Is a Labrador Retriever right for you?

Based on personality alone, the Labrador Retriever is one of the most popular dog breeds within the United States. Often though, people will bring a Lab into their family because they have heard great things about the breed, met a well behaved and beautiful specimen of this breed, or got to play with a puppy and think they are the cutest thing ever. Unfortunately, all too often families don’t put in the proper research of the breed first and it is only after they bring the dog home that they realize that they may have a problem. We've included some questions and information to help you decide if this is the breed for you. [Read Full Article. . .]

Continuation of Lab Training

A lot of our time is focused on training our girls to be on their best behavior in certain situations. For example, we will often take the girls for walks and about 5 houses away from our home, we will take Dakota off the lead and allow her to walk freely at our side. When she begins to walk too fast, we give her the "heel" command and she slows down. That is, of course, if Cheyenne isn't on a lead in front of her. Last night was a learning experience with this as Dakota heeled a few times and then bolted off in front of Cheyenne to beat her back to the house so that they could run around the yard and play together.

That is the problem we face - not with training the Labs but training them to listen to us humans and not be blindsided by the other dog. How do we do this? The only way is through consistent training and being persistent no matter what. They need to learn that the humans are alpha outside of the house as well as inside. Most people believe their dogs to be well trained and then take them out in the world, thinking they will continue to be that sweet and adoring pup. Then something happens outside of the house that the dog is not familiar with and the dog either gets into trouble or misbehaves. It is for that reason that we believe highly on training both on our own property as well as out in the real world. We may seem a bit strict when we are outside - having them sit when people walk by (even if the people are across the street) or having them calm down before allowing a person to touch them but, this is part of the training process and what defines a well mannered pet.

The girls are getting better and since they are still relatively young (Dakota is 15 months and Cheyenne is 7 months), they still have a long way to go and a lot of training ahead of them. As stated before, the idea is to stay consistent in the training and not give up - no matter how frustrated you may get or how much you think it is not working. It takes time but it is well worth the end result - a dog that can go anywhere with you and continue to be that same loving and loyal friend and companion no matter what!

Testing Out Of Crate Behavior

We have finally begun the process of testing our Labs' loyalty and ability to behave.

It is a normal ritual to get up bright and early on Sunday mornings to head out grocery shopping. Normally there is hardly anyone in the store and what used to take us at least an hour, takes us only 30 minutes at the most. So, as we get our shopping list together, we will tell Cheyenne and Dakota to "kennel up", which means for them to go into their crates while we are gone. Normally, we never leave them out on their own however, this Sunday was different.

Neither of the Lab Brats had any idea what was going on as we proceeded to walk out of the house with our grocery list and keys in hand. They tried to follow us out the door but we insisted that they stay. Of course, before leaving, we took anything out of the main living area that Cheyenne liked to chew on and closed all the doors to the bedrooms and bathroom. Sure, we trust Dakota but, well, Cheyenne is not even 7 months old and still loves to nibble on things she shouldn't.

To our amazement, we came home to two sleeping pups and no damage to our house at all. Our return was treated with barks - telling us that we were not welcome if we were strangers. However, once they saw us and our blue shopping bags, all was forgiven! Why did I mention the shopping bags? Well the girls know that when we return from food shopping on Sunday mornings, they get a special treat - Frosty Paws (doggie ice cream). As the tails were wagging, we led them outside to where they enjoyed their wonderful treat in the early morning sun.

Will we try this again? Actually we did do it again for a couple of more hours throughout the day and will try it again next weekend. It is a slow and steady process to reassure our dogs that they will be fine without being crated all the time and that we will, indeed, return. This will help them feel more secure during these times and help alleviate any separation anxiety they may have. For we all know that the more comfortable they feel, the more likely we will return to a well kept house.

Cutting Back on Doggie Daycare

At $580 for 20 days each, doggie daycare tends to get expensive at times. Sure, the girls are so tired when they get home that all they want to do is eat and fall sleep but, that is a nice chunk of change for the privilege of going to play with other dogs. Although it comes in handy when we have to leave the girls with family members while on vacation, it is too expensive to do regularly. They used to enjoy this privilege up to 3 times in a week and have now been cut down to once a week.

In order to get the best rate, you need to buy the days in packs of 20 days. The purchase clause on this package is that all 20 days must be used up within 6 months of purchase. As we worked it out, at one day a week, that gives us 6 months of doggie daycare! Sure, that still comes out to over $1,000 a year on our Labs getting pampered and people calling us Yuppies but it is well worth it when you think about the amount of socialization that is done at the daycare.

