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[Niques]

Mindy's litter was specific for guide dogs and they all turned out to be terrors!

In WA they only use dogs with certain lines.

Two of James' sisters went to Guide Dogs WA. James is prone to bursts of excitement, to put it mildly He does actually have a fairly calm streak which is apparent at home, but the fact that anything or body unfamiliar is the most amazing thing in the world to him sort of cancels out the first trait.

[Lab lady]

I think the suggestion of contacting a guide dog organisation to see if you could have a pup to raise and then give back is a great idea. I know customs do this as well. Basically you get a pup, you treat it as if it were your own ( gives you a taste of what it's like to have a pup in the house) and then after 12 months you "give" it back to be trained as a custom's dog. While it would be sad I think it would give you a great insight to what it would be like having a pup in the house with kids and it is also a great service to the community.

If you think raising a pup of your own is hard work then raising a guide dog pup is harder.

There are certain things with they must be exposed to.

#Go on regular visits to shopping centres, malls, cafes and restaurants;

#Attend regular group training sessions in your regional area

#Have regular car travel;

#Socialise with other dogs at all stages of development (which is why our Puppy Raisers are allowed to have other well-behaved family pets);

#Travel on all range of public transport from a young age

#Be exposed to a range of people and children of varying ages. (This can be done by visiting pre-schools if there are no young children in your family).

#the pup should not be left alone for more than two hours a day

# have the puppy live and sleep inside your home

#children should be attending school full time

[RubyStar]

But was that litter in specific for Guide Dogs?

What does that matter? Guide Dogs want her pups and she can't and won't sell them all to Guide Dogs, even though they usually want more than what she can supply, because she has pet people on her list and doesn't like to disappoint them when they've been waiting. Guide Dogs here in WA source their dogs from local breeders, they don't have a specific breeding program like other states have.

[RubyStar]

In WA they only use dogs with certain lines.

What lines would they be? They source from several local breeders here.

[Mason_Gibbs]

In WA they only use dogs with certain lines.

What lines would they be? They source from several local breeders here.

I know for a fact that they like to have Snows puppies - in fact it was your breeder who told me this... His pups have lovely temperaments and are easy to train apparently. I know not every pup will be the same but the lines do produce certain traits.

Masons mother is another they like pups from, his sister and brother are not the first of her pups to go as Guide Dogs. Im not saying dogs from those litters will be angels but they should be easily trained and want to work. After all if there was nothing to it they wouldnt want specific lines or pups from specific matings.

Edited October 22, 2011 by Mason_Gibbs

[GoldenGirl85]

Mindy's litter was specific for guide dogs and they all turned out to be terrors!

In WA they only use dogs with certain lines.

Guide Dogs QLD has their own breeding program and their own stock, I knew GD NSW used outside breeders, but I didn't know other states did too!

[BSArescue00]

I just thought id add my own lab experience here.

Jett belongs to my mother and father in law, he was raised with proper socialization,and a private trainer.

He had acreage and was exercised well for the first few years, once my sister in law moved out of home that all stopped then 2 years ago my in laws moved into a residential property and have never ever walked Jett.

I walk that dog every day as well as my own 7 dogs, it is hectic but Jett needs it as he was grossly overweight from lack of walks.

From the day they got him he tore up everything in sight, dug many holes and was so boisterous, this has never been any different even at 3 years old at which point he was still being exercised and trained.

He is now 9 years old and the most boisterous older dog i know, he is great with my 5 year old daughter but regularly knocks her down from excitement, he is also very friendly with other dogs but plays to the point that most dogs get sick of him, i have only ever met one american stafford that could keep up and tolerate him.

To put it simply if you get the wrong lab they can be troublesome, i will admit that Jett has not had dedication and love in the last few years but even in the 3 years he did have it he never ever calmed down.

Even with walks and love from me he is an incredibly sad boy who barks excessively from boredom and pulls backwards when the walk is over and i am putting him back in his yard.

I have found Labs to be a tougher breed and i rescue dogs so at the moment have a cocker spaniel, bull mastiff x great dane, bull terrier x, kelpie x,greyhound x,maltese x and a pomeranian and quite honestly my point of view of labs is strange, i try to look at them without judgement but Jett is the only one i know well and he is so much work.

I understand there are many labs that are great but this is just my experience.

I would happily advise an older dog be it from a registered breeder or rescue, lab rescue in NSW are great.

One of the most in a sense easier/smaller and child friendly breeds i find(in rescue anyway) are a maltese.

Yet again to be sure of a calm temperament i would go for an older dog, a totally different breed may suit you if it has the right personality and exercise needs.

[sandgrubber]

Jett belongs to my mother and father in law, he was raised with proper socialization,and a private trainer.

He is now 9 years old and the most boisterous older dog i know, he is great with my 5 year old daughter but regularly knocks her down from excitement, he is also very friendly with other dogs but plays to the point that most dogs get sick of him, i have only ever met one american stafford that could keep up and tolerate him.. . .

I have found Labs to be a tougher breed and i rescue dogs so at the moment have a cocker spaniel, bull mastiff x great dane, bull terrier x, kelpie x,greyhound x,maltese x and a pomeranian and quite honestly my point of view of labs is strange, i try to look at them without judgement but Jett is the only one i know well and he is so much work.

I understand there are many labs that are great but this is just my experience.

Good account. I think all our breed opinions are formed by the dogs in our lives.

