Information on Labradors ?

[sheltie lover]

Hi all I am looking for information on Labradors for a friend who is thinking about getting one. Can anyone tell me about temprement, trainabitity and the chewing stage of Labradors ??? Thanks in advance

[coco-bean]

I cant chat too long although i would LOVE to tell you all about them but i am at work so i must keep it short and sweet.
labs are wonderful dogs, excellent temperment around children, adults and even elderly.
they are great hunting companions, family members, guide dogs and some even do a little drug sniffing police work :)
they are fairly easy to train but are pretty hyper for a few years of their lives so you MUST stay on top of things with them(maybe i should take my own advice hmmm...lol*wink*)
all puppies go through a chewing stage but yes labradors are chewers and some never grow out of it but you must learn to direct their chewing on to the appropriate things such as bones, rawhides...sticks or whatever you feel is appropriate for them.
i noticed my 3 went threw chewing stages at different ages but if i had to put an exact age range on it i'd say between 8 weeks to 8 or 9 months.
my corona is a still a chewer so sometimes i need to remind her that socks are not appropriate as well as my hands and feet :D
gosh i really would like to tell you more but i dont wanna get caught lol!
ill try and check back when i can to see all the other great info.

[skunkstripe]

My husband had Labs for years so this is more or less what I picked up from him and also what I learned back on a Lab forum I was on when I thought Zircon was part Yellow Lab.

They are friendly, goofy dogs, and have that typical retriever "there-are-no-strangers-just-friends-I-haven't-met-yet" attitude towards life. They make terrible watch dogs and worse guard dogs. If a burglar were to enter your house, a Lab would probably slobber all over him and then show him the treat cabinet. :p

In the US, the temperament has suffered in the past decade because this breed has become the #1 popular breed, so everyone and his brother is breeding them. Assuming your friend gets one with a good temperament though, training should be fairly easy as Labbies are eager to please. But like coco-bean says, they are hyper. Personally I think that many in the US don't get enough exercise. These dogs were meant to be outdoors in the woods, and swimming in icy water after ducks. They will eat until they bust and if they don't get serious exercise, will rapidly become overweight unless you keep a careful watch on how much they eat.

I also agree with coco-bean that they are normal chewers like any other breed.

[xcolbi]

Labrador Retrievers make great family pets. :) They have a very sweet temperament; gentle, loving, loyal, affectionate, playful, energetic.

Labs are very intelligent and love to please you. They can be easy to train, and they can be stubborn. Colbi catches on very quickly to new things, but she is stubborn. They are quite obedient though.

Labs love to chew. I think they will chew throughout their entire lives. Be sure to train them what is a good thing to chew and what is not, because Colbi has gotten into everything in the past. :rolleyes: And hide your MP3 players, LOL. 2 seconds, and it was gone!

Here are a few videos that your friend might want to watch:

Meet the Breed - Labrador Retriever (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPh7rQQU_xY)
Lucky the Yellow Labrador (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GaX85Ov5NQ&feature=related)

[melissa2007]

I Own 2 Labs myself and could also talk on and on about them, but from my experiences I have learned that although the Lab is an awsome dog they are not for everyone.
The lab is a working dog and as such they need excercise and brain stimulation daily(escpecially as a pup), they also stay the puppy stage for about 3 years and osme take longer to calm down. They can also be stubborn.I understand that all I have said are the cons of the Lab but you have to concider the good and the bad.
The reason i chose the Lab was for there loyaly,intelligence, and the way they are eager to please.
So if your friend is active,patient and of course loving, a Lab will suit him/her just fine.
from experience I learned that although The Lab can take alot of time and patience to train (and this can be frustrating) in the end it is all worth it :)

[melissa2007]

Madison went though the chew stage until she was about a year old.
A tired Lab is a happy lab :) and a happy owner LOL

[skunkstripe]

Oops I forogt one very important thing. Labs shed. Actually they give new meaning to the word "shed." The don't 'blow coat' like lose it in clumps all at once, it is just a continuous stream of fuzz all year long. You might not think of it to look at them, but their grooming demands are high unless you like dog hair everywhere. :D

[melissa2007]

Oops I forogt one very important thing. Labs shed. Actually they give new meaning to the word "shed." The don't 'blow coat' like lose it in clumps all at once, it is just a continuous stream of fuzz all year long. You might not think of it to look at them, but their grooming demands are high unless you like dog hair everywhere. :D
WOW I can't believe I left that out, Madison is blowing her coat right now, with the amount of hair they lose you would think they would be bald :D

[PoppyPuppy]

OMG

I went and volunteered to look after one until 1 year old. :confused:

I keep telling myself the chewing problems will be over in a few weeks....

Oh well, she is adorable....:D

Dawn

[sheplovr]

I know Retriever shed badly as I did interiors for my husbands detailing business, got so sick of that yellow hair that stuck to sets, floors. Once past any hunting breeds block of learning they make good pets. Not highly intelligent in learning things fast, kinda slow but training should be that way in some. I think the lighter ones shed more, just a thought thinking back. I am glad mine do not clump anymore using the supplements helps with shedding. I got on porch and brush, finish with the furminator and they look good. Drops hair of course this is why I sweap so much. But, labs I have not found a mean one, but breeders are now going nuts, just like when Shepherds were no.1 on AKC, they start to inbreed, line breed toooo close and soon the breed goes down hill in temperment, looks, etc. Shepherds are no 3, Labs first, Retrievers 2 or vise virsa. Regardless breeders are selling them cheap and pedigrees I would check with a fine tooth comb also. Look for diseases in the pedigree far back as u can get. U can get a 7 generation from AKC for money. From Germany I get 4 generation, Gerti always looked further for me, so just be careful in buying a good Lab, they are nice quiet dogs inside, but do require a daily run or brisk walk, most do.

