I can’t believe how big he is. No wonder you need the carrier! Stanley was teeny small at that age and I had no problem carrying him for ages. Although to be fair I never got a go.. this is my sister holding him and refusing to give him back
Maslow was that small when he was about 4 weeks old I think! It’s not even his weight, it’s the size of his legs - they are so long and gangly. 2 more weeks to go
Half kamikaze pilot I think. I need to review this whole meds thing and put him in his crate when I’m dishing out meds. I gave Leo his thyroid meds tonight, as I popped it out of the packet a corner broke off and flew across the kitchen floor. Maslow was in the kitchen at the time. I cannot find the bloody thing and I’ve spent 40 minutes on my hands and knees till I gave up and rang the vet. Apparently IF he’s has it then he will be fine as it’s a very small dose but he might be quite hyper. So today he had an antipsychotic dragged out of his mouth and this evening I’ve potentially dosed him with thyroid meds. And to think last week I was worried about snails. I quite literally feel like the most useless puppy mum in the world today. He has had an AMAZING day at school today, was so focused and alert and I can’t even sort out a bloody tablet. I’m so cross with myself.
And the week before you were worried about adult dog food Don't worry, chalk it up to experience and move on. Focus on the positives of your genius little puppy and how well he's done today. If it makes you feel any better Monty has eaten 75 cod liver oil tablets in one sitting, and a whole week's worth of doggy antibiotics. Both of which were left on the counter by me. We learn. And they grow up.
Hahaha oh yes. When I was worried about adult dog food. Was that only a week ago? Honestly it’s just so constant and he’s SO good so I feel like I can’t complain. The little hooligan today stood in the corridor at school whilst 100 children walked past and didn’t break his sit once. He just calmly watched them walk past whilst I streamlined food into him... absolutely amazing considering his age! He sleeps 9pm - 7am with no wake ups. But my god he has no off switch. If he’s not ‘working’ then he’s actively looking for mischief. I’m just so... tired of constantly checking where he is and what he’s doing!
Stick him in his crate with a Kong and pour yourself a large glass of wine. That's why crates were invented. And why most puppy parents are bordering on the verge of alcoholism.
That puppy holster thing - too funny! Has anyone looked at you weirdly, like, does she think she gave birth to that? And the chest stroker. I’ve been crying with laughter!!! Thanks for the entertainment. You and @Emily_BabbelHund - I have my entertainment sorted! Seriously though, you are a model of puppy preparation and how to do it right. You make it so tempting to get a puppy again and start off the right way first time. Why won’t you let the kids at school touch him?
Because he hasn’t had his jabs yet (over protective but I would rather be safe than risk them having something on their hands from home etc) and because he’s still bitey when he gets excited it’s easier to tell them no touching (we are starting this week with very sensible children being able to give him a treat) than to try to monitor 400 kids who are all DESPERATE to stroke him. I’m using this time to get him used to them just being around like background noise. Staff are allowed to stroke him so he’s getting lots of fuss but just not being over stimulated constantly like he would be with lots of little hands flying around him.
Yep I remember this phase and I sympathise. We nearly gave him back to the breeder we were so in despair! Thank goodness for this forum. But you should be really really proud of the way he is at 'work'. Maxx would never in a million years have been able to sit quietly anytime; let alone with kids and noise and all the distractions
At school he is amazing. It’s truly remarkable - his breeder thinks that it’s because he ‘needs’ to be working. I genuinely wonder how the rest of his litter is doing if he’s this active and they don’t have 400 kids to entertain them with daily lol
I got off the bus today and saw hubby and Max in the distance coming to greet me. And I saw Mr well behaved (NOT) jumping up at someone. Again. I hurried along and as I got closer I saw a girl with a squirming little black mass in her arms....Oh dear God she had a little 13 week Labrador puppy and he looked EXACTLY like Stanley in this picture! I quickly said 'Maxx, sit, Look at that' and plonk, down he went (seriously OH it is not that hard) and then had a few minutes of cuddles with little Jet. No, it didn't make me want another puppy but GOSH he was so cute!
You just have to train em to give the response you want for the behaviour being display. I don't mean the dog. Rehearse the hubby.
If you are always giving him attention, he will learn that that's the norm. Some puppies need to be taught how to switch off - I've had those myself. Luna especially is complete and utter mischief if she gets bored, but she has learnt that the whole world doesn't revolve around her. I have gone out of my way to reward calmness and teach her how to settle without someone having to interact with her the whole time. It's a hugely important life skill. If you think about "real" working Labradors, yes they are active as they are running to pick up a bird, marking any that are being shot etc, but there is often a huge amount of time spent doing nothing where the dog's "job" is to settle down and switch off. I was advised by a progressive gun dog trainer to take my puppy out and just do nothing with her. Go out, sit down, do nothing. Don't interact, nothing. As soon as she settles down (or even pretends to in the early days) reward her with a quick game of something. Then settle again. This arousal up - arousal down technique is so important for our dogs' wellbeing later in life, too. It teaches them to be able to self-soothe if something exciting or scary happens and is really important for dogs who may be predisposed to separation or isolation anxiety.
Yeah. There were two potentials but she introduced children to the litter quite early and Maslow responded the best of consistently.
