English Lab Puppy

[andersonsh]

I have a 7 month old White English Lab. We have had 2 american labs before and they were full of energy. This pup could not be more different. To follow is some info on how he is. I am wondering if this is normal:

Sleeps and pretty lazy most of the time
Isn’t very excited to see us or anyone really. Walks over quickly to say hi if we encourage him but then goes and lays down.
Does not retrieve anything and will only really play with toys tied on a stick that we run around with.
We have gone to the lake a couple of times but he has no interest in going in the water (doesn’t like his tiny pool at home either). Perhaps he is just too young.
Still goes up the stairs like a really young pup would (very slow and step by step) – does not run up like my other labs did.
He still cannot get up onto a higher surface such as a couch by himself – won’t jump up like most dogs would. Will put his front paws up and then waits to be lifted.
Everyone who meets him cannot believe how chill he is and asks why he is not like a normal pup.
He eats 2 cups of food a day and seems healthy but why is he so chill?

Thanks for your thoughts : )

[smartrock]

Hello and welcome!

Your pup is sure cute, if that's him in the picture!

I've had 4 labs (in addition to 5 other dogs in the past) and they've all been English style or show-bred labs. I guess I have a few questions and a few comments.

Always, if you're concerned about the health or activity level of your pup, I'd make sure he's been examined by a vet with whom you've discussed your concerns. Could he have achy joints or growing pains that make him less inclined to run around or jump up on furniture or into cars? Did you get him from a breeder who had done genetic and orthopedic testing on the parents to check their hips and elbows for soundness? Have you talked to the breeder about your concerns? Those are where I'd start to see what might be going on with your individual pup.

Judging from some of the other members on here over the years who have had labs who are more field-bred, rather than English style, they have always sounded wildly more energetic than any of mine. This is not to say mine aren't energetic, but they haven't had to play, play, play all day.

Not all labradors seem to understand that they are retrievers. Our first lab- nope. I'd throw a ball, he'd run over to it but never bring it back. Same if we threw it in water, he'd swim out, verify that's what we'd thrown, leave it behind when he swam back to shore. He did better with games of soccer where he'd be the goalie and stop the ball. Our 3rd lab is really the first one who would retrieve a ball and actually bring it back. The second one would only retrieve in water, not on land, but she'd bring it back to wherever she wanted, not to us.

Not all dogs want to go into the water initially. Are there any other dogs around who will go in the water or play along the shoreline with whom he might play or learn? Sometimes another dog is the best teacher. If you're hoping he'll jump off a dock or into a pool, that can be too scary at first. You might try playing along the shoreline where the entrance to the water is gradual. I wouldn't carry him out or pull him out into the water but let him learn to get into it. It can make a young pup more fearful to be forced into a situation like that.

Have you tried any obedience classes with him? It can be fun to do at least one round of obedience classes so you both learn how to communicate with each other and find some fun ways to interact. Even if you've had dogs before, this guy is his own self and may have a different way of interacting. And maybe you're just anticipating the more high level energy you were accustomed to with your previous labs.

Don't let your friends make you feel bad about your dog. There are a lot of people out there with opinions about dogs and how they should act or look or be that are off base. If you get him checked over by the vet and he's a healthy boy, then maybe you should feel lucky that you got a more chill pup on your hands.

I don't know what you're feeding him and how much you've fed him over the time you've had him. My 9 week old pup eats 3 cups a day of puppy food and my 4 year old eats 3- 4 1/2 cups of food depending upon which food I'm giving him. Neither are neutered, I know some dogs tend to need less food once they've been neutered to keep them from gaining weight. English style labs tend to be chunkier than field bred labs, so you don't want him to be too slender unless he needs to be for orthopedic reasons. Just an observation.

So, first I'd make sure the vet has checked him over, checked to make sure there's nothing of an orthopedic nature making him not run or jump or climb stairs as you'd expect. Check for worms, parasites, tick-borne illnesses. Discuss your concerns with your vet- they want to see happy, healthy dogs living their best lives, so I'd start there. If you're still in contact with his breeder, try to find out what his parents were like and see if they can offer any suggestions.

Those are the things that come to mind initially, not knowing anything else about your pup. So, let us know his name and let us know how things go. Hopefully he'll turn out to be just what you wanted all along, you just didn't know it!

[andersonsh]

Thank you so much for your response above. Yes that is Beau in the picture and we do love him. I have an appointment booked with our Vet this week just to make sure everything is okay. I have also emailed the breeder and they are away on vacation for a week so I will have to wait for a reply from them.

