351 replies to this topic

[crickett]

Hi everyone, My name is crickett. crick for short (yes this is actually my nickname in real life) I have had dogs for years, actually i've had at least one dog in my life for the last 20 years consistently and at times more than one. Currently we have 3. My oldest dog is a yellow lab/Rottweiller mix that was a stray who sort of adopted my girls when they were in kindergarten and after 3 days of me saying "nope, nope, no way" to adding him to my family which included two other dogs at the time I caved and have never regretted it for a single minute. By far he's the best dog I've ever had. He was about 2 at the time and I've now had him for over 10 years. My other dog is the only daughter that her mother (who was my dog for about 12 years) ever had. Her mothers name was Foxxy and she passed away about about 6 months after having the one that i have kept (originally named beauty but is called chica because my husband is stubborn) She is a 3 year old long haired chihuahua and weighs 5 lbs. Although I miss her mother every day i'm extremely grateful for my decision to keep her baby. Not the most well behaved dog but a joy to have anyway. And then we come to our newest addition. Mr. Johnny Cash (we call him cash). He is 10 months old and is a black lab. Interesting breed and unlike any dog i've ever had, I must admit i wasn't actually "prepared" for what it means to own one of these dogs. He was abandoned along with his mother and the rest of his litter mates by the side of the road last year (last october to be exact) and we acquired him at an adoption event at petco last January. He was the only one left according to the lady running the event. All the others had been adopted, including his mother, but because of some timidity that cash had he just didn't stand out from the rest. I fell in love with his eyes from the second i walked in the door. It was like i was drawn to the event and to him in particular. I actually had wanted a yorkie to be the next dog i got and didn't plan for that until one of my other dogs passed away. I was NOT planning on having 3 dogs at once again, like ever again, but there was such a need in this dogs eyes and he was absolutely the sweetest dog. When i tried to walk away he just looked so disappointed and sad, his eyes following me. I nearly cried, tears beginning to well up in my eyes as i looked at my husband. He just sighed and walked over to the pup, checked him out and petting him. Cash seemed to come alive with hope when he looked at my husband just leaning into him in a way that he hadn't done with anyone else who had taken a look and that was all she wrote. My husband fell in love. He had a black lab/German Shepherd mix years ago who passed from age and he had never felt the same about another dog since, but this one, this one he fell for. So, we brought mr Cash home and made him a member of our family. He's really a joy to have... most of the time.. biggest problem being he absolutely can NOT be left alone for even 5 mintues. I work from home so mostly that's not an issue, unless i have an appointment while the kids are in school and my husband is away at work. When that happens it's like i walk back into a house that's gone through a war. He will tear up books and furniture and anything else that's available. We tried locking him in the kitchen and that turned into a disaster, the last time we put him in the garage and he pulled things off shelves to destroy. I can't even go to the bathroom and shut the door if no one else is home because that 5 minutes may as well be an hour. He will destroy as much as he can during that time. I really don't want to drug him but i'm at the end of my rope. I can not be a prisoner to a dog and there are times when leaving the house is unavoidable. This one little hitch is causing some roadblocks to bonding with him for me, a problem i have rarely had in all my years of keeping dogs. Any help/advice would be appreciated.
Thank you

[TraceyD]

I'm no expert, but I would suggest crate training him. It is not mean, it is a safe place for him and a saving grace for you (and your house) My dogs have all loved their crates even long after they "needed" them. I lost a 9 year old dog a few months ago and although he hadn't needed to be crated for years I couldn't take his crate away from him he loved it. The door was off for the last several years and he went in and out of it as he pleased.

[Kurt]

Remember, crate training is not a forever thing as TraceyD pointed out. We still have the crates for our three dogs out and they all go in them during the day to snooze and some sleep in there at night. They look at the crates as their "safe zones". Crate training actually only lasts a few months.

How much exercise does the chewing dog get? Chewing is caused by two factors:
Boredom and Anxiety. Remember that just walking or throwing a ball sometimes is not enough. You have to stimulate the brain too.

