how many times to feed a puppy labrador

Commencing Marker Training your chocolate labrador pup Start Marker Training at 8 weeks of age When you take your 8 week old labrador pup to their new home, you should commence their obedience training immediately. Just repetitively say yes and give your pup a treat immediately. Then familiarise your labrador pup with a leash. Clip the leash to their collar and allow the pup to roam a little. This way they will adjust to its weight and the sensation around their neck. If you try to walk your pup straight away, they will simply resist. Don't pull and command, but rather cultivate a positive experience with a leash. Secondly, I recommend that you feed your new labrador pup with a leash attached until they learn to sit. This will establish you as the master and immediately teach the pup restraint. Do not give the food bowl to your dog without firstly bringing him under your control. Even with my mature dogs, I will not let them feed except on command. Feeding should never be random. Hold the leash close to the labrador pup's neck and push their rear end down to the seated position. When they are sitting, enthusiastically praise your pup and, only then, reward their obedience with food. Remember, food should always represent a reward for good behaviour. They hear tones and frequencies. When we train them, we are conditioning them to associate a particular sound with a response so that it means something to them. Labrador puppies like all dogs learn contextually and by consistent repetition. In this way, a labrador pup learns to associate sounds with responses and rewards. This is why you should reward your pup immediately when they have performed a command correctly, even if they did not intend to do so. In the early stages, I prefer to teach a dog to 'sit,' then move on to 'staying' before teaching them to 'come'. This is especially so while they are still a puppy. Remember that a 12 month old dog is still a pup. They are regularly hyperactive and overstimulated. The goal is to get your labrador puppy into a calm and submissive state as often as you can. Ensure you are demonstrating a calm and composed, yet assertive demeanor. When you are in charge, your labrador pup will willingly sit and look to you for direction. Exercise patience and be repetitive but don't overdo it. Remember that the time you put in now will help you bond with your young dog, even if they do not appear to be advancing quickly. It will be a very worthwhile investment in a long term relationship for years to come. Of these three basic commands, the 'stay' command will take more time to teach. When this is mastered and entrenched in your dog's obedience, it can save your dog from danger. You are teaching them associations, not English words. Sit Teaching your new labrador pup to sit should begin immediately when you take it home. Begin by feeding them on a leash. Hold the leash close to the pup's neck. Give the pup the 'sit' command, but don't reward them with food until they are sitting. In this way you have begun to condition the pup to the 'sit' command. This requires patience at meal time. Remember that a labrador pup requires 4 feeds a day for the first phase of their life. This gives you ample opportunity for repetition and reward. When the dog sits, reward them with a treat and a lot of enthusiastic praise. Each time they repeat the behaviour, reward them with a treat again. You can train your labrador pup for short intervals at any time. Carry a few small pieces of food. Call your pup, then reward them with lots of affirmation and a piece of food when they comply. Teach them to sit by offering a small treat. Say 'sit', then let them smell the food as you move your hand over their head. A labrador pup will automatically lift the nose in the air to follow the food. As the head moves up and back, the pup will tend to sit. Give lots of praise and gradually increase repetition as they associate the word 'sit' with the food. Stay Your Labrador pup will need to understand the 'sit' command before you advance to 'stay'. Before you give the 'stay' command, make sure that the dog is seated. To keep the dog in the sitting position, you will use your hand with the fingers pointing up and the palm in front of their face. To begin with, position yourself about half a metre away from your pup's face. Direct the 'stay' command calmly, with your hand up. Slowly take half a step back and remain there for 3 seconds to begin with. Then step back towards to the dog. Wait for another 3 sec and then reward your dog with a treat. Repeat this 5 times. Reward them at the end of each 'stay' routine by praising them enthusiastically and giving them a treat. Don't praise or reward the dog until they have remained seated in front of you for a minimum of 3 seconds when you return. Your puppy should not move a millimetre until you give the reward. If your dog breaks early, you have gone too far. Simply return to your dog, reset them in the seated position and begin the routine again. Come It is important to make sure your Labrador understands the 'stay' command before you begin the recall or 'come' command. Make sure you pup is seated before you give the 'come' command. As your walk away from your pup, maintain eye contact. Don't back away too far too soon. If the pup breaks early, give the 'come' command to establish association. When you call your dog to 'come', do not let them jump up on you. If the dog wants to stand on its back legs and reach up, place the palm of your hand on their head and hold it away from you. I suggest that you don't say 'no! The down command should be used as a more constructive training command. If your pup jumps up, make your disapproval known by using a 'dog' sound; 'Ahhh! If you find yourself becoming frustrated, then put the pup away and start again tomorrow. Don't take it personally and don't blame the dog. Corrections are necessary, but not out of frustration or anger. If it's not working, then look at your consistency and your communication. If the training is a positive experience then you will strengthen the bonding and learning process. Develop consistent communication and trust with your dog in the process of the training. Labrador pups love to please and they will be very proud of themselves when they accomplish the command and gain your approval. Pawling Chocolate and Black Labradors. We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post. Training the simple sit can help give you and your puppy the confidence you need to learn new things. The same applies to your puppy. Give the right of way to people for doors and stairways—nobody wants an enthusiastic pup barrelling through with no warning! Painful falls are often the result. If they reliably sit, they are rooted to the spot and cannot bolt further into trouble. It depends on the age of your puppy, and also their own energy and focus levels. For puppies that are weeks old, keep your training sessions extremely short. Later, you can try minutes and end the session early if you spot any signs of boredom or inattention from your pup. Think firm but kind. Never shout! Dogs have much better hearing than we do, and shouting usually just comes across as aggressive and frightening. A low tone of voice e. You and your dog will both benefit from this in the long run. Praise and Reward Generously Your puppy wants to please you. So use plenty of praise and