picking a pup

[bear204]

was wondering at how many weeks old should you pick your pup, when do you see their rank in the litter. Any other helpful info on picking a pup would be appreciated. I am talking about labs thanks for any info

[quackersmacker]

Hello I am on my Second Lab, the First was a Yellow, she is gone now, I got her at 8 weeks, and she was the last female, so I don't know how she was in the litter. My Chocolate I just got on 26Nov and she was 7 weeks. She seemed to hold her own for the short time we watched her in the litter. I don't know when they start to show their dominance in a litter, but mine was pretty active and she has been a great pup so far. Good luck picking a pup and definatly enjoy. Oh there are also some good books, one is Water Dog, for waterfowl and the other is Gun Dog, for upland written by Richard A Wolters. I read them both with my first dog, they have some great info and ideas!!

[bear204]

i have been reading water dog, plus i got the dvd and a couple other tapes. Learning a lot from all of them but just wanted to know from the average person what there experiences have been thanks again

[kentuck_ike]

bear,

I breed brittanys, so this is coming from that angle. Most litters don't really start a pecking order until 6 to 7 wks. This is one of the reason for pick up a pup at that age. That way you can easily make the you the alpha, at a natural time for the pup.

I know some people who shy away from litters that already have a pecking order established, because they feel training time is wasted in re-establishing people as the alpha.

hope this helps, Ike

[springerspeed]

This is an article in the latest Spaniel Journel online about this subject.

http://www.spanieljournal.com/6mhaglin.html

[kentuck_ike]

I would agree with this article. Most of my customers want the pup at 7 wks old. My last 2 were 9 & 11 wks old when I got them. Both are great dogs & I had no problems training them.

I think it is more important to get the pup when you have time to spend with it then at a certain age.

Ike

[leechlake]

I think Wolters covers a lot of your questions and he know more than me and most (or all). Pick a good dam/sire and then get the plumbing you want and then take any pup (okay you may not want a runt, if there is one). Second, I know Wolters covers it and explains with doggie behaviorist studies, 49 days to take the pup home. If you have faith in the breeder it all means to me the following...look at the mom and dad and approve of their looks and see them work, if you are confident in them then pick a sex and then pick a pup up at 49 days. You most likely have at the very least a capable hound that is at the mercy of you to train, take care of, and make wonderful memories with. At the very least it's a fun and exciting process, good luck and take your time.

[Springerguy1]

Springerspeed- nice article by Mark Haglin. I might head up to his kennel in a couple of weeks to look at started dogs or maybe a puppy that we could pick up later as a started dog. The cost is more than I'd normally spend but I've heard very good things about Pine Shadows so wouldn't mind spending a bit more for a dog knowing they come from good stock with a nice temperment. We're still dealing with the loss of our springer that died Xmas Eve but sounds like we might get another springer. I have a 2 yr. old Brittany but really liked having both a pointer and a flusher. I see you live in Buffalo as well.

[springerspeed]

Springerguy-

Sorry for the loss. I am fearing that time. My oldest dog will be 10 in July. I know it is creeping up on me but, what can you do but spend as much time as you can with them.

Pine Shadows does have nice dogs. Both Mark and Sophie know what they are doing when it comes to dogs. A family down the street from me bought a pup from there and it seems to be a very nice dog.

I am assuming you live in Buffalo. I will have my hands full in a couple of months with dogs.

[bear204]

sunday, i did it. Got the pick of the litter she hopefully will be what i am looking for in a dog. I will be picking her up at the end of the month. She is a solid white lab with a brown nose. I am a little nervous as to how my traning will go since she is my first hunting dog. But i am looking forward to having here around and hopefully having a good hunting and fishing friend. Thanks for the replys and i am sure there will be more questions in the near future

[Cinder18]

I got my first lab last year and like you I was pretty nervous about training her. I read everything I could get my hands on and ended up settling on book called The Pointing Labrador by Paul and Julie Knutson. One thing in that book recommended was taking your puppy on walk making it watch you to know where to go rather then you following your dog. I would take my puppy to new places with increasing obsticles (trees, cattails, etc)and never waited for it (I encourage if she was nervous) What it created was a dog that always watches my movements, continuouly checks in on me to see what I am doing, and really bold and confident in cover. This was probably the second best thing I did for my dog. The first best thing was to send it to a trainer for a 2 week intro to guns and birds. I have friends that also did this and some that did not. The dogs that went are years ahead of the ones that didn't, with respect to birdyness. It is easy to introduce birds to a dog and easy to introduce guns to a dog however to introduce them properly by relating the two together is very difficult for a beginner who works by himself. You want the two to be related. Actually four I suppose; Bird, Gun, Hunter, and Dog. Everything has their role to make hunts successful and fun.

