all these dog threads - I wanna Lab! (1 Viewer)

[White Shark]

I could not agree more. Some of the traits that WS talks about are somewhat normal behaviour for "pups". I train my own dogs along with a friend of mine who is a full time trainer (labs only). And what I see is exactly along the lines of what Fly Rod has described.

A lab (and most other dogs) if kept penned up with little exercise (and usually too much high protein feed) can exhibit destructive behavior. I'm not talking about "pups" (you have to cut them some slack). My lab, and virtually all of the other "trained" ones I am around do not jump, bark excessively, dig, fight, chew, etc....

Also, I am confident that I can take any decently bred "Chocolate" and make a good (if not excellent) field dog out of him. Same holds true for blacks and yellows. You have to be patient, you have to use repetition, you must determine how to work with each dog (they're different), and it helps to be smarter than the dog.

There are very few "dumb, out of control" labs out there....but there are tons of lazy, misinformed owners.

My .02

I'd agree that dogs are a reflection of their owners. I got the dog secondhand as the previous owner wanted him put down because he had treatable health problems that the previous owner didn't want to deal with. He was 4 years old when I got him and he exhibited these behavioral traits. I had him for about a year, in which time we were able to curb the barking and chewing, but he still liked to jump. He liked to jump off porches, tailgates, etc. and I believe that's what accelarated his hip dysplasia. I gave the dog another year of life from what the previous owner gave him, and tried to make it good for him. I hunted pheasant and dove with him, walked him, and tried to provide him with stimulating activities.
I believe that the professional breeder did a good job as he knew all of his hand, whistle, and spoken commands, but I think that you are right about the owner's responsibility to maintain control and provide a disciplined environment with standards and conditions to follow. I tried to provide that, but as they say, it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks. He already knew the tricks fortunately, but it was just a matter of getting a headstrong dog to revert back to the way he was originally trained.
I wish I still had him. I still have his collar and tags and I haven't had another dog since. It's been about 11 years, but I can't seem to bring myself to throw away his collar. He was the coolest dog. Maybe I haven't gotten another one since I only had him for a year and it killed me to let him go when we put him to sleep. That was tough. I held him while my father-in-law (a Vet), gave him the shot to end his suffering. That sucked. He knew what was going down and it was tough reassuring him that everything was okay, it was for his good. I keep hoping that I'll see him again in another life.

 

[flintknapper]

I'd agree that dogs are a reflection of their owners. I got the dog secondhand as the previous owner wanted him put down because he had treatable health problems that the previous owner didn't want to deal with. He was 4 years old when I got him and he exhibited these behavioral traits. I had him for about a year, in which time we were able to curb the barking and chewing, but he still liked to jump. He liked to jump off porches, tailgates, etc. and I believe that's what accelarated his hip dysplasia. I gave the dog another year of life from what the previous owner gave him, and tried to make it good for him. I hunted pheasant and dove with him, walked him, and tried to provide him with stimulating activities.
I believe that the professional breeder did a good job as he knew all of his hand, whistle, and spoken commands, but I think that you are right about the owner's responsibility to maintain control and provide a disciplined environment with standards and conditions to follow. I tried to provide that, but as they say, it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks. He already knew the tricks fortunately, but it was just a matter of getting a headstrong dog to revert back to the way he was originally trained.
I wish I still had him. I still have his collar and tags and I haven't had another dog since. It's been about 11 years, but I can't seem to bring myself to throw away his collar. He was the coolest dog. Maybe I haven't gotten another one since I only had him for a year and it killed me to let him go when we put him to sleep. That was tough. I held him while my father-in-law (a Vet), gave him the shot to end his suffering. That sucked. He knew what was going down and it was tough reassuring him that everything was okay, it was for his good. I keep hoping that I'll see him again in another life.

Shark, I wish things had worked out better for you with that Lab. There was a 10 year period of time when I didn't have "my own personal" dog because I was so broken hearted over one I had owned for a long time and had died. I still have his collar (18 yrs. now).

I wish breeders of Labs and other dogs prone to hip dysplasia would refrain from breeding those who have not been "OFA'd" fair to good.

Just one example of how someone might think a dog is "dumb" can be drawn from my personal experience training the chocolate that I have now.

This dog is not the most athletic dog I have ever owned, and by my own admission...he does not "learn" as quickly as some others. But, he trys "to please" harder than any other I have ever had.

I decided he was ready to be "force fetched" at about 13 months. I use the "ear pinch and string on toes" method. Force fetching is a stressful time for both owner/trainer and dog...so you keep sessions short and hope that your "pup" picks it up pretty quickly.

Some dogs "get it" in week or so, others take a month. Mine took a month!
Part of the reason mine took a month is that I used a wooden dummy (to keep him soft mouthed). Well, (I) bumped his mouth a few times, and (I) got his lips pinched in between the dummy and his teeth a few times, and (I) wasn't smart enough to go to his "bumper" with a teal wing attached that he was used to.

When I would command "fetch" and pull the string down on his toes he would extend his leg and look at me puzzled. Very soon all I had to do was put the string on his foot and he would extend it (trying to please) but not understanding what (I) wanted.

This did not make (him) stupid as some would say. It mean't (I) wasn't communicating to him what I wanted. There were days that I would end the session early and just hold him and cry because I was causing him pain, and it was (I) that was the stupid one.

My trainer friend came over and suggested we go back to his plastic bumpers that he already knew to fetch....and WHAMMO, we completed "force fetch and hold" in 3 days after that.

He went on to force fetch on the ground beautifully, and we never looked back!

He didn't have trouble "learning" because he was chocolate, he had trouble "getting it" because of me.

I stopped trying to compare him to dogs that I have owned in the past and started accepting him for what he is and isn't. I hope in the end...he will think as highly of me as I do of him. I'll NEVER think of him as stupid.

Love my Lab!