New Lab Owner

[CharlieLabMom]

My puppy, Charlie is going on 9 weeks old and we are just ending our first week with him. He seems to have a sweet disposition and my children are super happy. I would appreciate advice on training, especially for using the crate, stopping him from nipping/chewing and getting him comfortable with other dogs (he is shy with them).

This forum looks like it could be a great resource for info and making some online buddies with a common interest, I'm glad to have stumbled upon it.

[HarveysMum]

Hi, welcome to the forum. There is lots of good advice in the 'puppy and training' section, or you could post in 'Lab Chat'.

For us, crate training was pretty easy, we just called it 'bed' and introduced it as soon as Harvey came home. It didnt take him long to learn what it should be used for, Nipping - as soon as he does it, be loud and firm and say NO!. Train all members of the household not to leave 'valuables' (or choking hazards) within puppy reach. All the family need to take responsibility for this (my DD lost about 4 pairs of shoes because she left them where Harvey could get them).

As for other dogs, as soon as you can (after he has had all the shots etc) start introducing him to other dogs. Older dogs may not have much patience with him (in my experience) so be prepared for that. Having said that, i didn't have a problem with an older dog telling my dog 'enough is enough', he needed to learn that too. Now he is 3, he sees pups all the time and will play with them for a while and then look at me as if to say, "mum, please make them stop" LOL

I am no expert, but these are the things that worked for us.

Post some pic soon, we love pics

[deidra]

Hi! We LOVE pics