You'll have your problems to deal with and when things get really sticky don't hesitate to ask a professional. Some things a book just can't tell you.

[bear204]

how old was your pup when you took it to the trainer. Also where was the trainer and how much for the two weeks if you dont mind me asking. I was thinking of bringing here for the same thing. Could you go out and work with the trainer a little or was it drop off and pick up

[Springerguy1]

Bear,

I'd recommend Wings and Whistles out of Watertown. I had my Brittany trained there two years ago by Dave, they did a great job with the dog. I sent my dog to a 2 week intro to birds/guns and then a 4 week course. When he was completed the dog would here, heel, whoa, and sit. They also introduce the dog to bird hunting. The first time I took the dog hunting he was 10 months old and able to hunt well for a dog under a year. Just understand that it takes a couple of years for a dog to mature- they won't come out of training a fully mature dog. I think the cost was around $400 for the 2 weeks and the dog was around 6 months old.

[Cinder18]

Quote:

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how old was your pup when you took it to the trainer. Also where was the trainer and how much for the two weeks if you dont mind me asking. I was thinking of bringing here for the same thing. Could you go out and work with the trainer a little or was it drop off and pick up

---

She was 6 months old when I brought her to the trainer, it cost me ~$400, and it was a drop off for 2 weeks. After the training they will show you what the dog learned and hopefully to a proud owner. Prior to dropping your dog off most will ask (or should) for you to bring your dog for a day and the trainer will check for eagerness to hunt and give a recommendation on how well your dog will receive the training. For me it consisted of letting her chase a pigeon and seeing how much she wanted it. My dog went nuts and most will. After I got her back I could take her to game farms and work with her. Your dog will still need to see birds and learn how to hunt but the relationship is established and the rest will come with experience. I had also planned to return the dog for the 8-10 week course however found that I really enjoyed training the dog myself and didn't want to give up the fun. It is quite a commitment but if you are motivated it can be done. I did have to return to the trainer for 2 or 3 one hour sessions to help me with my problems (somethings a book just can't teach.

I basically worked with her once a day, 5-6 times a week for about 45 minutes each day. Only 5-10 minutes was on obedience and the remainder was on fun activities. Retrieving, walks, and anything else we would encounter. Fun for the dog but learning. One of the hardest things I had to keep in mind was patience. You might not be ready to quit but your dog is. Especially keep retrieving short at first, soon your dog won't be able to get enough but early 1-3 at most per day will keep her wanting more.

Good luck and realize you will make mistakes just make sure you give your dog lots of praise and keep it fun. You don't want your dog to be afraid of your hand you want your dog to be your hunting partner with a role.

[Johnnie15]

Here is a question for you. I have a pick out of two female lab pups tomorrow. Their parents are both excellent hunters from impressive lines. One is average sized, average temperment the other is smaller, could be considered a runt. The runt however is exceptionally birdy, playful, and bold. Are there any health concerns or other reasons to not pick the smaller pup? I would like to breed her down the road if that makes a difference.

[marine_man]

I can't help you too much... but I can tell you that I ended up with the runt from my dog's liter and now at about 1 1/2 years old weighs 75 lbs and is a brute in my book... based on the other 3 pups from my dogs liter that I've seen he isn't the runt anymore...

Not sure what the general / normal trend is for this, maybe I got lucky...

marine_man

[gundoglily]

The boldness in the "runt" of the litter could mean it is a more "alpha" or "top dog" of the bunch. At times that dog could be a bit more difficult to train. Though that is not always the case. More times than not, we pick the runt of the litter, they do catch up when they don't have to compete for everything. Good luck with your new pup!

[marine_man]

Well... that may fit my dog gundoglily.. he is somewhat hard headed... he's no cheasapeake, but at times, especially during force fetch, he was a bit hard headed...

marine_man