Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2012 9:42 pm Post subject: The truth about labs
I am hoping to get a dog at some point in the year and so thought I would spend the time researching breeds that may be suitable to my family. I have to be honest and say that I am very drawn to a black lab but having never lived with one before I dont know a whole lot about what they are to live with. A friend has a chocolate lab and it is her that has drawn my attention to the breed.
So, what I am asking you guys is the truth..... what are these dogs really like to live with? I am a big fan of forums as apposed to books as I have never yet met a "text book" dog and so would rather talk to real people who live with real dogs.
I imagine you will want to know a little about my lifestyle to also help you to decide if a lab is for me. I have children the youngest being 6. Howeverm my children are dog savvy and wouldnt tease or pester a dog and give them the respect they deserve. Any dog that lives with us will be most definatley be part of the family. We recently lost our GSD and there is a huge hole in our family but we wont be getting another dog for a few months yet. Our shep was a huge part of the family and was loved by the whole family. He loved nothing more than to be snuggling up with the kids. He was a very difficult dog (lovingly knicknamed monster or hellboy!) and so I know I can deal with challenging dogs - altho I admit I would prefer an easier one this time!
Anyway I think that is enough waffle from me for now but I would love opinions about the reality of what these guys are like to live with - the highs and the lows. Thanks in advance
My Lab is a choc boy, he`s been a joy to live with for the most part, I`d be lying if I said he hadn`t had his moments because he has.
When younger he chewed through plaster on the wall, I was in the room at the time so shows how quiet he was!, he will still steal and chew given the chance so, things are still kept well out of his way.
Other than that though he`s a fantastic dog and I love him to bits.
Some will tell you that different colours have different traits, such as Chocs are untrainable, not true, they are as trainable as a yellow or a black, to me the only difference is our preference for a particular colour
My 3 are all very different - you can get naturally steady eddie quiet laid back labs, super charged nutter labs, and everything inbetween.
Some lab pups are VERY hard work. On the go constantly, very bitey, very excitable. Others sleep loads and settle with ease. Some can be very slow to mature, but I think all are young at heart regardless of their age.
Like GSDs, they are eager to learn and want to be with you. They work well in a home where the family is keen to do things with the dog and involve them. Labs like to be in the thick of it.
They can be mischevious little devils - eating all sorts and very playful. All that needs channelling appropriately.
I think they are a very loyal and loving breed. Yes, some are harder to train than others, but in the main, they WANT to learn and please you, and they're just such a happy fun loving type of dog. Mine make me smile and laugh every single day.
i have had dogs for years.
skye is my first lab and has so so much energy than ANY of my other dogs.
she is very loyal and loves any attention and thinks everyone loves her and she loves everyone!
we didnt get her as a tiny pup as she was 11mths when we got her but i wouldnt trust her not to chew! (the dogs have their own room at night and when were out)
she is fantastic with the children who are 10, 6 and 4 appart from maybe thinking she is a child and getting a bit boistrous!
IMO great dogs but loads of energy! if you looking for a laid back dog then get a greyhound or greyhound cross there so laidback and happy with a 10 min sprint twice a day!
____________ MUMMY TO 3 CHILDREN, 3 DOGS, 3 CATS, 2 RABBITS, 1 GECKO AND FINALLY 1 MAN!!
I personally think they are very easy to live with, once they get used to your rules!!!
However, they sometimes can be NOT the easiest puppys in the world, and they are puppys a long time.
It wouldn't take much looking round the puppy forum to see all the potential problems! Forewarned is forearmed!
If you decide to go for it. Do your research into your breeder well. Make sure that you consider the health and temprament of the parents. If you get that part right from the start, then you are loading the dice in your favour.
Have a look at http://lab-health.co.uk/ for a full and frank appraisal of what could go wrong if you skip/skimp on that part of your research!
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I love Labs Max is my first Lab I have had other breeds but Labs are brilliant they are so lovable he loves to try new things will listen to me most the time and every morning is there with a toy in mouth to greet me.
