Advice Needed: Bringing Home Our First Lab Puppy

F

foxyhorn

100+ Posts
My husband and I are bringing home a female, black lab puppy on Friday. I have seen a lot of great posts about dogs on this board so I thought I should consult the collective wisdom of Hornfans to see if I can get some general advice on getting through the first nights, housetraining, raising a lab, etc. We are going to crate train and she will be a family dog only.

Also looking for vet reccomendations, We live in the Houston Heights.
 
It will be hard, but don't let her out of your sight (unless she is in her crate) for the first six months or so. Stop her from doing anything that might become a bad habit. If she picks up/chews/messes with anything that's not hers, tell her NO, and immediately give her a toy/bone that belongs to her. Never use the crate as a punishment and don't act like it's really exciting or a big deal for her to be let out of the crate.
We did these things with our lab puppy and she is great. She will destroy the hell out of her own toys but has never touched a shoe, purse, whatever that wasn't "hers". And she goes right into her crate when it's time.
Have fun, they grow way too fast. Lab puppies are the best things ever.
I'll try to think of more helpful hints and post them here.
 
Yup. Don't let the pup out of your sight-- the only way to train them is to catch them doing things they're not supposed to.

Don't let pup on your bed. It'll pee on it every time.
 
Just enjoy it.

My dogs always bring a smile to my face when I get home, even on the shittiest of days.

Dogs rule.

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The breeder said the exact same thing about the crate. She said it is good to put them in there when you are not watching them because it teaches them how to deal with boredom without learning destructive habits.

I am beyond excited to pick her up on Friday. I have never had a lab before and everyone says they are the most loyal, smart, loving dogs ever.
 
Crate training is the way to go. Don't leave her in there for more than 4-5 hours at a time and don't use it as a punishment tool. It should be her "safe zone".

Pet her and rub her belly enthusiastically when she does something good (i.e. going potty in the grass), they really pick up that they've done something good when yo do this.

As for vets, Montrose Veterinary Clinic is fantastic. Dr. Katie Kaczmarek is a wonderful vet and they treat the animals great there. Only downside is that its a bit pricey compared to others.

I should note that Dr. Kaczmarek is an Aggie though. But she's pretty easy on the eyes so I was able to overlook it.

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Good luck!
 
I was told to keep a watergun by the bed and when she starts her squeeling at night cause she misses mama, shoot her with the watergun and she will break the habit real quick. Sure enough, mine squealed the 1st night and part of the 2nd and that was it.
 
Westheimer Animal Clinic is a good place. Also, if you need any training advice, wearedogsmart.com are great people.
They are great.
 
You are just going to have to suck it up when it comes to a vet, because most vets in Texas are Aggy (its the only vet school in the state I think).

I would also suggest exercising your pup. Dogs, in general, are less likely to do naughty things when they are tired, plus labs like to work and please you. This is easy for retrievers since all it takes is a tennis ball and your arm.
Take her out to dog parks to socialize so she is not afraid of other dogs.
 
I have 2 chocolate labs. 6 yrs old and they act like they are pups still.
My only advice would be to be careful about 'babying' the baby. Take note of how much the pup tests your authority and do things to constantly remind him of who is in charge. things like going into doorways first, making the dog get out of the way when you are walking, etc. You dont have to do anything physical to them to teach them the pecking order. I would also make a regular habit of giving treats/food and then taking it/giving it back, repeatedly....we did this with our 2 and they could care less when our 18 month old snags their bones or whatever.
The single most important thing you can do.....be consistent, whether lenient or strict, just do it the same. Dogs need structure to learn how to behave and changing the rules causes them to heed none.
 
Start looking at dog proofing your yard. Hopefully you don't have any prize rosebushes. Look at your fence and make sure you don't have any boards that can be pried off easily. Also look for any gaps under the fence that can be exploited.

If you exercise your dog that will help some but these dogs have a lot of energy to burn. I used to take mine swimming at Lake Austin or Travis and would run with her as much as I could.

Labs are great dogs but the first few years can try your patience.
 
Natron is correct.

You need to show who the the "lead dog" and it cannot be him it has to be you. Once he figures this out he will understand... all they want is to understand their place in the pack (your family).

The crate ideas are perfect. Also, I would feed him in the crate as well and after 15 minutes take the food away, that way he sees that you are in control of his food (another way of showing him that your are "lead dog". He will figure out that when you feed him that he has to eat right then or he doesn't get food. He will figure it out.

Do not let him see that you feed him first then the rest of the family eats later, again that would be an example of you showing him that he is the 'Lead dog".

Good luck and it doesn't get any better than a family dog that understands his place.
 
All good comments. The main thing to me is to be consistent. Don't "take a day off" and say, oh, yeah he jumped up on me today but that's ok, he's just excited. Or yeah he nipped me a little harder than he should have, but he didn't mean anything.

Nip the play-biting in the bud immediately - you don't have to smack him but tell him no and stop playing with him immediately. (Only has to be for a couple of minutes, just enough to make the point.) Play biting is how they learn how hard they can bite while rough-housing, so it's important they know that it's never acceptable, even if it didn't really hurt.

The crate is your friend and should be his. Take him right outside immediately when he comes out - best way for me was to have a specific area that was his bathroom, get him into the habit of going there every time. Making sure the crate is somewhere where she's not removed from the action helps, I think.

And take lots of pictures. I am still kicking myself that I didn't do it when my dog was really little!
 
texanbychoice used a training video and and the crate training. she is a wonderful pup, but likes to chew on stuff. but otherwise, a very well mannered *****
 
Bitter spray worked great for teaching our golden not to chew on things like cords.

It seems silly, but when they're peeing outside, say while they're going "good girl, go pee pee. go pee pee, good girl go pee pee." That's how ours learned what "pee pee" meant.

A water bottle w/ pennies in it shaken up and down really fast does a great job of scaring our dog into stopping anything bad. -- peeing on the floor.

Don't forget there is an end to all this-- just when you think you can't handle cleaning up poo or pee anymore, and the damn dog will never learn, suddenly it'll be house broken.

Pay attention to your dog's body language. Both of our dogs have very different body language for needing to go out, wanting something, etc.
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I cheated a little on the potty training. I put in a dog door and left the crate in front of it any time I was gone. The pup either had to go outside or go in the crate. They won't go in the crate. They will house break themselves in two days with this method. It doesn't let you control where they go in the yard but it is the easiest house training method on the planet.

Be sure you take them out of the yard every once in a while. A dog that is allowed to go out front under controllled circumstances will be less likely to try to dart out in an uncontrolled fashion every time the door opens.

Have fun. There's nothing better than a dog.
 
So cute, I definitely need to get a UT jersey for mine! Will upload some pictures from my husbands camera later. The first night went really well. We kept her up late and she slept through the night fine. No accidents yet!
 
We have a black lab that actually failed seeing eye doggie school (she is too skittish in new places and wants a lot of love), so she has had a lot of training to begin with. One thing is you have to watch how you feed labs, they will eat anything and everything, you can't just fill up a bowl of food and let it last a few days. You will have to portion it out or you will have one fat lab. Our lab also loves paper, I don't see why..but we have to be somewhat conscious of the kids papers, napkins etc or she will sneak them into her diet. Our neighbor's chocolate lab comes up to our house and eats pears off our tree, which is somewhat funny cause it causes a bunch of foam to come out of her mouth like she has rabies.
 
The more they can be outside at first, the better. Once they get accustomed to using the outdoors for a bathroom, they don't have to be broken of the habit of indoor use. It is much easier that way. Those pics are great, but watch out for a lurking Bob Stoops, we all know how he responds.
 
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