New Pup!

[knowsnothing]

Nice Pup Bobby. Reinhard1- what a great surprise and sounds like you have a wonderful family (with a new member too). Good luck with the pup. Look at bell training. We did it with our setters and it worked great.

[Bobby Bass]

I can't to much credit for Duncan's housebreaking, having older dogs around seems to help a lot in establishing good habits, and bad ones to I might add. I have a few basic rules for pups when I housebreak them. I control their food intake and no food or water is left out after 6 or so. Dogs are always put outside after eating and of course you always have to keep an eye on the door and when they want to be let out take them out and praise the heck out of them when they do what you want them to do. Accidents do happen and I never have done the punishment routine, I always felt you were reinforcing something that as puppies they don't have a lot of control over. Always have said good dogs make good owners but you have to remember they are puppies and at that age your kids were in diapers. So having said all that how is Lucy doing?

[reinhard1]

Lucy has already captured our hearts and shoes. yesterday she did not make an accident but today just one time. i feed her [on the advice of my daughters who also have labs under a year old] science diet puppy for large breeds. Lucy goes nuts for that food, but i guess she would for others as well. she remind's me of myself when i eat [especialy when i was in the military] very quickly. as if there was some kind of stop watch.

i got her to sit, when a treat is due. i'm going to try the "bell" system my daughters have for their labs. they hang a string by the door where they are let out with a bell atached. so when the dog is ready to go out my daughters would ring the bell. well, after awhile the pups would go up to the bell and ring it with their nose. pretty good for 9 months labs i would think.

what we have done with all of our dogs in the past at night is let them sleep with us. no different now. i know the cage thing and all the rest. that's just us. over time they end up on the floor next to our bed. Lucy will be my fishing partner every time i go, whether it's with other people or just the two of us.

when she comes back from the back yard and she does her "buisness" i give a treat. if she comes back and does not do her "buisness" she gets none. when i put her in her cage when i have to go somewhere or just do some outside chores [for a couple of hours] i give her a different treat when i put her in the cage and another when i take her out. you would be surprised how much she lookes like Duncan. anyway i love every minute being with her and years to come. good luck.

[Bobby Bass]

Well as you know here at Lake Iwanttobethere we are kind of special as are our dogs. I was reading your last post about Lucy and Duncan was looking over my shoulder. He would like you to post some pictures of Lucy. Even though he is only seven months old he likes his ladies younger!

[reinhard1]

i wish i were as smart as Lucy, because i have tried to post pictures of a lot of things. just cant seem to make it. once i figure it out i will post plenty of stuff. my wife has downloaded a few hundred pics in our computer. she has figured out how to put some on facebook, so now the next project is putting some on HSO, good luck.

[DaSwede]

Bobby, what are your methods for house training for Duncan. so far not so bad with Lucy but she had a couple of in house hit's. i blame myself fot that more than her. i showed lucy the spot where she left her deposit and gave a gentle swat with rolles up paper on her butt. is that a good method? thanks good luck.

I found the best way to potty train them is to take them out very frequently and then reward the heck out of them. Verbal praise/treat, whatever. They will have some accidents still, never met one that didn't, but you can minimize it. They learn pretty darn fast that going outside to potty is well worth it. Good luck! My next lab pup is will be arriving next spring/early summer.

[reinhard1]

this pup has been a huge blessing to me. i'm retired so i do have the time to take care of her [and my wife's mother] properly. i do feel like a rookie all over again with a new pup but it's comming back to me real quick. i do take her out often and we have a big back yard with over 4 acres of woods [mostly oaks] with the first acre fenced in. so she has running room and all sorts of things to find to put in her mouth. i do reward her with praise and a treat when she does her stuff and no treat when she just wants to play and goof around [but i still love on her anyway].

both my daughters do the bell thing. started out as a novelty and now they ring the bell with their nose when they go out. just has a bell on a string where they go out. when they started out my daughter would ring the bell a little as they let the pups out. well they are now 10 month old and nudge the bell with their nose before going out. i'm with the old fashion way i guess but my wife would like to do the bell deal anyway. she has a few accident here and there but i'm getting to know when she wants out [i think]. chasing leaves around in the wind today LOL. good luck.

[sakazulu]

I got the dog of my dreams on Memorial weekend at 6 weeks! A chocolate lab! Ted is his name. Had him out duck hunting last weekend! I share your love a chocalate lab and miss his company when I'm at work! I like your on going story as it helps to compare with my experience with Ted. Keep it rolling!

[sakazulu]

OOOPS! Forgot to tell ya how good look'in your pup is!

Here's me and 6 month Ted last weekend

Keep the stories rolling! It's fun!