That is not to say that we just went from 3 days a week down to one. Actually, we had to slowly wean them down to 1 day a week or Dakota would go crazy. As I have stated before, dogs love to stick to schedules and they tend to get out of sorts when the schedule is thrown out the window. For us, Dakota knew exactly what days she was going to daycare and would literally hound us all day if she didn't get to go. The weaning process was a little difficult because she was still a little annoyed that she didn't get to go but we were able to supplement her dog socialization with weekend trips to the dog park. Both Dakota and Cheyenne love it and it allows them to get a lot more exercise then being in a small doggie daycare. Needless to say, in the end, the girls get socialized better, they get more exercise, we save more money, and we get the exercise we need in order to keep up with our Labrador Retrievers on a daily basis.

For My Girls - Obey the Lab

"Obey the Lab" in a bold red artistic font with a stricking black silhouette of a Labrador Retriever. This black and red Lab design will make the Lab lover in your family stand out in a crowd!

8 Paws Up Labrador Retriever dog breed products depicts original artwork and quality hard to find products. We have a variety to of t-shirts, sweatshirts, adult and kid's clothing, cards, bumper stickers, license plate frames and more from our dog gift shop.

Crying and Crate Training

You would think that after 4 months of crate training that Cheyenne would finally get it! I will say it once again - it was a lot easier with Dakota. Cheyenne just has not learned that crying in her crate, in the early morning hours after she hears me wake, will not get her out of the crate any quicker than if she just sat quietly. The morning ritual is the same and she still doesn't get it.

So, as I get up in the morning and prepare to do some Yoga in the livingroom, Cheyenne starts to cry from her crate in the basement rec room. Sure, Dakota is in the crate next to her but she has learned that if she is quiet, she will get out sooner. Cheyenne will cry while I am trying to do my meditation and for about 45 minutes, she is fully ignored. This is about how long she cries from the moment I am up to the moment she is let out of her crate.

This morning was a bit different though. I have decided that we will not let her out of the crate as soon as we enter the basement. Instead, we have begun to ignore her to do things like empty out the dehumidifier while we are down there. No eye contact or attention is given to either dog. This way she has 5 minutes of seeing us and we are not paying any attention to her. This is the 5 minutes of quiet that is needed to let her know that crying will not get her out of the crate. Ironically, she did not cry during that time but excitedly watched us. We then let Dakota out of her crate (hierarchy) and when she was upstairs with my husband, I opened up Cheyenne's crate and told her to stay. She was given the command again, after her collar was on, and she listened. Once I released her with the "okay" command, she darted up the stairs to see her daddy and sister.

This seemed to work well this morning with her crying but only time will tell. The end result is to get her to stop crying at all in the morning. With any luck, she will get the hint!

Energy Hype in Labs

Everyone makes a big deal about the energy level of Labrador Retrievers. When looking at that specific breed to introduce to one's family, former Lab owners will instinctively state that Labs are a high energy breed and that they need to be exercised regularly. This is partially true as they do not need to go on 3-mile runs, 4 times a day. It is more a question of how much time the owner(s) is spending with the dog.

This was noticed early on in our own experience with this dog breed. Dakota was a high energy pup and, if left alone for any period of time and outside of her crate, she would chew anything she could get her mouth on. Cheyenne is the same way even today - at 6 months old! However, a closer look at this breed shows a direct relationship between the energy level in children and the energy level in dogs.

Young children get into trouble when they are left alone with a good deal of energy. They need an outlet for this energy or it could mean bad news for the parents. However, if the parents just spend time with the children and active, the children will get tired. Now put this into dog terms - a sleepy dog is a good dog.

So, what does this mean? Spend time with your pups. Just this weekend alone, we took the pups to the dog park for an hour and got some exercise ourselves. The dog park has loads of hills and woods for the dogs to run off some steam. Keep in mind though that you do not need to go that far. How about having your dogs outside with you all day when you are working on the yard and even just sitting out in your back yard? What about taking the Lab for a ride in your car when you are just running to the local McDonald's drive thru? Remember, it doesn't take a lot but if you keep your Lab focused on different things over a period of time, some of that energy will go away quietly and help keep your Lab at its best behaviour.

Labrador Retriever Photo Contest

Labrador Retriever Photo Contest
Winner gets a Free Mousepad

Do you think your Lab is the most beautiful or handsome looking of its breed? Send us a picture of this beautiful creature and you could win a free mousepad with your Lab's picture on it and be highlighted as our "Lab of the Month"! That's right - we are giving away a free mousepad just because you have a beautiful Labrador Retriever!

