I just joined this forum today, about two weeks after adopting a two-year old yellow lab. Marley was found as a stray in Texas. Her foster person basically brought her back to life. She was very thin and had lost much of her hair. She had many bug bites all over her body. Marley received a clean bill of health before being made available for adoption. I live in Minnesota, so Marley had a long bus ride to get here. Overall, Marley is a great dog. She is housebroken (although it took a few days for her to remember this), and she has a very nice personality. I was told she was 4.5 years old when I adopted her but the paperwork indicates she is 2 years old. My greatest challenges right now are: digging in the backyard and jumping up/biting. She is generally gentle with the jumping and biting, although she gets more intense when she's excited. I guess these are typical lab behaviors, right? I need to do more reading on this forum. Is it possible to modify the digging (this is my top concern right now)? I've been taking her on 3-4 walks per day but she doesn't like to go too far yet (she gets unsettled and wants to go back home). I'm guessing this may contribute to building up more energy that's going into the digging? I know she's been through a lot of change in her short life. Any thoughts or recommendations?
One other thing. She is usually very comfortable meeting new people on our walks but she gets scared of most dogs. So going to a dog park isn't going to work yet.
