Welcome to the puppies board

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hello and welcome from me too . I was told by my Vet that large dog pups are better being fed a lower protein food to encourage steady bone growth rather than rapid growth, so I fed CSJ which has 21%, I always have added veg to this, carrots, potato, peas whatever but not masses ! I also give Sam small ammounts of cooked lamb hearts so I guess that raises the protein a little, but remember of you do add anything , reduce the ammount of kibble .

 

Thanks to Kate & Sharon

Hi Kate & Sharon

Many thanks for your reply, really helpful. The food we were recommended by the breeder is CSJ Little Champ so it is puzzling that the protein level is so high. Furthermore if you read the CSJ website there are a couple of schools of thought with regard to protein levels for young dogs with one suggesting that you should reduce the levels once they reach 10/11 weeks to avoid them growing too rapidly.

I think we'll err on the side of caution, buy some lower protein level food and slowly introduce a mixture of the two. My husband supplements the odd meal with tripe or chicken anyway which 'Norman' is very keen on, leaving the kibble to last!

He went to a 'puppy party' last night at the vets which was hilarious - how the world has changed - but he slept all night, we think he was exhausted bossing everyone about!

Hope to keep in touch....

Lisa

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hi all,

Our darling 10 week old chocolate lab Max is doing so wonderful but I was having a chewing issue I was hoping I could get some advice on. He is teething and trying to bite everything. Is there a better way to correct him or teach him what to bite and what not to bite. Every time he bites my hand or chews on something not his toys I tell him no and tap him on the nose. Then, I give him one of his toys (of course he likes my shoes much better) Am I correcting his behavior right?

Thanks for the help

Sarah

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hello Sarah and welcome . What toys are you giving Max ? Sometimes we have to barter with them , making sure that what we are offerning is infinately more interesting than a hand , arm or foot
Have you got a kong ? They are excellent and can be stuffed with interesting things like peanut butter which takes ages to lick out and offeres a good distraction against biting

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hi Sarah, welcome to the Forum! Have a look through the articles - Pippa has written a very useful one on bite inhibition and teaching puppies not to chew. If i knew how to cut and paste the link, i would!

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Here it is Labrador puppies biting! ;D

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

I have learned patience is key when potty training! Its so easy for my husband and me to get mad at our 3 month old Zoey because she pees in the house. We have to remind ourselves that it is not her fault and she is a baby. Our labs really are so eager to love and please, and it breaks their hearts and spirits when we get angry at their mistakes.

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hi All,

I'd just like to say hello to everyone, I've been reading posts on the forum for some time now, but now we have a new addition to the family so I feel 'qualified' to join in.

We lost our previous black lab 18 months ago. It took me a very long time to come to terms with it but after many months of searching, we have finally brought home our new black lab puppy, called Axl. We bought him from Tina Hodgson in West Sussex. I must say she has been wonderful throughout and I would thoroughly recommend her. We were faced with a long drive home to South Wales. Luckily he didn't seem too bothered about leaving his mum and other pups and spent most of the journey looking out the window at the other cars! Then came the dreaded 'first night' so I slept downstairs near his basket but he didn't cry at all. We are clicker training from today, something we haven't done before so I'll keep you posted on progress! I'd also appreciate any thoughts about the merits of clicker training.

Paul

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Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hi Paul, welcome to you and Axl ;D He is gorgeous!

Clicker training is a lovely gentle way to get started with training a new puppy, and fun for you too.

Pippa

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hello Paul and a warm welcome from me and Sam , my 22 month old black Lab , your pup looks so lovely, great that he was so good in the car too , look forward to more photos, we all adore pups

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hello everyone,first post, we had our first lab until she was 15, second one who died last October 13, we were not having another because of our age, however, long story, suffice to say Chloe was one of ten, and we have given her a home! She is a joy, and we have had her two weeks, she is eleven weeks old on Thursday.
They are all so different, and we have forgotten what we did when they were babies, however, Chloe is in the breakfast room, no cage, the others did not have one, this is adjacent to the kitchen, so we have put one of those little plug in night lights on, apart from day one, when I got up at 1.30 and did cuddles and soft talking, she has been fine, goes to bed ten thirtyish and not a muff until about seven thirty, which is hunger!!

