What have I got myself into

[RuddeDogg]

Ok people, this goes to ANYONE who has a full breed lab here. Our local animal control guy was in our dispatch center the other day. We were talking ad he said that his daughter needed to giv away her dog. She just had a baby and the dog and the baby have yet to have contact. Anyway, the dog is a full breed chocolate lab, 3 yrs old. I figured since my dog is boxer/black lab and he is 4 it wouldn't be too bad. Well the dog came today and he is the biggest lab I have seen. :eek: :eek: :eek: Papers and all. At first they were standoffish with each other. Now they seen to be gettin along pretty good. He seems a little high strung as he is not fixed. Any one got any pointers? Any help would be great. Thanks!!!

[Railroader]

At three years old, your new dog is what he is, and what he's going to be. Any bad habit will be TOUGH to break. In relation to your "old" dog, they'll either work it out or they won't. You'll know in two or three days...

[VICIII]

Its like a coin flip..
Head you win.....
Tails your dogs fight and crap all over you home...

Naw just kidding..
labs are good natured dogs. It should be fine. You just remain the top ALPHA dog and they will try to rule each other less.

[KT_UMCP]

As V1C11 said you MUST be the top ALPHA dog.

[sprtsracer]

Yep...what they said. Labs are generally good-natured. I would get him "fixed" though. If not and trouble breaks out between the two, then you could always get YOURSELF fixed and that way, you wouldn't care so much!:D :D :D

[RuddeDogg]

That's what I figured. I feel bad for his previous owner,but......I really couldn't pass him up. The reason why they gave him to me is because like I said she just had a baby. Her and her husband had some problems and the split for a while and now they are back together and they moved into a smaller home. Still, I think that they should have at least given the dog a chance with the new baby. Her thing is that she didn't want the dog to get jealous of the baby. Which I understand. I couldn't see this dog going to our local animal shelter. I'm tellin ya he is huge. If I had to guess I would say he is between 95-100lbs easy. No fat. Just solid. So far things have been good between the two. But we shall see. I have thought about the fixin idea, but I couldn't bring myself to do something like that to my dog if I wouldn't have it done to me. BUT......That is always an option.

[Railroader]

If you cut a fully matured male, what you'll end up with is a fat, lazy, couch potato of a dog. He won't give a rip about anything....:mad: Really, it does something to a grown dog's spirit.

Saw it happen to a $7500 police dog at the P.D. I worked for. He was a good police dog, did good bite work, article searches, drugs, etc. Problem with him was, he was always trying to break out of his pen to get at the neighbor's female...Solution, Castration...:eek:

Long story short, within a couple of months, the dog ended up a house pet for one of the clerks up front....KILLED his spirit.

Males castrated before maturity do much better, I guess because they never know what they're missing....

I wouldn't even consider it.

[Ryan Y]

We also Crate train our dogs. THey love it still. We finally had to take it apart because the youngest would go there and stay sometimes. My girlfriend started a dog magazine because of our dogs. And she rarely misses an episode of the dog wisperer.

[RuddeDogg]

The fixin part is a LAST resort. Like I said he is 3 and I know he is pretty much set in his ways. I know he can be trained a little. He seems to have had some training but not much. Any ideas?

[Big Rad]

his nuts off. The spay nueter thing is because folks let their dog run free. If ya castrate him he will be useless. He's got papers so he is meant to be bred. Can he hunt is the question:D

[VICIII]

I had to watch a dog and brought him into our home... He was good natured but wanted to do what he wanted to do... He would not bite or try to harm anyone so that is why I tried it.
I was reading how alpha dogs show the power buy pushing the neck of the other dogs and holding them to show they are the mack daddy... I did this with the other dog and he fought for about ten seconds and I talked calmly to him and then . Whola... calm dog that tried t help me and do what I said... Look for info on the internet... Then give it a try...

[RuddeDogg]

That's what I have started to do. As for huntin, I don't know. I wonder if he can be trained at that age.

[greybeard]

I grew up with a hunting lab back in the 50s. Todays lab is nothing like what we had. If I was belly crawling to get ducks so was he. Best pheasant dog I ever hunted with also. IMHO the AKC has not done the hunting dog breeds much good. I think you have the show dog strains and the dogs bred by hunters and they aren't the same. As for neutering, I was against it until I got my latest pit bull. Depends what you want in a dog. Where you live, etc. It's a pain to have a bitch who comes in heat during hunting season. Whole males don't hunt well if there is a bitch in season within smelling distance which is a long way. Dominant pit bulls will jump fences to get at other dogs to fight. I don't want that trouble or lawsuits which happen far too often these days. And I damn sure don't want a poodle.

