Matthew_B

Sorry all - made a little mistake with what he's fed. Alot of the time my fiance feeds him (she enjoys the fun bits and leaves cleaning his poo, etc for me!). At the moment, we give him a bit under 3/4 cup of kibble in a little bit of warm water plus 50g (not 500g - sorry) raw mince (medium grade) for breakfast. For dinner, we give him a bit under 1/2 cup of kibble in a little water plus 2 tablespoons of yoghurt. Is this enough or too much? How can we know how much to feed him as he grows? The breeder said the warm water helps soften the kibble for him for a while as his teeth grow and he goes through teething.

Just wondering if someone could tell me how much I should be feeding my Labrador Retriever puppy (Beau)? I feed him twice a day at present - morning and night, with the morning meal about twice the size of the night meal. In the morning, he gets about 3/4 cup of kibble soaked in warm water for about 5 mins plus 500g mince. At night, he gets just under half a cup of kibble soaked in some water plus 1.5 tablespoons of acidolphius yoghurt. I wish there was a graph out there to say how much to feed at a certain weight/age. He's 2.5 months old.

Thanks for the tips. I'll make sure he doesn't continue jumping - it's one thing I was actually unsure about. Good idea about the Kong toy too. Will pick one up next time I'm in town.

Hi all Beau is settling in nicely now - he's asleep on the verandah outside as I type this. I am just wondering how much exercise I should be giving him each day. He is a week or so shy of being 2 months old. I don't want to over-exert the little fella. He sleeps about 2 or 3 hours at a time thru the day, stopping for lunch at about 12:30-1pm. In the yard, we run around a bit and he jumps up and down in front of me, barking. On the verandah, he wrestles with his teddy bear or chews on a fairly thick stick or one of his chewy toys. Also, I'm considering buying one of those Kong toys with the liver treats inside them for him. Are they a good idea for a puppy of his age? Thanks in advance for any help anyone can give me.

Hi all Sorry for not being in to reply to all of these posts. I've been busy with Beau. We put him in the laundry last night and he only cried 3 times, which was pretty good considering. Tonight, he'll be in the laundry again, but this time we're going to give him a small snack (just a 1cm sq piece of a puppy shmacko treat) and pat him until he falls asleep to try to get him to associate the laundry at night with good things. To be honest, I've been very stressed since we got him home because I worry about the little guy. I had to go into town the day after we got him and I was stressed the entire time worrying if he was alright or getting upset and hurting himself trying to get out to find me. Since then, I've had the time to spend at home all day with him and when I put him on the verandah in the morning to spend the day outside, he cries less each time. When I sneak a look out the window when he stops crying (finally), he's fast asleep. So I guess I need not worry, hey? He'll wear himself out of crying and then go to sleep I suppose. I just hope he grows out of the whole crying phase quickly because it's really a heartbreaking sound to listen to. I have to force myself to not rush out to comfort him when he cries. I'll see if I can upload a short video on here for you all to see him in action - floppy ears and all. You should see him jump up and down on the spot, barking and wagging his little tail when he gets excited! That's all for now. Will post more pics soon too.

Looks very (too) small, with no area for him to go pee or poo. I'd rather stick with our current setup in the ensuite - his bed in one corner with newspaper on the floor in the other corner for him to toilet on and enough space for him to play with his toys if he wakes through the night.

Anyone got a picture of a crate? We've already bought a tub/bowl-like plastic bed with a matress in it for him to sleep in.

Hi all We got our Lab Retriever - Beau - home last night. He's absolutely adorable (I'll post pics later) and very affectionate. The only thing is, he cried almost non-stop through the night until we put him in our ensuite not far from our bed (he had been in the laundry one door down from our bedroom and ended up sleeping a solid 3 or so hours until it was time for us to get up. How long does this crying last for when a puppy is separated from its litter? It's heartbreaking to listen to the poor little guy whining all night long.

You and Claude look very happy together, BIG. I can't wait to pick up my Lab Retriever puppy (his name will be Beau) in 3 weeks time.

You look beautiful in that wedding dress, Cosmolo.

He looks very happy in those pics!

That's a nice pic!

Yep, the drug for dogs and that for humans are much the same in the composition. Doseage is the big difference.