As Mo has said they are a real family dog Max needs to be around us he thrives on it mind I am often falling over him as well to keen sometimes Max plays with my son who is 14 with special needs he is so good with him full of fun. Max is great with other dogs he meets very sociable loves to play with them.
Max is also very laid back not a real hyper puppy he is from show parents who tend to be less hyper he has his moments and also likes to play the fool when at classes lol
On the negative he chews shoes plaster on the walls and has had some cables but I still love him to bits Oh and he try's to jump in the bath with you
Cheryl
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Max my shadow
Luther 1994-2008 I will see you at the bridge sweetie
One life Live it
Molly was (well what I considered to be) a nightmare the first few months I took her to some training classes I wasn't particularly happy with them and lost faith. I then found a really good training class which gave me real guidance and gave me confidence and both of us have excelled. She's now my best friend. I think the perception of choc labs being a bit mad comes from inappropriate breeding I.e breeding for ddemand rather than to better the breed. Researching your breeder will prevent this. I've lived with a lot of diff breed of dogs and I love labs so much, the way they seek you out to be with you and so eager to please. I love my molly moo!
Sounds like a Lab will fit nicely into your family and life style.
We have had Mischa from pup, and she has been a joy. The first year was up an down with all the expected traits, but she came through and is now a laid back girl at home, and when out comes to life and enjoys meeting and playing with her doggy mates.
Not forgetting Bruno, he came from a rescue last year, he is 6 years old and I would describe him as a very gentle teddy bear, loves to be with you and stays close when we are all out together, he watches the hooligan dogs playing and just thinks they are wasting their energy and potters along with his own idea of fun which is having a good sniff about, loves the woods and will have a mad little bum tuck when the urge comes over him.
One warning, Labs are addictive , If you are planning a pup then this forum will help immensely with your questions, 'Or', you may find your perfect boy or girl from rescue, many have on here.
Mahsa is my first Lab - A choc - and my first Pupy. (I had a rescue dog before that).
She's JUST 13 weeks old and already has slotted into the family, my daughter (nearly 3) enjoys playin gwith her, and it has been good for her to realise she's not the only thing in the world that has needs.
She's been a bugger at times - she's a bit of a cleptomanic and escapologist. She is a wriggler and is a bit of a biter - but it's only gentle mouthing not viscious snapping. She is a poo-er and can wee for Britain, although her housetraining is coming on well - for a baby, she's doing ok! She even has started to come into work with me and is welcome there, she's such a good pup.
She's smart, and is, lovely to have about and will be a great addition for the family - giving my wife a reason to move about a bit more (she's got serious neck and spinal problems and it looks like she won't be able to work in the future).
I think the thing is that ALL puppies are different. There are mad ones, calm ones, scared ones, brave ones, dumb ones (that walk backwards and wag their heads) and smart ones. There are ones that want to have a bit of peace and quiet and a walk or two a day and ones that are always on the go...like people, it takes all sorts to make a breed.
We wanted a fairly calm pup, and I think we've gotten one, she lieks spending time with us and yet is happy to spend time on her own in her crate or 'her room' (the utility room).
I think it all comes down to choosing wisely, checking out the parents of the pup and then socialising the puppy well once you get her home.
But all in all I am so glad I got a Choc lab, and so so glad I gor Mahsa - she's such a great part of our families life already - after just 4-5 weeks!
Lets face it, Labradors can be damn hard work, particularly as puppies, and they can be a puppy for the first 13 years! They can jump a 4 foot fence, for no reason that the fact that it's there. They love gardening in the flower beds. Foreign travel is high on their agenda, particularly visiting their cousins in Australia, and to that end they start the tunnel in the middle of the lawn. Swimming is great fun and if nothing bigger is available then their water bowl will do.
In all honesty, all the above are perfectly true. All of mine have shown at least one of those traits and a couple of them all! But I still keep coming back for more and cant imagine life without at least one of them. But training is so important. If you dont train then they are VERY hard work. Dont fall into the trap of thinking Labrador puppies come into this world fully trained. They dont, and like I said at the start, they can be damn hard work!
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, If you are planning a pup then this forum will help immensely with your questions, 'Or', you may find your perfect boy or girl from rescue, many have on here.