[lipyanker]

dogg,

The alpha status is the key, things such as going out of a door first, going down steps first, and you and mrs dogg eating before him are important behaviours to let your lab know he is on a lower social level than you are. And he will try you because it is obvious that he ran your friends home if they are tentative as to whether he will except their baby

[the rhondel]

Yeah,Labs are great dogs.Chocolate labs are either really bright or plain dumber than chit;usually no in-between.I would think your dogs should work it out shortly and I'd bet with no problems....most vets offer a two-ffer special.One for the owner and one for the dog:eek: ,but I'd pass.Same for Fido.My lab is 115lb and I've seen bigger.Great buddies,hope it works out for ya!....the R

[bluerunner]

I grew up with a hunting lab back in the 50s. Todays lab is nothing like what we had. If I was belly crawling to get ducks so was he. Best pheasant dog I ever hunted with also. IMHO the AKC has not done the hunting dog breeds much good. I think you have the show dog strains and the dogs bred by hunters and they aren't the same. As for neutering, I was against it until I got my latest pit bull. Depends what you want in a dog. Where you live, etc. It's a pain to have a bitch who comes in heat during hunting season. Whole males don't hunt well if there is a bitch in season within smelling distance which is a long way. Dominant pit bulls will jump fences to get at other dogs to fight. I don't want that trouble or lawsuits which happen far too often these days. And I damn sure don't want a poodle.

I will never understand why people even have dogs they have to worry about lawsuits for, and that insurance doesn't cover. That said, if you buy a lab from a hunting/field trial strain, you will get a dog like you had back in the 50's. We had a hunting lab and he would go through hell to go hunting.

[RuddeDogg]

Things have not worked out, I had to give "Trooper", the new dog back. :( :( :( :( . I think both dogs are just too set in their ways. They were doing fine until this afternoon when they decided to go at it. Now I know that dogs will test the waters to see who will be the more dominent one. One or twice or even a few times is normal. I came to work tonight at 630pm. I called home to see how the "kids" were getting along. Boss Dogg said they had got into it again but all was ok at that time. A little whil later she called back and said she had had enough. They got into it again and when she went to break it up, "Trooper" went after her. That was it. I can't have that. It's a real shame because he is a good dog but I think he is just set in his ways.

[RuddeDogg]

Like I said in a previous post. It ws clearly obvious that Trooper did not have alot of obedience training either formal or by his previous owner. This last time that the dogs got into it all my dog did was walk past Trooper when he was laying down. He wasn't asleepm he was just laying there. He went after my dog Bear and when my gf went to break it uo he want after her. I have had plenty dogs in my lifetime from Pits, Rots, Sheppards, Beagles etc and I do know this.....If the dog goes after you in an aggressive manner growilng and bearing its teeth once they will do it again.

[outfishin28]

Ok people, this goes to ANYONE who has a full breed lab here. Our local animal control guy was in our dispatch center the other day. We were talking ad he said that his daughter needed to giv away her dog. She just had a baby and the dog and the baby have yet to have contact. Anyway, the dog is a full breed chocolate lab, 3 yrs old. I figured since my dog is boxer/black lab and he is 4 it wouldn't be too bad. Well the dog came today and he is the biggest lab I have seen. :eek: :eek: :eek: Papers and all. At first they were standoffish with each other. Now they seen to be gettin along pretty good. He seems a little high strung as he is not fixed. Any one got any pointers? Any help would be great. Thanks!!!


call that dog whisperer guy from the national geographic channel, Cesar somthing or another

[Railroader]

Things have not worked out, I had to give "Trooper", the new dog back. :( :( :( :( . I think both dogs are just too set in their ways. They were doing fine until this afternoon when they decided to go at it. Now I know that dogs will test the waters to see who will be the more dominent one. One or twice or even a few times is normal. I came to work tonight at 630pm. I called home to see how the "kids" were getting along. Boss Dogg said they had got into it again but all was ok at that time. A little whil later she called back and said she had had enough. They got into it again and when she went to break it up, "Trooper" went after her. That was it. I can't have that. It's a real shame because he is a good dog but I think he is just set in his ways.


"Trooper" would be "going home" allright. To doggie heaven, with a .22 mag in his ear.....;)

[RuddeDogg]

I wouldn't go that far yet. he needs to be the only dog in the house. He's just that type. I have had several dogs that way. Like I said before you could tell that he really wasn't trained or disceplined much if at all. you could tell him to sit or lay down and he would just look at ya like ya weren't even there. I know labs can be hard headed. My Bear gets like that sometimes. This dog was the center of attention and he just didn't want to share the spotlight. He's in that one person dog type of dog.

[RuddeDoggswoman]

about sending trooper home he is a very loving dog but very nasty to bear and even to me i wont have that from trooper or even our bear he wouldnt get away with it either they both were corrected when they were wrong if it was bear wh started bear got in trouble but like i said troopers is a good dog just no training and wants to be in charge i wish i could have been able to have the dog whishper here he is awesome with dogs but we cant afford it. we will just have to wait and try again with a pup i think that will be the best thanks for all the in put everyone i feel bad we had to give him back