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Hello Vicky

I just got a new puppy!! she is just about 4 months old, yellow lab, from a breeder who has been breeding for over 30 years. Great blood line! The puppies name is Remi and will be my first inside dog!

NOW WHAT DO I DO!!! I have had hunting dogs over the years and done pretty well. This time I want to have the best dog on the planet!! Can you point me in the right direction? Are there books, DVD's, ect that would help us get the most from our new pet??

Is it a good idea to go to a trainer? If so - how do you pick the right one?

I am going to give it a year before I take Remi fishin with me!

I see what you are saying - I should be asking Vicky if there are any good books, DVD's, trainers, etc for me!!! ;-)

The little woman says I am untrainable! guess you can not teach a bald,fat school bus salesman new tricks!

Here is a picture of our new puppy - so far she is well behaved!

Congratulations -- it's a girl!!!!

And I'm so glad she will be indoors. Hunting dogs long ago were thought to be ruined if they were an indoor dog. NOT! In fact it's the opposite. The more time you spend with her, the more she will bond with you. And it's much easier to bond and become friends when she is right inthe house with you.The tighter the bond, the more she'll want to please you -- in and out of the field.

There are several good books out there. I am just finishing one I REALLY like and would recommend. Titled "The loved dog" by Tamar Geller.  The best advice in the shortest form is to ignore the bad behavior and praise the good. Think of you going to a foreign country where everything is new and no one has explained the rules to you. Do you want to get yelled at, feces smeared on your face, or  thrown in jail for not knowing  what side of the road you drive on -- or where you can't wear shoes, etc. So think of your puppy being in a foreign country. It's only fair to not get upset about things she doesn't know yet. Take time to explain them to her and this is where ignoring the bad and praising the good comes in. She'll be more inspired to do the right  thing in order to please you than to avoid your anger. Ya gotta be a little bit smarter than the dog and know how to communicate with them. That includes not just knowing how to get a message across to them but it's important for you to be able to receive messages FROM them. That's where the books come in handy. Another good one I enjoyed was "Other end of the leash" by Patricia McConnell. Go with reward based training and avoid the dog whispering guy on tv.

As far as a dog trainer, it really should be you and your family. Goes back to that bonding thing. Taking her to a puppy class would be a great start if there are any in your area. Again, look for reward based training classes. No choke or pinch collars! Good socialization and the basics in obedience can be found in most puppy classes. It's been my experience that dog training classes are more for the people than the dogs! But that's a good thing!

Another helpful hint to help teach her new things is to name everything you are doing. Every time you go outside say outside. Same as coming inside, going upstairs, downstairs, etc Pick the phrase you want to use and be sure everyone in the family uses the same one. For example, decide on the phrase you want to use for going potty. Another great phrase to teach them is "that's enough". It is for things that they are doing that aren't necessarily bad, but you want her to stop. Like barking -- barking is not a bad thing but when you want her to stop, say that's enough (use a happy voice if possible) and praise her when she does. Playing a game and want to stop? Say "that's enough" and thank her when she does. Pretty soon you can use "that's enough" for a number of things and she'll know just what you mean and your friends and family will be SO impressed!

Tell her Auntie Vicki can't wait to meet her and has a new puppy gift all picked out! If you have any specific questions - let me know.

PS - Trout Whisperer: You asked one time about your dog who was scared of everything. The book for you is Nicole Wilde's "Help for your Fearful Dog."

WOW

I realy want to thank you for the information! We are going book shopin soon!  I also like all the pointers! Its good to know that we are on the right track so far!!

Remi sends a kiss and is looking forward to meeting Heidi

Hey Vick Buddy!  RandyMan is not the only one that got a new puppy.  We all did.  I've  been working with her for only a few days with all the helpful hints you have shared with me and wow! what a difference working with a puppy that not only has personal bonding but wants to listen!  She is so cute and wants to please!  Amazing how you learn the "little" mannerisms.  Any suggestions for those little nibbles with those razor sharp teeth?  And what about my favorite shoes (the black ones with the fuzz around the top) that seem to be the favorite chew?  Look forward to seeing you soon.  Remind the Liz that Remi does not like peanut butter.

See ya buddy!

Babes   

Hey my friend - I am of course happy for the whole family and can't wait to meet her.  Hidee's going to have a new friend - that's cool too. The little nibbles can be addressed by letting out a high pitched squeak like a littermate would do if the bite was too hard during play. I am assuming they are play nibbles, right? Act like she really hurt you and usually they will respond by acting like they want to apologize. If she comes up to lick you, thank her and carry on. If she doesn't quit, walk away and cease the interaction (ignoring the bad). Is it just your hands or other places?
As far as the shoes, may I suggest you put them away? 

If that's not feasible, then you have to take the shoe away from her saying no and immediatly replace it with something that is ok to chew on, like a chew bone. The most effective approach (besides putting your shoes away!) is if you can catch her approaching the shoes, give a "ack" sound just as she's touching it ( hard to describe but maybe you've heard me use it with Hidee). If she responds appropriately, love her up and again give her something that's her's to chew.

As far as the Liz - let's see if we can do a better job protecting Remi from him than we have done with the cat!

See you soon I hope!

ps - If there's anything else I can help with, let me know. I enjoy dog talk as you know!

Hey Vicky

OK - what is the best type of chew toy?  We have been tryin every kind we can find. She seems to enjoy the real bone type and the softer ones made from who knows what! Is there anything we should be looking for? Rawhide seems to also work well.

How about food?? What should we be looking for?

OH YEA - almost forgot!

When should I get her dew claws removed?

Is there a good outline of when to get what shots and what shots - when?

