katied86

Aussielover: thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately I work so it's impossible to do 1:30... Thanks Thespotteddevil! Will definitely look into that one! Close to home and doable time wise!! :D

In January my boy turns 1 and as well as doing Rally-O training I was thinking of starting retrieving training. I eventually want to get him into flyball, but want to wait until he's a bit older so it's easier on his joints. I just don't know where to start with retrieving training. He has a strong retrieving instinct and will retrieve both in water and on land (using toys) and I have been working on getting him to drop it at my feet (today he did quite well!). I'm based in Western Sydney. Is there somewhere I can go to learn the ropes of competition retrieving or can someone point me in the right direction?

My boy shakes, high-5s, begs, weaves through my legs but refuses to roll over! I have tried so many times to teach him and he just won't do it!

Thanks! I have been thinking about changing over for a while now and am nearly finished this bag of food so I might look at doing the change-over over the next couple of weeks! :D

I have a gorgeous (incredibly tall) 8 month old chocolate lab. He is a ball of energy and loves his trips to our local dog park, the beach and his rally-o training classes. He is still being fed the same puppy food the breeder sent him home with and has been thriving (at 33.5kgs, the vet is says he's on the lighter side of normal and could beef up a bit ). He has always had "extras" and will do anything for a banana or strawberry! I am wondering when you would be moving onto adult food? It was recommended to me that at 10 months I could move him on to working dog food. I will be away when he turns 1 (he'll be with my parents who love him almost as much as he loves them as he licks them to death!) so ideally I'd want to be transitioning him around 10 months or just over 1 year (I get back 6 days after his first birthday). I am planning to ring the breeder tomorrow to talk to him about this, but I was wondering what your experiences have been. Links below are some videos of my little guy having fun these school holidays! I think he likes having me home and being able to take him to the beach!!! :D

I used a gentle leader style harness on my boy (now 8 month old lab) as he pulled a lot when using his car harness. Last week I took him away and whilst wearing his gentle leader sitting at a café (tethered with the lead to the leg of my chair) he managed to chew through it whilst I was eating breakfast. Since then I have just been using a flat collar and he is walking a LOT better. That said, I am still terrified that he will slip his collar (which he has done!). I find that he pulls less on his collar as he feels it more.

I have an 8m lunge line. I may look at getting a longer one, but we'll be coming down through Braidwood... I love the long leads!

thanks kelpiecuddles! Cant wait to take my boy to the beach!

I have checked webites and they focus on dog beaches... They may not have parks like I'm used to in Sydney, but thought I'd throw the question out there. There are heaps of dog friendly beaches - many in walking distance from where we are - but his recall isnt good enough to be off leash in unfenced areas...

I'm heading to the South Coast to visit my gran and am taking my 8 month old puppy with me. Her place has no fences so Merlot will be confined to inside, the enclosed veranda or out on the lead. Whilst we will be regularly taking him for walks or to the beach, I have been looking for fenced dog parks where he can run but haven't had much luck online. Any suggestions?

I've been wondering about this too. My boy is 5 months old and varies between being crated at night and sleeping outside (he has a covered kennel in the backyard that he loves). When he's in the crate he sleeps in the lounge room as has been sleeping through the night (about 9pm-7/8am) since about 9 weeks. He generally is good with toileting but can get himself into things he shouldn't. I'm thinking of puppy proofing my bedroom and letting him sleep in my room. Not sure if he's ready or not. I have wood floors so if I shut all the other doors he'll only have access to my room and the hall so can't get into too much trouble... :S Should I try leaving him in a very safe room (like the laundry) first?

I notice a big difference with my Pups stools when he has banana - they're a LOT firmer... My little man will do anything for a banana (sit, drop, shake, twirl - all at once!). He's 5 months old and we discovered his love of banana by accident (dropping it when I was making fruit salad) and he now gets banana at least every second day. He gets them frozen a couple of times a week since he's teething...

My 19 week old lab will do anything for a piece of banana or an egg!!

Thanks Sandra! I think he's doing well - lots of energy, seems happy and is growing like there's no tomorrow. I've had so many people tell me that I shouldn't be feeding it because it's a low-quality food. I am quite happy with him and as I said, he gets lots of "extras". I guess I'm looking for advice on should I be changing and if so, what to.

My little man had his first trip to the local dog park (Bungarribee Dog Park) on the weekend and I'd love to know about more in the area. Someone was telling me on the weekend about a dog park out Richmond/Yarramundi way where the dogs can swim in the river. Does anyone know where that is? Google isn't helping! lol... Any other suggestions for outings for a friendly 19 week old lab who I want to continue to socialise?