[melissa2007]

I know Retriever shed badly as I did interiors for my husbands detailing business, got so sick of that yellow hair that stuck to sets, floors. Once past any hunting breeds block of learning they make good pets. Not highly intelligent in learning things fast, kinda slow but training should be that way in some. I think the lighter ones shed more, just a thought thinking back. I am glad mine do not clump anymore using the supplements helps with shedding. I got on porch and brush, finish with the furminator and they look good. Drops hair of course this is why I sweap so much. But, labs I have not found a mean one, but breeders are now going nuts, just like when Shepherds were no.1 on AKC, they start to inbreed, line breed toooo close and soon the breed goes down hill in temperment, looks, etc. Shepherds are no 3, Labs first, Retrievers 2 or vise virsa. Regardless breeders are selling them cheap and pedigrees I would check with a fine tooth comb also. Look for diseases in the pedigree far back as u can get. U can get a 7 generation from AKC for money. From Germany I get 4 generation, Gerti always looked further for me, so just be careful in buying a good Lab, they are nice quiet dogs inside, but do require a daily run or brisk walk, most do.
I'd like to think mine are highly intelligent :Ddepends on the trainer I guess

[coco-bean]

I'd like to think mine are highly intelligent :Ddepends on the trainer I guess
mine are very smart actually.
i mean some DAYS they can be quite stubborn and refuse to learn a darn thing but i've never had any longated problems.
I always seem to be able to teach mine fairly fast(i thought at least)

[melissa2007]

I see the stubborness as intelligence myslef

[coco-bean]

I see the stubborness as intelligence myslef
lol....im with u on that 100%
I try looking at it as...it's their presonality and if they wanna be hard headed about it...well then i guess thats just the type of doggie they are :D

[sheltie lover]

Wow, just got in from work. Thanks to all for your replys. I will pass the information on to my friend tomorow.

[melissa2007]

Wow, just got in from work. Thanks to all for your replys. I will pass the information on to my friend tomorow.
No Problem , Anytime:D

[tankman12]

I currently have quite a few labs in all age groups. It seemed training went fairly well for the most part. I dont do any specialized training just your basic obedience. I think with labs, and probably most dogs, repetition and being consistent with the training will produce the best results. As mentioned earlier, labs have that terrible chewing stage where anything and everything is fair game. Keep them occupied with chew toys and such until at least 12-18 months old. It seemed all my older dogs just stopped the chewing alltogether at around 12 months. They younger ones I am doing my best to keep them chewing on stuff that they are allowed to chew. Keep them active, whether playing fetch, going on treks through the woods, or just for a walk down the street.

[calico2222]

Hi! I'm new here, but I had to give my input on labs. I had 6 cats, and my husband got a lab, and honestly she is the sweetest thing and turned me onto dogs again. Yes, she did have a chewing problem when she was younger (she is going on 3 now) but part of that was our fault. We were in the process of moving and all those boxes were too tempting for her. As long as you have other option for them to chew they should be fine. We actually boil off bones for the dogs (you can get the cheap at the market) and it will keep them occupied of hours.

My lab's toy of choice is a stick. We started training her in the house to retrieve a "squeaky" stick toy when she was a puppy and now anything wood on the ground is free game. (Of course, my MIL wasn't too thrilled about her tiki tourches being carried around the yard...). She even picked up a sapling that was cut down and carried it up the road just looking so proud of herself! Yes, she was running sideways because the tree was 3 times her length, but it was SO cute!

Training wasn't hard for us. We crate trained her and that went great. She picked up on the basic commands pretty quick. After fighting the leash the first few times, she is fine on it. And she is GREAT with kids. In fact, my SIL brought over her baby tonight, and Snickers was so curious but just sat there until she was allowed to come over and meet the baby. I couldn't ask for a better dog.

[Kaos]

I think everybody has given good info. To sum up my thoughts:

The best thing about labs is their tendency to be bold, friendly and outgoing with both other dogs and people. This makes them very easy to socialise, and usually slow to bite. They can be good with kids since their bold nature means they don't tend to scare easily if a child moves suddenly or makes loud noises etc. They seem well adapted to cope with the human world since they will often be curious about cars backfiring or alarms going off rather than timid. They tend to be laid back and easy going by nature, which means they adapt well to changes in routine, being handled by strangers, going to kennels, moving house etc. They don't seem to have as high a prey drive as some other breeds so often live happily with cats, chickens etc given appropriate training. Whilst they adore attention and affection they retain a degree of independence (unlike for example some of the herding breeds) and often cope fairly well with being left alone for part of the day.

They are large and active dogs who need a good amount of exercise. Whilst I think they are a fairly intelligent breed they often (at least whilst young) tend to act first think later, they will be a threat to your wine glasses and china as they charge around the house with no regard for what their tail is doing. They frequently bowl over young children and are too powerful for most children to walk safely alone. Their outgoing nature can make them pushy with people and rude with other dogs if no appropriate training is given - self control doesn't come naturally to your average 8 month old labby. They shed a lot, and have a love of mud and water. I also agree with the statement that they are slow to mature and spend a ridiculously long time being puppylike. This can be both adorable and infuriating.