Whilst on here, not sure if this is the place to put this, she is on four meals a day, guessing at the amount, now got her onto Purina complete for now, giving her altogether 43g per meal. Our vet said she was a bit underweight a fortnight ago, she was 6.5 kg now 7.2kg but growing, quite hard to know how much to give, she is always hungry. Reason for this is, most poo on paper in kitchen, but now doing the odd one on carpet. Confused a bit I think. Wees in garden when prompted, knows the word, and a pooh at bedtime, then the rest come during the night.

Any ideas, was wondering if three meals a day might produce more poo in daytime.?

Any help very much appreciated.

Best wishes and happiness to all the pups on here, they are sheer joy and very hard work!!!! I have found six months of caring and watching etc., pays off later, she can now sit and give a paw, (with a treat promised of course!!) ;D

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hello and welcome , maybe Pippa will move your post to the new member section where it will be seen by more members .
I was in a similar situation when my Lab Tess died almost two years ago , wondering if we were too old to embark on puppy training again, but its so hard not to have a Lab , my boy Sam is almost two now and never a moments regret, they bring such joy as you arre finding .
Chloe sounds delightful , she is doing well to sleep until 7.30 in the morning at her age , well done !
She really should still be having four meals a day until about four months old , Lab pups are always hungry and greedy with it Has shee been wormed recently as worms can add to the hunger ? if so , dont worry, keep with the food as long as it suits her tummy .
One thing I would advise is to not use paper indoors for her to toilet on , it tends to give out the message that its fine to do it inside , and then you almost have to train a second time to get them to go outdoors .
Love to see some photos, we all adore pups

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Welcome to the forum, from me Helen, Hattie 5 1/2 and Charlie 2 1/2 years. It's a great forum enjoy it. Helen x

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hi Helen,

I ' m a first time lab owner with Dexter who is now 8 months old....I can totally understand why you gave in and have Chloe.....how could you resist ;D Dex came to us at 5 months so I haven't got any early days info to give about how his feeding was .Everybody is so lovely and helpful on here,you can always find an answer to a question ,enjoy your puppy,the time passes so fast
Angela

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Thank you all so much, it is so nice to talk to other people with labs. As for paper, yes, I think you may be right, we could shut her in the kitchen but am loath to do that as she is settled in the breakfast room with carpet!!! I bought some special pooh and wee pads from our pet shop, who are very good, smells nice and they go, well we have dragged it round the floor, played with it, and poo on the lino!!!! That was a waste of a fiver!!!!

Going to try nothing at all tonight and see what happens, just wish the poo would come during the day, done one tonight in the garden, she looked at as if it was something from outer space!! I told her what it was, I got a cheeky grin and off to play with the ball!!
I tried to put a pic on but it said too large and I am not sure how to reduce it, it went by e mail to several friends, and it was ok.
Maybe you can tell me, thank you.

It is nice to be reassured about having another, I do have a husband, and he is very good, but I do all the mothering!!!! My son promised on his life if anything does happen to us before Chloe is not with us any more, they will have her, having said that, a friend of mine passed on age 59, so we cannot think that way, we have asked our doc for some longevity pills, ie 90, 100!!! Try stout he said He is a devout lab lover!!!

Will stick with the four meals then, not so much at a time. She has just got to the running around outside like lightening, she has a moment every now and again. We have made a large area with the patio and some lawn for her and netted it, that way we can see what she is eating, we thought it was absolutely clear, but she has a pash for grass, and root if she can get it!!! Her first week she barked non stop at our meal times, did not have that with the other two, shouting and saying be quiet did no good, but ignoring did, she now sits quietly with eager eyes, I have never been fed look, or goes to sleep, so got that one right!!!!

