Our Little Labradog!

[Joan of Arc]

Congratulations, you have turned a corner that will be rewarded with a loving member of your family. The Kongs were a great idea.

[NoodleNut]

Yahoooo!!! Congratulations!! Don't be surprised if you get a night here or there when he does not want to go to bed though .. Nodole acted up last night for 15 minutes in her crate (yes, she had been toileted .. just did not want to go to bed!) .. hasn't done this for about a month .. apart form that she is happy.

So pleased you are persisting!

All happy in your house! Sleep well!

[CliftonPark]

I've been making sure she gets used to us taking food from her bowl at meal times, and the other day I went to take a chicken neck out, she grabed what was left and ran and placed them into the crate knowing I wouldn't go there.

If you want your pup to be ok with people near food bowl, it is best to 'put food in' rather than 'take it out' so that your pups is glad you are near the food bowl and not distrusting of you and feeling the need to hide her food.

[blacklabrador]

Hi Janba,

Yep, pup has his own little baby blanket in his crate that he has had since day 1. He has a favourite teddy that I let him take to bed with him at night as well and he uses that as a pillow. I got the crate from an animal shelter and it is the right size for pup at the moment.

He has been outside this morning, we are trying to get him used to being outside during the day. I let him in for a bit of "mum & me" time, and instantly he pee'd on the floor! He has been outside for about 45 mins and yet he waited until he came inside to pee!

So, back outside with him.

I know it probably sounds like I'm being a bad dog owner, but I'm just so over it today.

Take him out to the grass and tell him the toilet word BEFORE you bring him in. He's got no idea that you're about to take him to an area where he's not allowed to pee. Puppies have no way to anticipate such a change in environment!

[blacklabrador]

We have realised where we went wrong in the very first days that we had Lucian home. Now, I think we are on our way to a happy and harmonious relationship with our dog!!

That's excellent! I remember the first few weeks home with my first lab puppy. It's a steep learning curve when you're doing it for the first time.

[Lucian08]

Thanks everyone for all your support and positive comments!

Last night was even better than the night before! We implemented the same routine at 'bedtime'. Lucian came inside and had a good long play with us until he was ready to settle down, then we both went and organised his kong, his hot water bottle and his little man.

After Lucian did some of his own crate 'housekeeping', in the form of rearranging his blanket, he settled himself inside and we didn't hear a peep out of him until about 4.30am where he whined for about 30 seconds then nothing. I quickly peeked outside the blinds and he was happily back in his crate settling himself back down.

He was rewarded this morning with much running and jumping and snuggling from us all as the boys prepared for school and work.

Only 1 accident inside this morning, as we weren't paying attention!!!

All in all, I think we have a great dog here and he has adapted to our family rather well! I am so glad!

BlackLab ~ We take Lucian outside to his 'spot' and encourage him to 'go wees' and 85% of the time he gets it so he is rewarded. We know that accidents will happen, because he hasn't quite figured it all out yet, so we aren't telling him off for it, just showing him the 'right place'. He will get there, I know. I am much more settled now that we have had 2 nights of sleep and it is so much easier!

CliftonPark ~ Lucian has been fed by all 3 of us, including our 12yr old son. He has been taught to sit, prior to us placing his dish down. When he has a cows ear, we have occasionally taken it away and given it back a short time later and he has not reacted in a bad manner. Our son tends to go up and pat Lucian while he is eating and Lucian just looks at him then goes back to eating. The cat can walk past him, rub up against him, investigate what 'that dog' is eating and Lucian will continue about his business. I am confident that if he stays this way we shouldn't have any problems with food 'aggression'.

Hope everyones having a great day!

[CliftonPark]

CliftonPark ~ Lucian has been fed by all 3 of us, including our 12yr old son. He has been taught to sit, prior to us placing his dish down. When he has a cows ear, we have occasionally taken it away and given it back a short time later and he has not reacted in a bad manner. Our son tends to go up and pat Lucian while he is eating and Lucian just looks at him then goes back to eating. The cat can walk past him, rub up against him, investigate what 'that dog' is eating and Lucian will continue about his business. I am confident that if he stays this way we shouldn't have any problems with food 'aggression'.