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1661&articleid=2661

This is a great website on picking a food. Of course you want to be using puppy food so there is enough calcium etc for growing bones. #1 thing is to read the label and see what is listed first under ingredients. You want meat to show up first.

Quote from the peteducation site: All pet foods must list the ingredients present in the food. The ingredients must be listed in order of weight. This is one of the best ways to determine the quality of the food. With a little knowledge of the ingredients, you can choose a food that is highly digestible and free of unwanted products. Be careful of one tactic used by manufacturers to disguise less desirable ingredients. Breaking an ingredient into several different smaller ingredients and listing them individually is used to lower these undesirable ingredients farther down the ingredient list. For example, a product list could contain chicken, ground corn, corn gluten, ground wheat, corn bran, wheat flour, wheat middling, etc. If we were to group all of the corn ingredients as one, they would probably far out-weigh the amount of chicken, and wheat. As a consumer, you must read all of the ingredients carefully including the ingredients at the end, to know the type of preservatives and colorings that are used. I have listed a few of the more common ingredients and their definitions.

Meat: Meat is the clean flesh of slaughtered animals (chicken, cattle, lamb, turkey, etc.). The flesh can include striated skeletal muscle, tongue, diaphragm, heart, [script removed]esophagus, overlying fat and the skin, sinew, nerves and blood vessels normally found with that flesh.

Meat By-products: Meat by-products are clean parts of slaughtered animals, not including meat. These include lungs, [script removed]spleen, kidneys, brain, liver, blood, bone, and stomach and intestines freed of their contents. It does not include hair, horns, teeth, or hooves.

Poultry By-products: Poultry by-products are clean parts of slaughtered poultry such as heads, feet, and internal organs (like heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, abdomen, and intestines). It does not contain feathers.

Fish Meal: Fish meal is the clean ground tissue of undecomposed whole fish or fish cuttings, with or without the oil extracted.

Another trick is to compare how much they suggest feeding. Some cheap brands say a 50 lb dog needs to have 6-8 cups a day, while a better quality will require   2-3. you can do the math there. Feeding that much more also means more poop-age than a quality brand. The protein amount listed can be misleading. Not all protein sources are digestable. At one time feathers and toenails were considered protein. Yuck.

As far as toys go, rawhides are ok, as long as she's not swallowing big chunks. And limit the consumption. Bigger bones are better as they are less likely to bite off and swallow pieces of them. Kongs are good because you can stuff goodies inside and they keep busy trying to get them out. Plus, they are pretty durable. Your choice of toys should be directed by how aggressive she is as a chewer. Any toy she likes is a good toy as long as they don't have pieces she can chew off and swallow (kind of like having a little kid around!). You can rotate them too. Put a few away for a few weeks and when you bring them out again it's like a new toy or an old friend. But having lots around will keep her less interested in your things, or Babes' shoes!

Sorry so wordy

When should you get her dew claws removed? When you have her spayed, and that should be done before she is 6 months old. Speaking of nails, I'm going to guess she has white/clear toenails? If so, that is a plus. It's time to start messing with her feet so she isn't a trouble child when it comes to clipping her nails. Just play with her pads and toenails frequently. Maybe even trim the tips off a little to get her used to it. Watch out for the "quick" however. That's the fleshy part inside the nail and if you hit it, it's a bugger to stop the bleeding.

A possible vaccination schedule for the 'average' dog is shown below.

Dog Vaccination Schedule
Age	Vaccination
5 weeks	Parvovirus: for puppies at high risk of exposure to parvo, some veterinarians recommend vaccinating at 5 weeks. Check with your veterinarian.
6 & 9 weeks	Combination vaccine* without leptospirosis. Coronavirus: where coronavirus is a concern.
12 weeks or older	Rabies: Given by your local veterinarian (age at vaccination may vary according to local law).
12 & 15 weeks**	Combination vaccine Leptospirosis: include leptospirosis in the combination vaccine where leptospirosis is a concern, or if traveling to an area where it occurs. Coronavirus: where coronavirus is a concern. Lyme: where Lyme disease is a concern or if traveling to an area where it occurs.
Adult (boosters)§	Combination vaccine Leptospirosis: include leptospirosis in the combination vaccine where leptospirosis is a concern, or if traveling to an area where it occurs. Coronavirus: where coronavirus is a concern. Lyme: where Lyme disease is a concern or if traveling to an area where it occurs. Rabies: Given by your local veterinarian (time interval between vaccinations may vary according to local law).
*A combination vaccine, often called a 5-way vaccine, usually includes adenovirus cough and hepatitis, distemper, parainfluenza, and parvovirus. Some combination vaccines may also include leptospirosis (7-way vaccines) and/or coronavirus. The inclusion of either canine adenovirus-1 or adenovirus-2 in a vaccine will protect against both adenovirus cough and hepatitis; adenovirus-2 is highly preferred.

I usually wait until they are 4 months old to vaccinate for rabies. Most vets do a rabies around 4 months of age, one year after and then every 2 years. Depends on the vaccine they use however.

OK - let say I am not sure if I will breed her?

I have been told that if you breed a female at least one time, you end up with a better hunting dog. Is there any truth to this? What are the pro's and con's to breeding?

Remi comes from a wonderful blood line so I would think she would be a good dog to breed?

Thanks for all the info!

Hey TW!! you got away easy! I have 2 books to read and a few web sites to check out, all kinds of things to think about!

Vicky! your the best! I really want to thank you for all your help! I am sure there will be 1000 more questions along the way - I hope you will stick with me!!

Remi is doing very well! She is crate trained and has not had any problems learning how to "potty" outside. She is still enjoying chewing everything ! But no ones perfect!

I best get to reading so I will have more questions soon!