Yellow Labs are a GREAT breed and the only way that puppy can grow into a bad dog is if you show it how.
Give it plenty of attention. Wear him out in one long play session or give him a few minutes several times a day.
They learn very quick. You just need to show him what you want or how he should behave.
Positive reinforcement and the occasional treat will go along way. These are people pleaser dogs and they want to do the right thing. You just have to show him the way.
Step one so far is to teach it to piss outside...
Already pissed in my car on the way home (probably out of fear i guess) and pissed slightly in the living room.
Step one so far is to teach it to piss outside...
Already pissed in my car on the way home (probably out of fear i guess) and pissed slightly in the living room.
Take him out as often as you can, especially after he drinks water about 5 minutes later. If you can get a bit of his pee on a pad and take it out with you, put it on the grass and stand him over it so he associates what he has to do. But even if he's a fast learner, get ready for accidents just make sure that if you catch him in the act, stop him and take him out to finish up. Consistency is the name of the game. Good luck, he's adorable!
Buy pee pads for dogs Leave one on the floor at all times and if you see him ready to pee, place him on the pad, my dogs flocked to it quickly.
Once they get used to the pee pad, slowly start placing the pads closer to the door to your yard or wherever you want him to go until you have the pee pad outside. Once hes gone outside a few times and is used to going out to the yard for the pad, remove the pad and he should start pissing outside.
One thing you should know, they can get big lol. My yellow mix is 70 or 75 lbs and my black one is 80 ish lbs. They both turned one in feb. Leash train him fast so it doesn't fight you as much later, teach it to sit with treats, then make him sit before going in or out of the house, even when going for walks so they don't rush the door. Get him used to nail clippers young so when hes almost 100 lbs he isn't afraid of them and try to flee like mine do lol. Play with him outside b4 a storm when its thundering so they aren't afraid of rain/thunder later. Socialize him with dogs and people and cats if you can or want to so they stay friendly to them. If you get shit done when they are young, they wont have to come to their own judgment of whether its safe/they like it/etc later on down the road. My trainer and i think a vet have told me that usually after a year, they start losing their innocence and become more aware/cautious of everything around them. They were right, my dos are great but they don't instantly accept new things like they used to lol.
Lots more stuff to do but those are some pretty good ones in my opinion.
Make sure you clip his nails regularly, get him used to it now so it wont be a pain later. If the majority of your place is that slate floor he'll need regular clipping or it will be hard on his feet ;)
Oh, if you plan on neutering him and he isn't yet, do it as soon as he is old enough. It prevents them from raising their leg to piss. My boy was neutered young, before we adopted him, and he does like a squat/stretch thing when he pisses and has never lifted his leg to anything.
Step one so far is to teach it to piss outside...
Already pissed in my car on the way home (probably out of fear i guess) and pissed slightly in the living room.
My gf breeds and shows labs, they are amazing dogs. They are a handful though so have to be prepared.
take him outside as often as possible, make him get used to peeing outside.. you do that enough he will NEVER want to pee inside again. Stay out there until he goes absolutely. Set up a bell by the door. On the way out get him to jump up and hit the bell then go outside. This way he will learn the communication of telling you when he needs to go--very important.
Labs are problem solving smart, smarter than most other breeds. This is a good thing, but also means more work for you. They are ridiculously mischievous so you have to stay on top of that. Be FIRM, loud and direct when they do something wrong.. If you whine, coddle them or just stay quiet they will never get that you are angry and will do it again. Repeat this as often as you can, they get into a routine and once they learn it it's in there.
Hide all food. They are ALWAYS hungry or at least appear that way. They will find it. It could be a banana peal at the bottom of a trash can but they will knock it over and find it. Elevate the cans out of reach, have the food bags in a door they can not open, cupboards wont work.
As for foods, definitely want to keep him on the same food as the breeder had him on. If you do change it up make sure of two things. Try to get the kinds that don't have grains in it, grains don't go well with their stomachs and will give them diarrhea and ear infections more often than the other stuff will. Second thing is be sure not to over feed him! A good food should only take a few cups in the morning and in the evening, that's it. I've seen an adult lab polish off a 25 lbs bag in one sitting... they will eat until they do damage! A good rule of thumb is if they seem to be a little thicker? give them a little less.. if they seem a little thin? give them a little more.
tough finding foods without grains, and they do cost quite a bit more, but you end up saving money in the end because you go through less than half as much food as the heavy grain stuff so lasts a lot longer--not to mention less health issues. i'll leave you a short list if you are interested though... if you do change foods, go slow with the change, especially with puppies...
My trainer and i think a vet have told me that usually after a year, they start losing their innocence and become more aware/cautious of everything around them. They were right, my dos are great but they don't instantly accept new things like they used to lol.
i've read that too recently, it's like once you train them and socialize them when they are pups, they need an overhaul refresher around that time to make it stick hehe
Awesome pup! Our little guy (70 lb golden retriever) turns 1 this month, and I couldn't imagine life without him at this point. Lots of good advice in here already. Most important is consistency.
Kennel training works wonders, even if you are home all day with him, getting him liking a kennel at a young age will be a life saver if ever a time he needs to go in one. Not to mention, dogs will NOT go potty in their kennel, so it helps with potty training as well. Some things we did to get him liking his kennel is we would feed him in there, give him a kong (they go nuts for these things), and when letting him out, don't say anything just open the door and go outside. Even though we don't use the kennel at all anymore, if we were to take it out, he would probably go in there and sleep on his own!
You can knock out a lot of training during feeding time. When you set the bowl down, have him sit and stay and not eat until you say so. You will be amazed at how well they listen and learn when it comes to their food ;]
Lab is a great breed, and shouldn't be too much of a problem, as he will learn real fast. Just always be watching him, so you catch him immediately when he does something bad. As well as praise him when he does something good. And remember, a tired dog = a good dog!
motherfucker finally went to sleep...holy fuck this thing is a handful. Pissed 3 times on the floro already but i managed to get it outside before it finished. Pissed 2 more times outside.
motherfucker finally went to sleep...holy fuck this thing is a handful. Pissed 3 times on the floro already but i managed to get it outside before it finished. Pissed 2 more times outside.
It ate all the cat's food. Cat is pissed now...
sounds like having kids
minus eating the cat food..although i wouldn't put it past my guy..lol
It finally fucking fell asleep. I brought the cat a handful of catfood to the upstairs washroom where he's hiding from the dog. Theoretically while the dog sleeps she wont piss on the floor so i can sneak some work in. This is alot more stressful then I thought...It'll be better when the paranoia goes away
why the movie is gr8 i have irish setter that is 1 year old and in few months i will get female for him so i can have them in pair and breed them i just love dogs
get one of these, trust me. Playing fetch all the freaking time only sucks when you have to touch that nasty ass ball.
Have one of those, its a god send, I play with 2 balls at a time, he has to bring one back and drop it then I throw the other, right into the creek. My dog loves to jump in and swim after it. He's totally tireless. I worked for 4 hrs on saturday filling in the path he beat into the ground running for the ball
Back in the 90's our black lab ate (or chewed and broke up) all of the linoleum tiles in the bathroom...
yeah... they will do that.. My gf was young when she got her first one so wasn't an experienced trainer as she is now and her oldest chewed right through the drywall one day.. hehe
have to get angry and loud at them when they do that stuff or they will tear your shit up.
She is super cute I just got a puppy Friday as well. They're lots of work that's for sure. I will have to get some pics up of my little man Zues. He's a mini pinscher and just 9 weeks old.
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