[reinhard1]

as you know i have a chocolate lab pup myself now, almost three month old. my daughter and her soon to be hubby left for california wensday and i am also babby sitting her lab pup who is 10 months old. got him till next tuesday. so far so good. stealing each other's rawhide bones and tug of war on the sweaky snake toys.

Koda [my daughters lab] is catching frisbies with my young gal trying to figure it out. Koda had destroyed two plastic frisbies already so i got to get something more "pet friendly". he does retrieve his feathered retrieval toy and sits and drops it in front of me. i have no clue how to train labs, but so far i think he is doing well and my little Lucy is learning something i hope. good luck.

[Bobby Bass]

Duncan Report- Well the young man has reached his eight month old birthday. The two other labs Barney and Bud I think have come to understand that he, Duncan is not leaving. He is housebroke and now we leave him alone with out worrying about how much trouble he can get into. I expect a few pencils to be chewed up but he has stopped chewing on the chair legs. Day time puppy naps are getting to be fewer but he seems to spend a lot of time with the cats doing what ever they do at three in the morning. The cats won't sleep with him yet but they do come up to him to get licked. With the older labs I have forgotten how fast a pup can run and jump. Grand kids look forward to coming over and they are the only ones who can keep up with Duncan's energy.

[Bobby Bass]

A few pictures of Duncan on the deck.

[reinhard1]

wonderfull!!!i get that same look with your bottom picture. good luck.

[Bobby Bass]

Duncan Report- Duncan has settled down here as of late. No trouble to report or maybe because nothing that he has been getting in trouble is new. He has learned a new trick, self taught I might add. Now when he wants to come in from outside he jumps up and rings the doorbell!

[landscaper]

great looking dogs guys!

How big or how big will your guys chocolate labs get?

The Wife and I are thinking about getting one.

[Bobby Bass]

I think Duncan will be around 80#'s by the time he is a year old, he is 8.5 months old now and weighs around 60# he has some long legs and huge paws to grow in to. My two springer/labs went about 95#'s before we put them on senior food and started to reduce their weight when they turned 8 they are both 11 now and weight about 80#'s if there faces and their gray faces didn't give them away you would think they are much younger.

[landscaper]

Thanks for the info.

We are kinda looking for a chocolate lab. Which would be mainly used for pheasant hunting and a family dog. How are they for our needs??

[mww24]

i would never punish them for having an accident in the house. It's going to happen. You just have to teach them the proper place to go as often as possible. I remember when my lab was a pup he had accidents at the back door. same door I let him out to do his business. That told me it was my fault and he needed to go out more often. it will happen. clean it up and move on. good luck with the pups guys. it sure is tiring.

[reinhard1]

hopefully Lucy [my chocolate lab pup] is housebroken completly. she hasn't had an accident in the house for a couple of weeks, and now sleeps through the night with rarely a need to go out. she has got the "bell" system down real good. let's me know when she needs to go out with her nudging the bell with her nose. when i first thought about the bell thing i thought it wouldn't work. but it does.

i have a bell by the door to the back yard hanging on a string. i started training her with this bell by ringing it and saying "outside potty". so after a few days of this and praising her for going outside she started nudging the bell by herself. then she will sit by the door till i come. then i praise her for ringing the bell and for going outside and doing her stuff. good luck.

[Bobby Bass]

Duncan Report- Today Duncan will be getting his second bath and the reason is he smells to good! He tore up a box of fabric softener sheets then fell asleep in the mess. He needs a bath so he will smell like a dog again !

[reinhard1]

LOL!!!!!!it would keep the mosquitoes off him but they are all gone now. good luck.

[Bobby Bass]

Duncan Report- Duncan has been good as of late, still growing and coming up on his ten month birthday. I have found out he likes cherry Lifesavers candy, just like I do. Trouble is he spits out the rest and just eats only the cherry ones when he finds my roll of candy..

[reinhard1]

too funny!!!Lucy is almost 5 months old and up to 44 pounds. still has long legs and not chubby. take her for walks every day [about a mile and a half] most of it through woods in the park. i think she's going to be a big girl. loves liking our plates at night. good luck.

[CC Hurl]

Great to hear you guys are enjoying your puppies as much as I am. Boyd is doing very good as well. He is pushing the scale at about 55 Lbs. now at 8 months. Potty training is no longer an issue and he is progressing well as an antler hunter. He is such a lap dog too. Must be because I put him on my lap every once in awhile even though he is bigger now. He must have know I needed a hug before work this morning as he forced his way on my lap and just put his head over my shoulder and rolled onto his back. Either that or he needed a hug too. I think they get to know our moods as well. Thanks for your updates as I enjoy reading them.

[Bobby Bass]

Duncan turns one today, where did the time go? I would report on his weight but the two of us together push the scale past it's limit!