getting a lab and have questions?
Posted by admin on 9 May, 2011
9 Comments
This item was filled under [ Pet Gate ]
Hi. I got a lab for my kids for Christmas. She will be 8 weeks on Dec 19th and we can go get her. Should I wait till the day after Christmas to get her because we go to my parents house AND my hubby’s parents house on Christmas day. Or should I just get her on the 19th and bring her with us. Also, what are some things I can start doing/buying now to be prepared? This is our first pet. I have baby gates and the house is baby-proofed because we have a toddler, but what else can I do? Thanks 
9 Comments on “getting a lab and have questions?”
If it is okay with your families to bring her along with when you guys go, than I do not see why you can not get her on the 19th. It would be good socialization for the puppy. I would bring along a crate to put her in, so that way when she wants to hide out and take a little nap, she has a place to go from all the noise. You can start buying things for her now such as a collar, leash, bowls, toys, food, treats and a crate. The crate is going to be a great tool to use while you housetrain her. The crate will also give her her own place to go when she just wants to get away and maybe chew on her bone or take a nap. We used the crate for all the dogs we have ever had and even though our current 2 dogs are 2 and 4, they still like to have their crates out for them to use.
Get a crate and crate train the puppy. I would wait until after Christmas to bring the puppy home. Too much going on during the visits can be over stimulating and even frightening to a young pup.
Congrats! My lab is the greatest dog! Get her stuff to chew on!! Lots of toys! Labs are notorious for being playful but mine is pretty laid back. Get a dog brush, they shed heavily. If she’s little you can bring her with you. I think it might be fun to have her Christmas morning, don’t you? I would take the advice of the others following since I got my girl when she was 5 mos. old. Have fun with her, you’ll have a friend for life!
I think you should wait until after Christmas. I don’t think you should bring her with you, since she won’t be house trained yet you’ll most definitely risk her trying to chew on someone’s shoe or peeing in the house a few times or even in the car on the way there. Also, some dogs get scared when they’re around lots of new people.
Buy lots of chew toys, cause my lab chewed on *everything* when she was a puppy. Make sure you always put shoes away. Get a crate, and blankets for the dog that you won’t mind maybe being torn up eventually. Do research on food to know which you want to get her. Sign up for puppy classes in January.
Get a crate, read up on nutrition, and positive training methods.
Wait until after Christmas, bringing a pup home is stressful enough without all the hustle and bustle.
On my own opinion I think you should wait.
You should know this first or probably you already knew
Labs are very easy to train as long as your consistent….my Lab was potty trained within two weeks we had her on a schedule and she fallowed it. At first you take them out first thing in the morning in the afternoon and before bedtime…puppies will have to go maybe in the middle of the night.
Labs are very energetic dogs they need alot of exercise I take my lab out twice a day for about 30 minutes to an hour a day in the rain.. sleet or snow.
What you also need to know they can be very greedy they love to eat so keep your dog on a strict food schedule.
They love to chew on everything so lots of chew toys.
Labs are also prone to Hip Dysplasia so that could be a problem when they get older or if they are over weight.
Here’s list of what you may need.
Large crate with divider (to help with housetraining)
"Puppies for Dummies" book
Collar, ID tags
Leash (get a sturdy one) and poop bags
Bitter apple
Nylabones, Kongs, Peanut butter for the kong, and a tug toy
The best puppy food you can afford,plus a small bag of what he was previously on to ease food transition.Puppy cookies/treats.
Dog nail clippers and Blood stop
Enzymatic carpet cleaner and plastic wrap
Baby gates ( I think you have this already)
Water and Food bowls
Thermometer (digital, anal) get extra covers for it and be sure you mark it as "DOG" clearly, you do not want to mix his and yours up, lol!
Box of latex gloves (if he gets diarrhea, you will be grateful)
Clicker (if you are going to clicker train)
Something like a swiffer thing for clean up ease on hard surfaces (after you clean up the majority of the mess by hand)
A bulk pack of paper towels.
all surface cleaner for the hard surface clean ups.
And a dog pillow for when he is sleepy outside the crate.
Find old towels and have them ready for paw clean up after going outside.
Vet. appt to get him an exam and any vaccines that are needed as well as spot on flea control meds.
Puppy shampoo (esp for around the face) and a comb or soft brush for grooming.
I think that should get you started!
Good Luck!
You don’t want to cart a pup around when you first bring it home. Stress is the #1 killer of puppies. Stress lowers the immune system. Taking a puppy from it’s litter for the very first time is stressful. You want to take that pup home and let it settle down for the first few days. Get it accustomed to eating your food & drinking your water. Your noises … your smells.
THEN, you’ve got a lot of work to do with that puppy to get it socialized. It’ll be close to 9 weeks old so that means you have only 3 weeks to complete a major project. Every day, changes of environment, new experiences, new people. Stimulate, stimulate, stimulate. Or, ruin the dog by keeping it home with you & your toddler, inside the baby gated areas, fed out of the same bowl, the same place, the same time, same in day-in & day-out. Your pup can grow up conditioned (expect) to be able to handle changes or grow up to bolt & be shy/aggressive every time somebody new comes around or you have to take it somewhere. Reply to me for details.
It’s good to read you’re planning on doing the right thing by the new puppy. Most posts here are people trying to avoid going to the vets with their sick dogs or wanting to breed with their dogs.
Good for you for. A crate would be helpful for you and the puppy but I would would wait until after Christmas to pick her up. I think it would be too much for a new pup to cope with all the social activity.
Best of luck with your new puppy.
Wait until you can stay home,this is a baby and needs to feel secure in a new territory,Get a crate and a book on puppy’s,The crate is the puppy’s safe place,and can be used for house breaking later,The puppy will need a vet check and shots,then go by the vet. and the book