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Thanks Garnali. I've passed this on to the person who witnessed the incident. It's very useful.

I know, it's disgusting, isn't it? If I lived alone I'd have a new dog tonight. Can anyone identify the breed? I just wondered if they could bypass the RSPCA and get a specific rescue group involved?

A friend emailed me today, and forwarded another email from her sister-in-law. What useful advise can I give?

Hilarious shot. I'm so your fan.

I ain't no professional photographer, but this is Martha at the Barwon Heads anyway. She had so much fun.

I get the same thing. Well, that's not true — most of the time I get, "Oh, it's so nice to see a Lab that isn't fat!", but other times I get told she's too skinny, and yes, it's always by people who have overweight dogs. (Or, truth be told, are overweight themselves.) Martha is 24kg, and our vet thinks she's is in superb condition. She's very fit, a great diet, a glossy coat. So stuff 'em.

I found another one! Me and Martha when she was a puppy. I like it because it looks like I only have one boob.

Yeah. If I had a dollar for everyone who said, "Well I can see why you got THAT name...", I have about a gazillion dollars. Which reminds me. I've posted my photo on DOL several times — this thread, the "post your picture" thread — but I've never seen YOUR photo young lady! In fact, I've even seen your OH's photo, but not yours. C'mon, we need to see you and the pookids...

Ok, I'd just woken up at the time. You guys are all hotties, and I'm 40, and I'd look better if I had lips and eyelashes (i.e. make-up on). But here's the photo, nonetheless. And doesn't Martha look beautiful? ETA: It's not a spotty photo. I just have lots of freckles. (See the hair colour for explanation.) But this thread has inspired me to do some proper purdy photos in the near future.

I have various Kongs and other toys that are designed so that your dog has to work to get food out. I find the Busy Buddy bone especially good.

Martha certainly fits into that category. Thanks. It's already (in half a day) proving to be pretty impossible — spaces are too small and dogs are too needy for attention! I got some Manuka Honey. The good news: Martha loves it. The bad news: it cost $45!

Excellent idea. Time for Martha to learn some new tricks. We have a very small yard (which is normally fine, because we live across the road from a huge area of parkland) and Martha usually gets one long and two short walks a day. This is going to be tricky.

Puggy, we posted at the same time, but thanks for this; it answers some of the questions in the previous post. Two weeks! Oh dear. Can I take her for on-lead walks if I avoid other dogs? She will go mental.

Thanks so much for all those replies guys. Erny, thanks in particular for all that info. Her water intake is normal so I think I'll give her the pleasure of licking the honey off the spoon. One more question: what about walks? There's a lot of dogs around her and I don't want to spread it around — how long do I need to avoid them for? Unfortunately, we've got another dog staying with us, a 9-year-old Golden Retriever. I am keeping them separate now (although that's very tricky in our small house and yard), but I'm assuming Geordie may have picked it up from Martha before she showed any symptoms. So I'm going to prevent him from associating with others dogs too. This is the first time I've been brave enough to NOT rush her to the vet at the first sign of any discomfort, so I'm a bit nervous. I will certainly take her if she shows any symptom other than the cough or if it goes on too long. P.S. Erny, what about dosage with the honey? I think I read in another thread that you advised a teaspoon three times a day?

As a puppy, my almost-one-year-old Labrador Martha was vaccinated against Kennel (or Canine) Cough. Now she's coughing on exertion and occasionally producing frothy mucus. She is otherwise well — lively, normal temp, normal humungous appetite, normal effervescent mood. Could it be Kennel Cough despite the vaccination? As I said, she's almost one, so she's due for boosters soon. Is the KC vacc is only short-acting? Could it have worn off? The cough came on yesterday afternoon. I can take her to the vet today. Reading through other threads on Kennel Cough, I see that a lot of people let their dogs ride out a case of Kennel Cough, as it is analogous to the cold in humans. I'm going to get her some Manuka Honey, as Erny has suggested in the past. Do you think I should wait to see how it progresses, or is it quicksticks to the vet?

Wow! Loving this thread. Dear wee Martha at about 8 weeks I think. At about three months: And now, at ten months.

Martha is 8 months, and I still miss the little puppy she used to be! But every age is fun — she's such a joy. On training, I've been very slack with it, but when I'm not I find this online book very useful. It takes you through all the levels of obedience. Do you use a clicker? Here's what you can expect at eight months.

A choc lab pup! Oh, what a beauty! Many virtual cuddles. I agree with getting Boz to do the same stuff with increasing distractions. They're so perfect when they're indoors!

Three pigs ears is too much for a pup, and probably why she got the runs! They are high in fat and a treat rather than food — better to give her one a couple of times a week when you want to keep her occupied for a while.

Do they remove the pad when they remove the dew claw? If not, it may well be that if you have the claws removed they will stop catching and the pads will stop splitting. Either way, see your vet.

They're all so gorgeous, but there's something about a golden cocker puppy that makes me melt.

Great advice from Sandgrubber. Martha is seven months now. We've basically let her set her own limits in terms of the energy she uses up. However, she's very interested in retrieving and I posted a question here a while ago about when I should let her chase a ball — the overwhelming advice is that we should avoid it until she's a year old, if not older. I now let her chase other dogs who are chasing balls — she still gets the run but she does a gentle loop at the end rather than a screeching halt. You definitely need to avoid jumping at this stage. It's very hard. Young labs are energy bunnies, and Martha will go out of her way if she sees a log or something just for the pleasure of jumping over it. She also loves rough play with older dogs and sometimes has to be dragged away. I think the best thing I learned was to be aware and careful but not get into a panic every time she does a somersault. Once your pup gets a bit older, swimming is terrific if you have access (watch out for snakes near rivers though) and a great way to practice retrieving without putting stress on joints. Sorry. Experience dictates that I have to disagree strongly with the above protocol. I find this a really interesting question. I didn't know what to do with Martha cause I received such conflicting advice — some people act like you're essentially murdering your dog if you take them out before they've finished their shots, others that your dog will forever be fundamentally unsocialised if you don't. I carried Martha around a lot when she was really little, then started little walks, greeting other friendly, healthy-looking dogs on leads, after her first shots. Don't let her sniff dog poo. Puppy school is essential for socialisation. I do think that Labs are generally so social and easygoing

All these puppies are gorgeous, but Martha wants to say a particular hello to the chockie labs.

Martha had exactly the same. The vet said it was the internal stitches and that it was nothing to worry about.

Martha had a very similar-looking rash at about 5 months. The vet gave us Neotopic-H cream, which is an antibiotic and anti-histamine, I think. It cleared up within a couple of days. She's since had some small pimples on her vulva. The vet was pretty sure both are an allergy of some sort, possibly to grasses. Although I must say it hasn't been worked out to my satisfaction yet.