We have taken Beau to one set of obedience classes in May and June and plan on doing a second set in September. He really did pretty good at the classes. The instructors thought he was more quiet than they have seen however, they did mention that English Labs often are more relaxed than American Labs. I know what you mean by trying not to listen to what others say. All pups are different and he may just be more chill. We are feeding him a good quality food twice a day - about 1-1/2 cups per feeding as that it what our breeder recommended. We plan on holding of until a year before we get him neutered, and again this is recommended by the breeder. I know our vet will say to do it now but we plan on waiting.

Beau seems like he is in good health but I guess we will see. He was checked over by a vet before we bought him and this breeder is in good faith I believe. It is so hard not to compare to other more active pups but he may never be that way. As for swimming he may just be a little nervous yet. We go up to our cabin a lot and will keep playing with him around the water like you mentioned.

Once again, thank you for your thoughts, I really appreciate it. I will give an update once he visits the vet and we hear back from the breeder.

[zd262]

Welcome Beau!

I second most of what smartrock said. Different labs have different energy levels anyway but particularly across breeding lines. We have a 6 month old "dual purpose lab" (field on one side and show on the other). He is much more go, go, go than you described, but he also is clumsy going down the stairs and likes to be placed on the couch after he puts his paws up. But he took right to retrieving and water. Our older lab on the other hand was never really a "retriever" despite coming from strong field lines. He also refused to go in the water until another dog he wanted to play with and trusted went in and he accidentally chased him in, learned it was fun, and now he loves water.

I would definitely get him checked out by a vet as a good first step and discuss your concerns with your breeder (which it sounds like you were already planning to do both).

Otherwise the only thing that stuck out to me in your post was also the amount he's being fed. We are at 4 cups a day for our little guy based on our breeders advice. He's probably ~45 pounds. We may even go up to 5 cups depending on his energy levels. We'll back down once he's neutered. Our 7 year old lab is at 3.5 cups.

[barry581]

Welcome to the board! Just out of curiosity, how much does Beau weigh? Three total cups of food per day seems awful low for a growing pup. My last two males, one imported from the UK, and my current yellow boy, Brooks were eating about 6 cups of food per day at 7 months. My current pup, a one year old field bred female was eating about 4.5 cups of food at 7 months, she's a bit on the small side, weighed 58 pounds at 7 months......

[andersonsh]

Wow, perhaps I am not feeding him enough. He is not a working dog in the field or anything so does that make a difference? He just a family pet that gets walked a couple of times a day and goes out in the yard. He is 44 pounds right now.

[andersonsh]

I forgot to say that I appreciate all of the replies.

[Snowshoe]

Ditto smartrock, she has mentionned just about everything I thought of. Especially a Vet check for your concerns. Is it really hot where you are right now? That could take the starch out of any of us. It's hard to tell from your photo but Beau does not look underweight, in fact a bit plump. Go by his needs, which may be reduced by energy output. 3 cups a day may be just right for him, especially is it's a high fat food. Do your Vet and breeder say he is the right weight for his height? Are you weighing him regularly to monitor? My breeder's contract stipulated once every two weeks weighing, and I had to send weights to her till he was one year old. It can be hard to see weight change when you are with him every day, scales are foolproof. At 7 months my high energy, showbred (English) Lab weighed under 50 pounds. He matured to 68 which is smack dab in the middle of the standard for weight. People did think he was small but so many Labs are big and out of standard for weight. Is your breeder a show breeder? Beau may be just right and slow steady growth is best.

[smartrock]

You had initially said he got 2 cups of food a day, so that's what I was commenting on. Check with the breeder to see how big his parents are, too. Good breeders tend to know how their lines mature. I've also met adult labs who are comparatively smaller. One dog I particularly remember seeing at a lab dog show I thought was a puppy or at least under a year of age. It turned out Porter was 12 years old.

Some vets still encourage neutering at 6 months as a standard of care. Some organizations, such as the ASPCA, say it can be done on pups as young as 8 weeks of age. One of their goals is to avoid animal overpopulation, seemingly without regard to the health consequences of doing so, so they do have an agenda. It seems that more studies have come out that encourage waiting, especially for larger breeds, until skeletal maturity is near or past completion. Even the AKC now says that neutering at 6 months may not be the best, especially for larger dogs. I, too, have waited to have my dogs neutered but I have also had to explain to a couple of vets why I was not going to follow their recommendation. I "blamed" it on the breeders, and the breeders have encouraged waiting until they are at least a year of age. One vet in particular was especially angry with me. I just never scheduled a visit with her again.

Let us know how things go with your vet visit! We're now very invested in how Beau does!

[Snowshoe]

Yes, in your first post you said Beau gets 2 cups a day but in your second you said about 1 - 1/2 cups twice a day. What food is it?

We have a section on research on neutering that you can access here: https://www.lab-retriever.net/board/...cle-links.html

My Vet flipped on her neuter recommendation once I discussed the research I'd read with her. First she was urging 6 months, then she went to 18 months, and I never neutered him at all.