Submitting your Entry

• Name of human
• Email Address
• Name of Lab
• Age of Lab
• City, State

The person that sends us the the most outstanding picture of your Labrador Retriever will win a free mousepad with their own picture on it and be highlighted as "8 Paws Up Lab of the Month" on our front page! That simple!

Rules

1. Contest opens the 1st of the month and ends at midnight on the last day of the month.
2. Entries received after that time will be entered in the following month's drawing. Winners will be contacted via email by the 5th of the month following contest deadline.
3. Submitter must be the original owner of the picture. No copied images from other websites or copyrighted materials will be accepted.
4. Image must have a resolution of at least 200 pixels or 2000 by 2000 pixels wide to ensure clarity of the transfer to any of our products.
5. Pictures must be in one of the following formats: jpg, jpeg, or png.
6. Images of Labrador Retriever's will only be accepted. Picture should not contain any human beings or other breeds of dogs. Labrador Retriever mixes will be accepted.
7. All pictures submitted to this contest become property of 8 Paws Up and may be used, respectfully, by 8 Paws Up.
   

For more information, Click Here!

Lonely Labs

They were not happy with me one bit this morning. Normally, I would work from home throughout the week and they would be able to be out and about the house with me. Today I needed to be in the office and as I got ready for work, Dakota saw my dress shoes and got excited. In the past, this meant that she was going to doggie daycare. When I grabbed my stuff and headed out the door, the look on her face was something of betrayal.

Labrador Retrievers are people dogs. A lot of people do not understand why Labs have a problem being left alone for hours on end and will usually get even by destroying one or more things in the house. This is exactly why we leave our girls crated (kenneled) during the day, when we are not home. I can think of a hundred places off the top of my head, where Cheyenne would get on or in. Sure, our house is dog-proofed but, they will find a way around it. Dakota would probably sleep on the couch all day, which is a big no-no in our house. Separation anxiety is a reality with the breed and both of my Lab brats are too young to begin testing in the house alone.

Once Cheyenne is over a year, then we will begin to test them for a couple of hours here and there by themselves. Right now though, Cheyenne is still teething and Dakota is as spoiled as they come. Without human interaction with either of these girls, they will surely get into trouble. Alas, the girls will have a nice sleepy morning in their indoor kennels and this afternoon my husband will come home to let them out during lunch. Then it is back in the crates for the afternoon and I will let them out when I get home. This way they only have to go 4 hours without us. Why only 4 hours? Cheyenne is still a puppy and cannot hold it all 8 hours. Once she can, then the girls will need to learn to be alone during that time. However, that is some time away and, in the meantime, we will make sure they know they are loved but remain alpha in our house.

Energy and Spaying

We already know that Labrador Retrievers and energy go hand and hand. That is why we often dread when we have to get our Labs spayed. They veterinarian's say to keep the dogs calm for a whole week and refuse to give any type of sedative for the dog or the owner. Needless to say, we have found that the recovery timeline given by the vets is usually more of a guideline then it is a set of rules.

For instance, Cheyenne stayed home from doggie daycare all week in order to make sure that we were able to keep an eye on her. The last thing we want is to have someone else watch our pup while she is recovering from surgery. What if they missed something or weren't paying enough attention to her to see something is wrong. However, when Saturday rolled around, we said "Let's go!" and packed up the car with our girls and headed out. Lucky for us, there is a great dog park only 20 minutes from our home and that is exactly where we headed.

The girls had a great time, met lots of new doggie friends, and got rid of all that pent-up energy. There were only a couple of concerns we had about bringing them there. First, there is a river that runs through the park and Cheyenne had stitches that will melt if met with water. Second, was the number of mud puddles we may come across while on our walk through the woods. Although Cheyenne did get a muddy belly and got her paws wet, we were able to keep her away from both. As soon as she would notice either and start to head straight for it, we would pick up a new stick on the ground and throw it past the obstacle. It worked like a charm!

Just to make sure that there were not complications from our little adventure outdoors, we washed her belly when she got home and poured some hydrogen peroxide on her incision. We checked to for any puffiness and swelling, which we were glad to see none. Needless to say, we much rather the guidelines of spaying recovery to the vet's rules - a weekend with both Lab brats, tons of energy, and only so much room to run would have been too much to bare for any of us!