Lucian08 it is great that everyone is feeding your pup and being taught to sit before eating. You sound like you are doing a good job. Your pup is only 9 weeks old and as you are aware constantly learning how to behave. I replied to BlackMagic due to a concern that her comments indicated her dog is learning to 'not trust' people near her food bowl, hence the dog deciding the need to take her food away to a safe place when it's humans take food from the bowl. This can progress to aggression (particularly as the dog gets older) if the dog continues to learn that humans near my food bowl = losing some or all of my food (even if only temporarily). The best and safest method to help prevent food aggression is to create a 'positive association' with people near the food bowl. If everyone in the family goes up to pup while eating and place an extra treat or 2 in the bowl your pup will love you coming near his bowl. If in the future an unsupervised child does go up and take food away from your dog the early training should prevent an aggressive response as the expectation of the dog will that of receiving food not losing it. This is the safest way for you to help ensure your dog stays the way he is. All the best.

[black magic]

I've been making sure she gets used to us taking food from her bowl at meal times, and the other day I went to take a chicken neck out, she grabed what was left and ran and placed them into the crate knowing I wouldn't go there.

If you want your pup to be ok with people near food bowl, it is best to 'put food in' rather than 'take it out' so that your pups is glad you are near the food bowl and not distrusting of you and feeling the need to hide her food.

I hadn't thought of it that way it makes sense now I think of it. I'll do it that way from now on. Was following instructions from puppy preschool. It's great to have this site and get second opinions

Thankyou

[Lucian08]

Hello All!

I'm after a bit more advice about Lucian.

The last week or two have been fantastic with him and we aren't having any major difficulties at all! He goes to bed really well now and sleeps all night, 99% of the time he goes outside to 'do wees' and when he doesn't, it's because we haven't watched him closely enough! Sometimes he whines though and gets all confused looking so we know he NEEDS TO GO NOW!!!! LOL

My question is this. When playing, Lucian likes to chew. Thats all good, he has his chew toys and pull ropes and etc and we play with these, but when he is playing with us Human Folk, he actually likes to bite! Really hard. Poor OH has some rather nasty bite marks and what not on his hands and arms.

We know he is playing, and it is not an 'attack' in any way shape or form, but we would really like to get him out of this 'biting' business when playing with people. It makes it hard for our son and his friends to play with Lucian, because Lucian likes to start biting.

What we have tried so far is this:

* Making our hands into fists and taking them away behind our backs. Lucians answer to this is to go for any other part of the body or go searching for the hands.

* Distracting Lucian with 'his' toys. He will play with his toys for a moment and then get back to biting us.

* Saying No and making him sit, still inside with us, until he calms down.

* Putting him outside after he gets particularly vicious with a limb.

Now we are aware he is still a baby and still learning, but he just seems to like this 'game' a little too much. We are concerned that it will be difficult to get him out of it by the time our new baby arrives in September.

Now I never liked 'licky' dogs, but I would be happy for him to be a 'licker' as opposed to a biter.

So, does anyone have any tips or ideas for us to try to show Lucian that chewing his toys is ok, but biting us is not?

I have noticed that he likes to have things in his mouth, and sometimes he will just sit there with a hand or foot in his jaws, but not bite or chew it. Is this a normal thing for puppies or Labs?

Any ideas anyone has will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!!!!!

[TerraNik]

Firstly, what Lucien is doing is totally normal for a puppy his age (I am assuming he's about 12 weeks now?). Although it's normal, it certainly doesn't make it easier for us!!

The things you have done to try and stop him biting you are good, but you might want to try and let him know that it HURTS! When puppies are with their littermates, they tend to yelp when they have been bitten to hard. This is what you need to replicate. Whenever Lucien bites, you (or whoever he is biting) should yelp in a high pitched voice to let him know it's not okay. If he does this twice in a row, stop play and walk away. You only need to walk away for about 1 minute so that he knows that biting has consequences of no play. Teach this to your kids as well. When you come back to him, get him to sit or do something that you can praise him for and start playing again.

Pups start teething around this age as well (lose their teeth at about 5 months, I think) so you might want to try and soothe his gums as well. Try giving him an icecube to chew on (he may turn this into a play toy and chase after it though which is fine if you have tiles!). You could also try putting his chew toys in the freezer to cool them down as well.

Good luck! It's a very trying time when your pup is biting...

[Lucian08]

Thanks TerraNik, we will start implementing those things tonight. I know Lucian is only playing, and he gets rather excited when we all play together and I think he just loses control of himself!

He LOVES icecubes, and we have hardwood floors, so I will start giving him them a little more often to see if his gums are playing up for him.

Somebody please tell me that adult teeth are less 'shark like' than the puppies!!! LOL

[TerraNik]

Oh yes, puppy teeth are like pins! Adult teeth are not so much.

Jedi is going through the same thing as Lucian at the moment (he is 14 weeks). Whenever Jedi gets bitey I ask him if he wants some "ice" and he comes running to the freezer... He settles down after he is done with it. It also diverts his attention away from us!!!!! I have had my share of puncture wounds... OUCH!