I recall a time when my parent's Golden Retriever (Max) collapsed on the back verandah one morning about 7:30am. Mum had him straight into the vet. After some testing, the vet said his educated guess was that someone must have thrown a hash cookie over the back fence (there is a lane behind the house) and that Max being Max, he must have gobbled it up. He was very lucky that he was a fully grown adult and not a puppy- it almost killed the poor little guy. Got him home that night. He could barely walk and any water he tried to drink from his bowl just dribbled out of his mouth. Sasha, his daughter, was beside herself with worry (you could easily tell) and was extremely gentle with him. They normally play around inside of a night but she just lay beside him. Next morning he was much better (we kept them both in the laundry that night so Max could be warm and comfy. Sasha stayed with him for company. Only other problem with Max was when he was stung on the snout by a bee or wasp. He was incredibly swollen, dragging his face along the concrete. Took him straight to the vet and got antihistamines in him and he was fine a few hours later.

Okay, thanks for the info!

Thanks for the info, everyone!

Hi all In about 5 weeks, Jo and myself will be picking up our Labrador Retriever puppy - Beau. Our breeder tells us that the puppy will have all of his vaccinations done by this stage and that he will also be microchipped. Looking on the internet at a site my parents recommended (http://www.vetshopaustralia.com.au), there are many medications to choose from for fleas, ticks, worms, etc. I was told this website provides the medications a bit cheaper. So I decided to make a bit of a summary of what I read and wanted to see what others who have experience with labs think... Heartgard Plus A monthly meaty chew used for the prevention of heartworm disease and the control of roundworms and hookworms. Given once a month year round. Up to 11kg (6 chews) - $28.95 (blue) 12 to 22kg (6 chews) - $33.95 (green) 23 to 45kg (6 chews) - $38.95 (brown) Frontline Plus A topical application for the treatment and prevention of fleas and ticks. Apply every month to treat for fleas, every two weeks for paralysis ticks and every month for brown dog ticks. Up to 10kg (6 pipettes) - $53.45 10 to 20kg (6 pipettes) - $55.45 20 to 40kg (6 pipettes) - $58.45 Drontal Allwormer Used for the control of gastrointestinal worms in dogs including roundworm, hookworm, whip worm and tapeworm. Worm puppies every 2 weeks from 2 weeks until 12 weeks old then; Every month from 3 months until 6 months then; Every 3 months as an adult dog Up to 3kg (4 tabs) - $9.11 Up to 10kg (5 chews) - $24.86 Up to 35kg (2 chews) - $28.50 I'm thinking that I'll need to administer Heartgard Plus and Frontline Plus once a month, with Drontal as above (i.e. every 2 weeks from 2 weeks until 12 weeks old then every month from 3 months until 6 months and then every 3 months as an adult dog). Is this right? I don't want to over-medicate the poor little guy, but I also don't want him (excuse the pun) to end up as sick as a dog! Lastly, how old should he be when we get him de-sexed, and how much does it usually cost?

We plan to leave the pup on our covered back verandah with its kennel and create an area where the pup can do it's business. I think we might be able to ask our neighbours to come and check on him a few times a day, but they are elderly people and although very nice I am not sure it would be right of us to ask that of them.

Sounds good, thanks for the info everyone. The only point I'll make now is that with both my fiance and I working, we aren't home through the middle of the day to give the puppy a lunchtime meal. Our breeder said that by 8 weeks, she has them on 2 meals a day - larger in the morning than at night so that they can burn off the energy through the day than while they sleep at night. I really wish I could be home to feed him and keep him company throughout the day, but it unfortunately isn't practical. Given this, we plan to buy plenty of toys for him and will make a fuss over him when we come home each day. Money permitting, we may be able to buy a second puppy in 6 to 12 months time so they can keep each other company.

How much does de-sexing cost? I know it's best to get it done when the puppy is as young as possible, but what age is best?

Hi all My fiance and I are bringing home a Labrador Retriever puppy in about 5 weeks and we are not sure as to what we should be feeding him when he arrives, or how often. He will be 8 weeks old when we pick him up and will be used to 2 feeds per day at that stage (this info from breeder). The breeder mentioned that she uses fresh meat, vegetables and some kibble. So this is what we want to know. 1. What sort of vegetables are good for our puppy to eat and should they be cooked or raw? Can/should I include fruit at all and if so, what fruits? 2. What sort of meat should I give the puppy? I've heard that kangaroo meat is the best. Is this correct? Can I use any meat off-cuts? Should the meat be cooked? 3. Are there any foods that are very dangerous for puppies that should be avoided at all costs (i.e. we know chocolate is a no-no)? 4. How often should we feed our 8 week-old puppy? 5. Will the puppy's diet change dramatically as he grows? By this, I mean not the quantity, but the variety of food. Hoping someone can be of assistance to us.