There were five Labs in my childhood (two immediate family, three relatives). All calm. I've owned a dozen Labs. All calm as adults. A couple were affectionate to a fault (in my opinion, though others love the trait). Varying degrees of boister as pups, but settling down ~ 18 mo. All my Labs have had large fenced properties and other dogs to play with. They've learned to dig in the field, not the lawn/garden. My present Labs are encouraged to dig in the vineyard, where they are pretty successful as vermin control dogs.

I have met Labs of the demon sort . . . we had a few who came to the boarding kennel.

I think the calm/boisterous split comes from different people breeding for different things. When you breed for a dog who will work all day long in the field, and do well in time-based field trials, and have spectacular water entry, you tend to get dogs that are hyper . . . just as working kelpies tend to have high activity levels. I suspect that the split goes way back to the UK gentry, some of whom wanted dogs for hunt competition . . . others of whom wanted a token hunting dog who would serve as a companion in a stuffy and stilted culture that didn't allow expression of emotion or tenderness.

In my experience breeding Labs, temperament has a strong hereditary component. If you find a breeder who actively selects for calm natures, you have a much better chance of ending up with a dog that is easy to live with. Ask about both sire and dam.

[Niques]

In WA they only use dogs with certain lines.

What lines would they be? They source from several local breeders here.

I know for a fact that they like to have Snows puppies - in fact it was your breeder who told me this... His pups have lovely temperaments and are easy to train apparently. I know not every pup will be the same but the lines do produce certain traits.

Masons mother is another they like pups from, his sister and brother are not the first of her pups to go as Guide Dogs. Im not saying dogs from those litters will be angels but they should be easily trained and want to work. After all if there was nothing to it they wouldnt want specific lines or pups from specific matings.

Snow as in from Blackboy? If so, that's interesting: he's James' father.

[Summersaint]

thanks wsandgrubber and rubystar. i will defintly write all these down ad they will be a top consideration before any purchase of a puppy.

\Obviously some of these cant be gaureteed but i will definalty keep them in mind.

And ruby str thanks for the link if i didnt have 4 young kids i would adopt one in a heart beat. BUt any puppy we get needs to be bought up with kids if that makes sense.

I understand where you are coming from, wanting a puppy to grow up with your kids, but a very important point to remember is - a Labrador puppy is far from easy!!!! They are extremely boisterous, bowl little kids over in their excitement (or just walking past), they are quite mouthy and can nip the kids hands, feet, ankles, clothes, etc, so therefore need a LOT of training to mould them into the perfect well behaved family member that sometimes the media can portray them as.

Don't discard an adult rescue entirely as they can easily blend into the family as if they had always been there ;) Labs just want to be with their people and to please, so an older Lab will be more placid and should cope really well with your kids wanting to smother them with hugs And they will be well and truly out of the nipping stage and knocking the littlies over!

A rescue doesn't automatically = problems. Some are rehomed for many reasons, and many might have been raised in a family environment. You only need to meet a few with your kids to see what I mean and to find the perfect fit

100% on the money their Rubystar....Lab puppies are far from easy an older Lab would fit in to the family better they are far more relaxed and placid for kids

[Mason_Gibbs]

At the end of the day it all comes down to the individual dog. All have different personalities. I have a friend with an almost 3 year old lab and she is more work than my puppy, and no she is not from working lines either

[suziwong66]

At the end of the day it all comes down to the individual dog. All have different personalities. I have a friend with an almost 3 year old lab and she is more work than my puppy, and no she is not from working lines either

mmm not sure i can totally agree with this train of thought. I think that the breed has some, across-the-board generalities e.g. puppylike boisterous behaviour; like to swim eg, and within that, there are the individual personalities that fall outside the 'bell curve' of what's generally accepted 'lab like behaviour'. Those behaviours that fall outside of the 'bell curve' can be both innate and/or influenced by environment (the latter both negatively and positively).

[MissMonaro]

Not all Labs are the same and they do have different personalities.

I have one here that does not like water, hates getting her feet wet - yet her offspring love the water.

Some dig, some chew stuff up, some retrieve, and others couldnt care less - and that ranges from babies through to seniors. Some are fine inside, others would demolish the house in 2 seconds flat.....and all of my dogs are raised the same way.

The main similarity is that they all love their food though.

[Mason_Gibbs]

Agree 100% MM i have the two polar opposites living in this house both are lovely boys gentle souls but 1 is very calm ( he was even a calmish puppy) and then there is the serial chewer etc, even as a pup mason wasnt bad. They are all very different!!

[sandgrubber]

Not all Labs are the same and they do have different personalities.

I have one here that does not like water, hates getting her feet wet - yet her offspring love the water.

Some dig, some chew stuff up, some retrieve, and others couldnt care less - and that ranges from babies through to seniors. Some are fine inside, others would demolish the house in 2 seconds flat.....and all of my dogs are raised the same way.

The main similarity is that they all love their food though.

Actually, there's a spread on the food addiction too. I recently visited a Lab breeder with eight dogs. All lean. I was shocked to find she keeps food out all the time . . . pretty decent biscuits . . . and the dogs don't eat more than they need. She has working hunting dogs with quite a mixture of pedigrees . . . including one little girl she called her Louisiana duck hunting dog . . . by size and build she could have been a kelpie. Apparently some people like a little dog who is keen and won't swamp the boat.

[Fatsofatsoman]

We lucked out with Boonie as a pup - didn't chew a single thing, was toilet trained almost immediately, is great around people and is calm as anything - and has been from the get go.

He was last in the litter - I'm assuming he wasn't the one running up to everyone and greeting them - a lazy bugger, but that made for a fairly easy pup.