Now we have to stop the biting, I have read on this forum somewhere about that, they all do it, so working on that one. What fun, as they say. I was really desperately upset to lose Rosie, she came from a very reputable!!! breeder in South Wales. She was a beautiful dog, when she was six I noticed her brushing my foot when my legs were crossed, and wondered if she could see properly, our vet is an optometrist , gave her a check up and told us Rosie had PRA, no we said, she is hip and eye tested, however, it turns out the parents must have been carriers, there is a blood test now for it, but there was not one thirteen years ago. She went completely blind at 9, she coped so well, it was very very hard for us, and you have to become their eyes. She started going deaf, that made her disorientated, and her heart was not so good, so we had to say goodbye, because I had cared so extra carefully for her last four years, it was much harder to say goodbye. Never felt right since. So now we have Chloe, and we hope she does not develop hip or eye problems. Hip and eye tested are not always definite we have found.

Sorry to go on, nice to talk to someone. Best Wishes, Val

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Ah Val,losing a four legged friend is something I haven't come up against yet too but I can empathize with your sadness and know that your new little girl will bring you much joy and happiness and a whole new spring in your step!surely you are only as old as the labrador puppy you own ;D
Bye for now Angela x

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Thank you so much, what a lovely web site this is, everyone so helpful and friendly, I feel younger already!! Best wishes Val

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Hello, we have had Chloe three weeks on Monday, she is 11 weeks now, she had a second vaccination on Friday pm. She has developed sloppy pooh, not exactly diarrhea ie liquid,,but going very frequently, if it persists will ring Vet on Monday morning. It may be the hot weather, she is playing and is bright, and eating, can the vaccination have this effect, does anybody know. The vet did ask us was she ok the first time two weeks ago,and we said yes she seemed ok. She had a health check etc., I am not sure if I can give her anything to firm up her stools, any advice or experience welcome, thank you, Val

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

If her poos aren't liquid and she is bright and happy with a good appetite then I would not worry, but do call the vet for advice on Monday. I am not sure if it could be the vaccine - it is so long ago since I had a puppy!

Has she had any changes of diet or managed to find something a bit unusual to eat?

 

Re: Welcome to the puppies board

Thank you Rachel, well I wondered about picking something up, however, we have made a pen of netting quite big around our patio, a bit of lawn and back door, so she can go in and out, thought that would help make her clean quicker, thank goodness for this nice weather. All she could pick up, and does, is bits of lawn, ie eats the grass and root if she can : Apart from that nothing, and not been out of the house yet ie until next Friday, roll on next Friday for walkies on the beach!!

We have changed her from what she was on ie Costco Kirkland puppy(what she was on when she came to us) to Purina, this took a fortnight and pooh fine. This only came on Friday night, so seemed to be connected with the jab, although our other dogs have never had a problem. Did think it might be stress, as she is brilliant in the car, went to sleep, it is a 14 miles round trip to our vets, but it was very hot, gave her a good drink of water, but you never know they pick up the vibes on visit to the vets, even from us I suppose. Today it has settled down, I let her out at 3 am and she did better pooh, and she has not been this morning since her brekky at quarter to eight, yesterday it was after all her food, so whatever it was, fingers crossed it will pass, however, I will give vet a ring to check. They are such babies really, need care I know at this stage, however, this morning a little pest, thank goodness, flying round with her toys, trying to bite again on hands, and obviously feeling a lot better.

I have found the ignore working very well with biting hands, and swinging on skirt, when she starts and no means nothing except how long can I push you mum, I go out of the room, or walk away, that seems to be working well for now

Thank you so much for replying, it is very reassuring, cannot remember what we did with our other two. I do remember neither of them ever soiling a carpet, Chloe at the moment is confused, during day will go out in garden for both, at night, prefers the morning room carpet to the kitchen lino with special pads bought from the pet shop, she thinks these are good to sit on, and play with!!!
We have never used a cage, prefer to spend at least six months showing what is good to chew and what is not, people say they will not soil in a cage, anyway, will keep on persevering, we are half way there.

Cheerio for now and thank you again, Val