How is this dog with obedience? If he knows sit/stay you could play the "find it" game. Tell the dog to sit/stay in your lounge or living room and then hide the ball just around the corner in the next room. Then when you come back into the room where your dog is give him the "find it" command. He'll go off looking for the ball. Over time start making it harder for your dog to find the ball. Maybe in a bedroom or kitchen, or even under a bed. This kind of play challenges the brain and prevents the dog from getting bored.

Any questions?

[crickett]

thanks for the advice. As far as the crate goes, he sleeps in his but is able to break out of it easily. We are talking about going from his sleeping crate to a big metal one and see if that helps. He does sit quite well, stay not so much. If we try and walk anywhere in the house he's right there with whoever it is. I play with him with his ball all the time and hide it. My husband says I'm evil but I think it's very funny watching him sniff out until he finds it (the boy is seriously ball obsessed and will carry one around in his mouth for hours). But i never hide it far, i should try that and see if he can find it.

[Kurt]

Tell your husband you're not evil. Labs love playing these kinds of games and it makes their minds work which is a good thing and prevents boredom and chewing.

We have our dogs so they will find the ball even if it's in a closet with the door shut and inside of a shoe. Their noses are very sensitive. They can smell way more than you think they can. Labs can be ball obsessed simply because they love playing with them so much!

And to keep your dog in the kennel, use those plastic "zip ties", three on each corner, top middle and bottom of each joint of the kennel. Your dog won't be able to escape that! You do have a wireframe kennel, don't you?

[seanandclare]

hi we are new bl owners sean and clare we live in bolton england uk with our 9 month old lab louis we love him to bits and so glad we adopted him after he had been passed from home to home (this being his fourth) he is a beautiful dog although a bit crazy at times lol we have 1 or 2 issues with him but this site has been very helpful with these and we hope to be members here for many years to come.

[Scarlet]

Hey everyone, my name is Jesse, I just got my Lab three days ago. She was about to be taken to a pound so I took her in, she is about 4mo. old and super funny and active. I have some getting use to but should be interesting. We named her Scarlet, I dont know if she is a full bred Lab or not so I will just have to look for Lab characteristics to attempt to confirm (previous owner claims she is). Any pointers will help! Thanks!

[Nade]

Hi guys, my name is Nade and I come from Macedonia, dont know if you`ve heard about it lol but doesnt matter. Am a vet student n am not owner,but am being owned by a black princess named Pepa, who is 18 months old. So a little bit of help would be usefull, where can I show her to you.

[Ceajaegirl]

Hi my name is Cj, Callirhoe is my 4 year old LabX rescued from a local org at 9 weeks old.  We are a black labrador family for 20 years!  My last pup Bacchus was my service dog for just over 10 years, he just passed Aug 2012 and he will be missed!!

[Kurt]

Welcome to blacklabrador.com. We are happy that you are here. What type of service dog was Bacchus?

[OliviasAPuppy]

Well hello,
I am just new to this forum but have been reading here for several days. My name is Amanda.
I live in Northern Ireland by the sea. I am the proud owner of an eight week old lab puppy. Mum is a chocolate lab, dad is a black lab.
We've had the pup about a week and a half now. We are crate training, and watching her like a hawk during the day.
So far so good, our little puppy sits when you tell her to, and lies on her mat on command.

I'm looking forward to posting and learning.

[Lab X lover]

             My name is Sherry. I live in SouthEastern Ontario, Canada with two children, a wonderful husband and a newly adopted 3 month old black lab cross pup named Indy. He is our families first, but not last, puppy and I figure since I have raised two children I shouldn't have a problem raising a pup. Boy was I mistaken, it is just like being in the toddler, terrible two stage only canine style! LoL Have enrolled and will begin our training come this Wednesday which I know not onlly will he florish in but so will I as his new pack leader and dog trainer...

Thank you all for reading and hope to get in on all the exciting puppy news as well as ask my own puppy/dog questions

Sherry AkA Shera