idea.

3. The crate. Once you put her in the crate, she ceases to exist. No matter what she does, barking, whining, ignore her. If you acknowledge her, it's basically a reward to her. She will soon learn to settle on her own. When you crate her and leave the house, give her a little treat when she goes in. When you return ignore her completely while you take your coat off, put groceries away, etc. Calmly walkover and let her out, then you can talk to her, pet her, take her out. This will teach her patience, she will understand that YOU determine when she comes out. You can also play games with the crate. Sit on the floor in front of the crate with Sasha and toss little treats in, she will follow them and gobble them up, then most likely come back to you praise a treat. Repeat this a couple times a day. Feed her in the crate. Soon she will associate her crate as a happy place.

4. Grabbing and chewing everything. Lab puppies explore their world with their mouths. And yes, they are part goat. They will eat ANYTHING. Just do a search on this board and you'll see what I mean. Grabbing something and playing keep away is pretty much a Labs favorite game. The key is to get the Retriever gene involved here. If she snatches something, don't immediately grab it out of her mouth unless it something that could be hazardous to the puppy. Use one of the treats you have on you and trade it for the item she has. She will start to associate the bringing (retrieving) as something good. You also to start training leave it and drop it. If the puppy won't come to you, attach a 6 foot length of paracord to her collar (longer for outside, 10 to 15 feet) this will allow you to enforce recall when she snatches something.

With a lot of time, patience, and love, that little Spawn of Satan you're dealing with will grow into a good dog. Like you, many people have no clue what they are getting themselves into with a Lab puppy. I've had Labs for over 30 years, and I can tell you, this too shall pass!! Good luck with your baby, and let us know how things are going. There are a lot of very knowledgeable people here, and there is usually someone who has experience a given issue or problem. We all love our Labs, and more than happy to help if you need it!

[TuMicks]

Super good ideas here. (Wish they'd had this when I got my first lab pups) But, then again... there were no computers or internet then either.

I'd like to refine a few thoughts and maybe ask a few questions:

1. On this very typical puppy-dog-especially LAB behavior of grabbing something and running away with it... If you want it back, run AWAY from the puppy clapping your hands and making some happy noise, and BINGO the puppy starts chasing you. Then you take the sock-panties-ballpoint pen-TV remote-etc from her mouth as she races by and make a big deal about her "bringing" it to you.

2. If there was furniture in my house I did NOT want puppies to chew (antiques and upholstered chairs) I sprayed it with something that shall remain nameless because some on the forum disapprove. BUT there are some substances you can buy that will make important things in your house less likely to be chewed on. (Electrical cords for instance)

Question: Do you have any backyard at all? Think about how you might construct an outdoor enclosure with a dog house. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have kennel runs. So many, many dogs escape backyards. My facebook page is loaded every day with pictures of lost dogs. My dogs, when I'm not at home are safe within a fence that is within a fence.



This is just an example. If I didn't want to pour a concrete pad for my dogs, I'd probably use patio blocks. You are not going to put such a young dog outside alone. But eventually, she should have a safe outdoor place for containment.

[bett]

having had labs for over 30 years, i can easily say that FRENCH BULLDOGS ARE MUCH WORSE THAN LABS.
eli is 2 1/2 and hasnt stopped eating beds, rugs, towels, ….you name it. but he is very smart and shakes his head NO when we asked him if he had to go "pee pee". that little beast shook his head no.

[Maxx&Emma]

Hi and welcome!

Gosh, I love Lab puppies but they are a LOT of work! You have been given lots of great advice above so I will not repeat it all. I will reiterate a puppy k class is very important, sign up now!

As for the toilet paper destruction, Maxx was over 2 before I could put toilet paper back on the holders in my bathrooms! He is always hot so he really enjoys sleeping on the cool ceramic tile, (on the a/c vent in the summer!), so I did not keep the doors closed. He will be 5 in July and he truly has been a dream dog, pretty much from day one. I have had others that I could never trust alone until the day they left me. I wouldn't trade any of them for anything, they really are the best dogs, IMHO. Enjoy your baby!