Joan of Arc

Keep the dog and send the husband off for training Sorry I know its not very funny but sometimes ... It is NEVER ok for a dog to bite, but if your daughter is small ( remeind me of her size and age) then Molly is just trying to flex her muscles and elevate herself up teh ladder. Expecialy if she sees the ball as her possession. Now I am no training expert but I do believe that when dogs and kids are together its takes a lot of supervision. First thing to teach both of them is 'who owns what' dont let Molly play with the daughter's toys and vice versa. Molly is old enough to go to full on obedience training not puppy preschool where you can get good quality advice form people trained to help you. If you need to locate the nearest club contact DOGSNSW and they can put you in touch with an obedience club. This will also give Molly something to do, keep her strong willed little (big) brain busy. Good luck

Kong Mistress 1 versus reluctant pup 0

See, what a clever girl she is. Instead of swimming and getting sand in her cossies, she just sits on teh beach look ing good everyone goes out of their way to admire her. She has certainly grwon and looks beautiful

Despite what people think not ALL labradors are water mad = and that doesn't mean they are deficient. Perhaps the beach is a big ask, try a lagoon or dam or river etc where the water is still, you could use a child's shell (buy at KMart) and fill it with water in the back yard for her to play in. When she gets the idea she should come round. As for the excitement thing - well I think 4leggedvariety is correct. Labs are pups and easilly excited until about 3 and then for the next 12 - 18 months you get this placid loving mate- then they get old and slow down. Still healthy but not over excieted like pups.

Poor baby. We have a Pharaoh HOund that cant tolerate lamb. He only gets chicken.

Priceless :p Let her get a bit hungry and she'll soon work out how to use it.

And how is Molly an dher birdie friends today? I agree that you have the makings of a funniest home video there! We will all be watching of a Sat night now to see if a Lab baby turns up.

I doubt one grape or sultana would be that toxic but if she was to devour a bunch of grapes or similar I think there might be an issue. Next time you take Molly to visit the vet, just ask him/her what quantity is considered toxic. Something I suppose we should all have quantified and qualified.

What a great combination persephone, we have tried frozen blocks and usually freeze bits of meat in a soup mix. Will certainly try your recipe. Although for our bigger dogs we have used ice cream containers but for the Pharaoh hound the margarine containers would be great.

Can I suggest that you use cheese instead of her biscuits for treats. I understand tha tyou dont want to use any new foods BUT the number of biscuits she is eating MAY but not certainly be contributing to her runny poo situation and perhaps the number of times she goes. The grated carrot and the cheese will both help bind her up a little. Certainly wont hurt her. Perhaps the noise that woke you up was Molly trying to get your attention to go out to do her business, she may be getting better at house training than we all imagine. She may have left her call a bit late but may have been trying. Keep up the good work it sounds like a real success story. We will all be checking for updates

Amypie - no they don't chew the pipe and they love it but if you have labs or big dogs they sometimes get excited and throw the pipe around a bit to get the dog nuts out. Then they only last about 2 years - well thats how long ours lasted. Persephone We also use the big black Kongs but thats what our oldest boy chewed up - we were guaranteed he wouldnt damage it after he had already chewed up the next size down. I gave him his Kong and went to work, came home from school and here is the Kong laying on the back step - missing its bottom two rows. Amazing really because he's not a destructive dog and its the only thing he's ever chewed up. Love Persephone's recipe - must try it.

Oh Ahona! What a horrid thought Go Molly you are doing so well. ;) The two poos bit is prbably because she isnt 'finishing' if you get my drift and so goes again. That's a maturity thing. I would be inclined to add some grated carrot to her diet - extra fibre will help bind her up. As for the eating it bit - DOnt have a cure for that, never been a problem for us - that we know of!! Keep the updates coming I love Labrador success stories.

