I currently have a 27 week old lab puppy. I am fed up. First of all, let me tell you, I am a dog lover. I have had two other dogs in my lifetime and I bonded with them quickly and loved both. Growing up, I had a wiener dog named Ginger. I loved her from the start. Then as a young single man in my 20's, I got a female lab named Shaye. She is still here and at 13 1/2, still hanging on. I bonded with her from the start and love her unconditionally. This spring we got a second lab. Her name is Rory and she is also a chocolate lab. I have talked about her frequently on here. She has always bit from the start and at 6 months still bites bad. (although not as bad as she used to). She still has accidents in the house. Is this normal at all? She destroys everything. She still has to have a leash on in the house as she destroys everything. She barks 2 times a night and needs to go outside so she is still affecting my sleep. I have just not bonded with this dog at all. I am at my wits end with this dog. I am at the point where I want to give up on the dog and give her to a shelter. I never thought I would be that kind of person. I always looked down on those people. But, I am now ready to give her up. I am looking for advice, encouragement that it will get better, etc. I am ready to give up on Rory. I don't want too, but I am miserable here. I don't want to be miserable.
Hi there, I’m glad you have come on here. Sharing your true feelings there will be plenty of support and encouragement on here. I too felt a bit like you, for a couple of months and it wasn’t nice. I even called the breeder and she made me feel so guilty I gave it a few more days but I stuck with it. I found a great dog trainer and I had to work really hard and I still do and it has got easier Mason is 13 months.
You are tired, this is making you feel like giving up. Are you bringing Rory up alone or do you have someone to help with the night time waking? ps I thank the people who give their dogs up - We have only had adult dogs, and without those souls who find themselves in that situation, we would be without. I am grateful.
Would the breeder have her back and rehome her? I think you would find it really hard to put her into a shelter. You may find that once she settles down, and they do eventually, that you will love her deeply. I hated my German Pointer Pup until she was 10 months old! She was a great dog and I wish I knew then what I know now, I didn't really understand what an amazing animal she was.
I’m sorry you are having such problems with Rory. No two dogs are alike, but it’s unfortunate that she’s still biting and being destructive. Can you explain more about her daily routine? It may be that there are little changes you could introduce to help.
I'm so sorry it's so difficult for you @KirbyHawk75, it does sound like you have your hands full at the moment. Do you have a dog walker or is there a daycare facility Rory could go to so you can have some respite? My pup's difficult behaviours started getting better slowly but surely from about 16 weeks but it still took along time for me to feel bonded with her. I went through phases of feeling connected and then feeling resentful at the restriction. I remember she went to stay with my parents when I did a training course and I felt a sink in the stomach at the thought of her coming back ( I feel terrible writing that now!) I completely love her now (she's 22 months) and wouldn't want to be without her, she's the most loving, gentle companion although I still sometimes find the restriction tough (I'm on my own with my 13 year old son). It really helped me when I booked the dog walker for regular slots rather than just ad hoc walks and I used daycare too. Also, what about some one to one training sessions, if you can afford it and haven't already tried it, to work on some of the behaviours? But if you decide to rehome her try not to feel bad although I think it will get better. Lots of people on the forum have struggled with their dogs for months and then it all falls into place. Good luck with whatever you decide, I hope you start to feel a bit of happiness with Rory soon.
Do you crate her at night? I think most 27 week old Labs should be able to make it though the night with no problem. A lot of pups are still bitey at 27 weeks, but that should calm down soon. We pretty much never had a dog on a leash in the house, but we did keep them in the kitchen with us until we were pretty sure of their behavior. Accidents were few and far between at 27 weeks but chewing up the occasional book still happened. Tilly was probably better behaved as a pup, but Cooper is probably better now. Do you have a fenced yard where you can play with her? Does she get some significant walking most days? A tired dog is a good dog.
Perhaps book the pup into kennels for a week or so. It sounds as though things have really got on top of you and you need a break to relax, think and take stock before making any permanent decisions. If you do decide to rehome, please, either go through her breeder or one of the Labrador rescues who will make sure she's matched to the perfect home.
I'm sorry, KirbyHawk! I would be miserable, too. Humans need decent sleep, so I would try not to make any major decisions until you get some. Does Rory sleep in a crate at night? Crates have been wonderful for us. If our lab puppy were to bark between 10:00 and 5:30, we would ignore her (she is 14 weeks). She usually wakes up at 6:45, and doesn't even come out of the crate right away when we open the door, so I know her bladder can handle it. I'm thinking maybe the other issues would be more manageable if you were getting un-interrupted sleep. Maybe others have more experience with this, but I just wanted to send my support!
