Dallas is now almost 14 weeks old! It’s so hard to believe he’s been part of our family for almost 10 weeks now. He was so tiny that he fit inside my sweatshirt pocket at 4 weeks old, like a Chihuahua puppy rather than a 4 week old Labrador mix. (Not sure what he’s mixed with yet, but my two strongest guesses are GSD or Border Collie) Now, at nearly 14 weeks of age, he weighs 22 pounds, and eats 2-3 cups of food per day. He’s fed with a slow feeder bowl that only holds 1 cup of food at a time, so he can’t “inhale” his food and choke. Overall, he’s the easiest puppy I’ve ever raised, and I’ve raised a few... most of them have been lab mixes. However, he is certainly not “perfect” by any stretch of the imagination. Sometimes he gets so busy sniffing around the yard that he seems to “block out” the recall signal that I’ve used since bringing him home. When he does this, the ONLY way to snap him out of it is to shake the doggy cookie jar. Sometimes, he still has accidents in the house, which isn’t a big deal, because it’s rare, and he’s still a baby. Still, the biggest issue we have is trimming his nails. I’ve been working on using the clicker to teach him “pick up” to pick up whichever paw I’m touching. We’re still not at the point of clipping a nail when he picks the paw up for me, but at least he’s starting to pick up, and letting me gently handle his paws. Unfortunately, his nails are getting quite long again, though, and I’m afraid I may be forced to rush the process just a bit. He’s so sweet and just wants to love, but when he crawls on us to wake us up in the morning, or even just while we’re snuggling on the couch, those nails are almost as bad as those little shark teeth! Retrieving is going very well, basic obedience is going very well, we’ve even taken him swimming where we go camping, and he loves it! He’s learned to let me handle his ears and lift his lips to look at his teeth and gums, and hold his mouth in much the same way as might happen in a vet’s office. He also helps me pull weeds in the flower beds (I pull, he shakes the dirt from the roots). Puppy play biting is the second biggest issue... I can get him to stop, but I usually have to raise my voice in order to do it. I don’t like yelling at him, but using a toy to redirect him doesn’t work, and if I carry him to his crate for time out, he just chews on my arm or fingers the whole way.