Hi Littlelabrador As you know I have been watching your thread. Sounds about right to me. The photo of the black puppy was probably taken before he was 8 weeks and because you didn't get Molly until she was 8 weeks (assumptions here) you probably didnt see her like that. Plus I think its also the angle the photo is taken at. Your Molly is gorgeous, right on target and very intelligent - that's why she's pushing boundaries. Just remember she'snot the boss etc. As for the bone she will chew the bone bare and then maybe play with it every so often if you left it lying around but I wouldn't do that given that you are trying to avoid any confrontations over food. When she is older and possessed of more jaw strength she will chew the bone away. Its a gradual process. Ask the butcher if he will just save you a couple of flaps - you can always cut them to size at home and freeze them. You are doing all the right things and she is making porgress every day - good advice from The Spotted Devil about going slowly and always using the option of taking a step back if you have to re-enforce something. Keep going you are building a life long friendship with a beautiful friend.

Maybe pack the food in a little tighter with a bit more glue (lol) - yoghurt and rice mixed with other contents or freeze it. I know Kongs are great value and are meant to be indestructable. But our boy chewed his way through two of them so we switched tactics. Try this - if you are handy or OH is get a length of PVC pipe and a cap (which you glue on) from the local hardware or plumbing supplies place, then get a screw on cap for the other end. Once you've done that you can bore a couple of holes in the length of the pipe - about the same size as a normal dog biscuit - regrdles off whether you use Supercoat or something else they are normally around the same diameter. Half fill the pipe with biscuits, screw on the cap and roll it once or twice down the path etc and watch how quickly the dogs learn - roll the pipe, I get a biscuit. They love it and it keep sthem occupied.

Only ever bought pet grade chicken mince from Lennards once. It was feral, and I didnt like the look of it when I got it home. I use human grade chicken mince, yes its dearer but its often fresher and I am careful about when and where I buy it.

Nothing lasts as long as the marrow bones and our labs play with them all day but our vet has the same views. I vote for the black kong also, put a mixture of rice and mince or similar in it, in the hot weather you can freeze it and it will be a treat that lasts for hours. As for bones - we use a combination of lamb flaps, lambs pelvis bones are good also if youcan get them. But we often (twice a month) buy a few marrow bones for all our dogs because they love them. We leave teh marrow in but I realise that its very fatty - and iwth Labs we have to be weight watchers (lo) I was told years ago not to use beef bones for dogs because they are too brittle.

Oh yes freezing stuff is a bonus, make some watery meat soup and freeze it in an old ice cream container. Tip out on the grass etc adn its one big ice block for the day. Meat adn rice in the Kong are good also

littlelabrador your Molly is beautiful and has good bloodlines.

I have included our basic diet which we find is good for thier teeth also, the chewing is part of teething just like with humans and so any chewing will help. This is our basic diet for our girls who are now 7 months. Breakfast - 1/2 cup biscuit and a small chicken frame Lunch - no longer receiving a lunch meal ( we both work and no one to feed them at home and they are old enough for two meals a day now) Dinner - 1 cup of biscuits, a handful of mince (sometimes chicken, lamb or beef - or kangaroo when we have it), a piece of lamb flap and then at least once a week we use egg or sardines. This all varies slightly depending on a few variables but they are in very good condition, not over weight and their coats are shining and healthy. I agree with the chicken necks being a bit dangerous for some dogs or pups, one of our girls is a swallower so she would never get necks, her litter sister is a methodical chewer and would chew the smallest dog biscuit for ever. She gets necks sometimes. Give him something that will take longer to eat eg chicken frames, lamb shanks etc, kongs are good but be aware that quite a few male Labs have enourmous jaw strength and will chew away at the actual Kong. We no longer use them because our yellow boy eats them. All our dogs are trained to sit when we approach with their bowls, and wait until we place the bowls on the ground. They are not allowed to eat unti we release them to do so - you can lengthen the wait time by using the 'leave it' command and then perhaps something like a finger click accompanied by 'eat' or 'have your tea'. WE also use the 'gentle' command when giving them anything by hand, to ensure that they only 'lip' hand held food - nothing like loosing a fingernail or more to a food orientated Lab (lol). Lots of walks but not too far just yet, he's a bit young for long walks, always praise and if you are able to find a puppy preschool or the local obedience club - in amongst all these other things he will need socialising. Excercise and social skills are essential for Labs in order to curb thier natural enthusiasm for life. Good luck with your boy he is gorgeous and keep the photos and the progress reports coming.

littlelabrador I have sent you a PM.