I am sorry that you are having such a difficult time with your young dog. Some dogs are definitely more challenging than others. I think there are some really good points in the answers you've had already. Booking the dog into kennels or to stay with a friend for a week would give you a breather and a chance to think. And it strikes me that you don't seem to be using a crate at all. All my Labs have been very destructive chewers until and beyond their first birthday. I would struggle with a six month old Lab in the house without a crate and would not leave a Lab this age unsupervised and roaming free in the house. If I did I would expect damage when I returned. Occasional house training accidents not at all unusual at six months old and many female dogs will have accidents at around the time of their season. If Rory isn't spayed, this could be relevant. Have you read this article on destructive chewing? Can you tell us a bit more about your routine, how long your dog spends alone, etc. We may be able to help with more suggestions if we know a bit more? If you do decide to rehome, then rehoming via the original breeder, or a dedicated Labrador rescue society, is usually a better option than a shelter, especially if there are no 'no-kill' shelters in your area. Your dog is still young and should be able to re-adjust to a new family, but you will feel better about the whole process if you make sure it is done successfully. More information here:Rehoming Your Dog
After talking it over with my wife, we are going to keep Rory. Rory is part of our family for better or worse. Guys, if you can give me any advice on how to deal with a biting puppy(we have tried everything) and to properly train a 6 month old(she still has accidents) I am open. Also, to answer some of your questions Rory sleeps in a crate. But like I said wakes us up twice a night at least. Should I be ignoring her? Also, my wife and I are planning a weekend away next weekend and are keeping Rory at a pet resort (that is what they call themselves). The people are the same people that we went to obediance school at. They have had great reviews I think it will be nice to get away from her for a couple of days and get some deep sleep.
Good news. Rory is still a baby. If I was you I would go back to basics. Here is a link which may help you https://thelabradorforum.com/threads/puppy-training-care-articles.1164/ I would do one thing at a time. If training her not to have accidents is the most important thing, do that first. Then stopping her biting and so on. Enjoy your weekend away and come back refreshed. We are always here for you.
That’s a great idea to give yourselves a break. It will also give Rory a change of routine too and, as the pet resort people are the same people who have the obedience school, they may have some advice when you return, having got to know Rory. Has the vet tested her for a urine infection? It seems odd that she’s still waking twice in the night at six months, so it might be worth just checking. It could also be that some of the biting is down to over-excitement, so just make sure she still has several short periods of training or play, rather than getting her tired and bitey. I’m glad to hear she’s very much part of your family and I hope the weekend break gives you that much-needed rest.
Kirbyhawk75 - I completely understand. Our pup has just turned 8 months, and is causing me so much stress with regards to his behaviour. I have posted before about how he nuzzles firmly into our legs / groin, and nips our trousers with his front teeth whilst moving around us. Then our natural reaction is to move or put our hands down to move him away, and pup then nips are hands with his front teeth. I’ve noticed his breathing at this point is always like a pant, and he’s almost like a human who has ‘red mist’ and can’t calm down - he acts possessed and won’t stop biting. He sometimes jumps up and bites my husbands timmy. Never big full force bites, but even so, annoying, upsetting and has to be stopped - if we knew how! We are waiting on a behaviour therapist recommend by the vet. I just feel bullied by our pup. I let him out for the loo this morning and he was running round the garden like crazy - never used to do that? He started pressing his nose into my leg with his teddy forcefully so I’ve given him his breakfast and retreated out of the kitchen. He’s sleeping now looking very cute but I’m at my wits end! He’s humping his bed a lot too and it’s obvious he’s worked up at the minute - hormones? He has big runs in the woods, on the local village green and is taken to shops/garden centres etc so he has a lot of exercise and mingles with human and dogs so I don’t know what to do now? I stay out with him at local parks as long as I can which I do think helps. He maybe getting cabin fever at home? It’s a mind field .....
Hi, buddy is only 9 weeks old and our first ever dog, so I’m afraid I don’t have answers for you, but just wanted to give my support. I’m glad you’ve decided to keep him. We have all this to come with buddy and this forum I’m sure will be invaluable. We have crate trained buddy from the word go and already I don’t know what we’d do without it, he slept through straight away and goes in for each nap. This seems for now at least to be giving him a good routine plus all the sleep he needs (I believe over tiredness can be a problem, just like with children). I don’t know how difficult crate training would be at 6 months but it has to be worth a try I guess. I hope you find some solutions soon, all the best
I so feel your pain. This is just to let you know your not the only one going through this. My puppy is 4 1/2 months and by far the most difficult puppy we have ever had by a mile. We have had 3 other Labs and a Golden Retriever. My puppy bites me nearly constant. These aren’t little nips anymore. My arms and legs are bloodied and bruised daily. Rubbing alcohol and bandaids never get put away. He is teething bad and has his new front teeth in and I’ve found some molars. I hope this gets better soon because I can’t take it anymore. Daily cry’s are now the norm and I’m starting to be afraid of him. I am using the crate more now due to recommendations from this forum for my sanity. I haven’t really bonded with my dog either and have considered giving him back to his breeder. I don’t want to do that but dealing with him alone for the most part has been very hard. I have reached out to another trainer for help as the 1 st one ran out of things for me to try. Best of luck to you. Please update if he finally gets thru this difficult part.
I’ve an update on my tale - 3 days without our pup biting my hubbie. Yay! The difference is amazing. Reason? Possibly because both my pup and I have found new friends on our walk. My pups new pal is 7 mths mine being 8 mths, and they are such a dream together. They play for two hrs solid, never gets out of hand, and they share sticks, toys, water bowel, lick water from each other’s mouth when it dribbles, and play never gets out of hand. Infact, they are absolutely inseparable. They are a delight to watch. The way they play together and interact I feel helps get the frustration that I think my pup may have been feeling out of his system. I wonder was it a lack of interaction with puppies? A lack of dog play? Frustration? All to often dog owners pull their dogs away and I’m pleased I’ve found two new friends who are willing to hang around and play / chat. It’s our fourth meet and we’re going to meet regular so here’s hoping that the long friendly interaction the puppies have together does the trick! I’ll keep you posted on progress...