Mouthing is easily curbed by repetitive correction. OUr Labs are never allowed to mouth, we start teaching them by using the very same method as Badboyz. Put a treat inside a closed fist and present the fist to her, every time she gets over excited and begins to mouth, or lick or jump, give the short reprimand of UH! UH! and pull your hand away. As soon as she calms down, repeat the process until eventually she will come to the hand and sniffs and waits - THEN you say YES GOOD GIRL and reward her immediately. We also use the sit command at a very early age so if she can already sit that is even better, begin with her in the sit position. When you can present her with a closed fist without her going ballistic, then you can begin to use the 'wait' command. Labs are very smart and extremely food driven and get the message really early. so it should really only take a couple of goes each day for her to learn it within a week or earlier. Her success is really dependant on your consistency and everybody at home having the same approach. Good luck, Labs are such a loveable breed and you will have a lifelong devoted companion.

Our Lab babies got 4 meals a day unti lthey were about 12 weeks, then when I returned to work (after thier maternity leave lol) they went to breakfast, dinner and supper. Later the two keepers became individual eaters and one didnt really need that third meal - she was not quite as food driven as her sister. Now they have two meals a day at 7 months because we all work and they are thriving.

Labs are not pigs, they are dogs!! However they are inclined to guts thier food down like pigs and that is often a problem. A 4 - 8 month old Lab puppy is a mobile vacuum cleaner when it comes to food. This is our basic diet for our girls who are now 7 months. Breakfast - 1/2 cup biscuit and a small chicken frame Lunch - no longer receiving a lunch meal ( we both work and no one to feed them at home and they are old enough for two meals a day now) Dinner - 1 cup of biscuits, a handful of mince (sometimes chicken, lamb or beef - or kangaroo when we have it), a piece of lamb flap and then at least once a week we use egg or sardines. This all varies slightly depending on a few variables but they are in very good condition, not over weight and their coats are shining and healthy. I agree with the chicken necks being a bit dangerous for some dogs or pups, one of our girls is a swallower so she would never get necks, her litter sister is a methodical chewer and would chew the smallest dog biscuit for ever. She gets necks sometimes. ;) Give him something that will take longer to eat eg chicken frames, lamb shanks etc, kongs are good but be aware that quite a few male Labs have enourmous jaw strength and will chew away at the actual Kong. We no longer use them because our yellow boy eats them. All our dogs are trained to sit when we approach with their bowls, and wait until we place the bowls on the ground. They are not allowed to eat unti we release them to do so - you can lengthen the wait time by using the 'leave it' command and then perhaps something like a finger click accompanied by 'eat' or 'have your tea'. WE also use the 'gentle' command when giving them anything by hand, to ensure that they only 'lip' hand held food - nothing like loosing a fingernail or more to a food orientated Lab (lol). Lots of walks but not too far just yet, he's a bit young for long walks, always praise and if you are able to find a puppy preschool or the local obedience club - in amongst all these other things he will need socialising. Excercise and social skills are essential for Labs in order to curb thier natural enthusiasm for life. :D Good luck with your boy he is gorgeous and keep the photos and the progress reports coming.

Hey well done to both of you

We have trained all four of our labs to be 'gentle' when being fed treats, we start when they are young and only have the smallest amount of the treat exposed. When the pup or dog goes to take the treat we repeat the command 'gentle' and if they snatch I close my fist, if they are gentle with teeth then I allow them a small amount. As they get older I start to say 'gentle' and follow with 'no teeth' and they soon seem to learn that if they only lip the treat they are rewarded. I must admit though that Labs are extremely easy to train and being highly food motivated its that much easier. Perseverance and Consistency are the answers.