rewards. Here are the steps for each technique in detail. Step 1: Start with a handful of small treats in your pocket. Take one out and let your puppy smell it. That should get their attention. By now, they should be looking up and after the treat. If your hand is too low, your puppy will back up instead. Too high, and they might jump to grab the treat. Timing is crucial here. You only want to give a treat when they sit, and continue to sit. Step 6: Ready for more? Stand farther away from your puppy and do the same hand motion. Give a reward on sitting. If you spy that your puppy is getting ready to sit, give them the command and a treat, then go back to just quietly watching. At that point, your keen Lab is probably wondering which behavior it was that got them a treat. You might see your puppy try a lot of things to get your attention and another treat. Ignore them until you catch them ready to sit again and repeat. Pretty soon, your dog should learn to associate sitting with treats and rewards. Start by having your dog by your side, both of you facing the same way. Hold them in position for a few seconds if you can, then release and give a treat. With puppies especially, you risk damaging their still-developing hip bones. Follow the exact method above if you want to try this on your puppy. But once you have your Labrador puppy sitting on command well, you need to begin phasing out rewards. Try to combine commands if you can. For example, ask your dog to sit, lie down and then sit again before giving them a treat. Give praise or a favorite toy instead so that your dog learns to associate sitting with good things in general, not just treats. The goal is to have rewards be random. Dogs are generally not very good at understanding they need to perform a behavior pretty much anywhere you say. Instead, they come to associate a learned behavior in only the specific place it was trained. Proofing and generalization are fairly extensive processes in their own right. Learn everything you need to know about proofing a command in this article. Going for a walk? Ask your puppy to sit before you put on the leash. You both deserve a break and time to breathe. If you want to be a good trainer, you first have to train yourself. Before you do, however, have them read this article and decide together on the training method to use hint, start with luring. This way, you can be sure your dog receives consistent training instead of mixed, confusing signals. Helps ease anxiety in their new home. We love using Bully Sticks to help divert these unwanted behaviors. For a list of all the supplies we get for our new service dog puppies check out our New Puppy Checklist on the PuppyInTraining. This makes training your Labrador puppy easier than many other breeds. Print Early obedience first step to better hunting dog Labrador puppies start out sweet and innocent. All you want to do is cuddle up with your pup and love them! And you should! But rest assured the innocence will not last. As your pup gains confidence and courage, they will begin to test you in many ways. That is why you must obedience train your Labrador puppy. Early obedience training is key to establishing borders and boundaries that will help your puppy grow, learn, and adjust with a good attitude. There is no shortcut to doing this, just use the name often when you talk to your puppy. Over time, the pup will start to respond to the name. Socialization, while not technically obedience training, is the single most important thing you can teach your puppy during the first few months of life. If you are not sure how to do this, refer to this post. Tools needed to obedience train Labrador puppy You will need a few tools to teach your puppy obedience. The products I recommend I believe are a good value or good investment for anyone working to train or maintain training on their retriever. When possible, I include links to the product. Some of these links may be Amazon or other affiliate links in which I am paid a small commission at no cost to you. All opinions and recommendations are my own. Collar — You should purchase a size appropriate collar for your new puppy. You may have to buy new ones as your dog grows, but it is important for your puppy to get used to wearing a collar early on. A simple nylon adjustable collar works great. Chain collar — If your puppy is more than a few months old, a chain or prong collar is extremely helpful in teaching obedience, but they must be used correctly. For more information on how to put a chain collar on your dog correctly refer to this video. A longer lead, called a check cord, is also useful for teaching HERE and retrieving. You can learn more about that here. Heeling stick optional — While optional, a heeling stick can be especially helpful in teaching basic obedience. Treats — Treats are good for teaching very young puppies. I use treats for pups under 12 weeks of age, but treats should be discontinued rather quickly. When to start basic puppy obedience training Obedience training can and should start within the first couple weeks of having your puppy home. Young puppies are ready and willing to learn and teaching obedience to a young puppy is much easier than teaching it to an older dog. How long should obedience sessions be? Most labs do not enjoy obedience training. For this reason, we aim to keep obedience sessions short, especially if your dog is under 4-months of age. Five to ten minutes of obedience a day can work wonders. Especially if you are consistent. Using rewards or praise to teach obedience Many people like to use treats or rewards for obedience training. And this can work, especially with very young dogs. But for hunting dogs, over the long-term treats can become a problem. We do not want our dogs, or the dogs we train to be obedient only because they are getting a food reward. We want them to be obedient because they understand their place in the family and respect the owners. To get these lasting results, we use praise words and petting and a reward that retrievers live for — retrieves! Well-timed praise is a particularly important part of dog training. A message that it is okay to ignore me the first 9 times! This simply means that after a few minutes of formal obedience training, we release the dog with an OKAY command and that means they can run around and be a dog. We then throw a bumper or plug a for the dog to retriever. We do this a few times with a lot of excitement and allow the dog to retrieve the bumper. For retriever breeds, this is often more effective than a food reward. Be careful that you are not letting your puppy get into bad habits with retrieving. For instance, if your puppy often goes out to retrieve the bumper but then runs away with it, or picks it up and drops it, do not continue doing retrieves. While retrieving is a reward for many Labs, it is not an excuse to engage in behaviors that are not going to be acceptable in the field. If you want to learn more about how to properly teach your Lab to retrieve, check out How can I teach my retriever puppy to fetch? Introduction to leash and nylon collar The very first step for any puppy obedience is to introduce your puppy to a regular collar and leash. This should be done in two separate steps, first the collar and then the leash. Introduce the collar by putting a nylon type collar on your puppy. This is normal and you should not react to it. Introducing the leash is a little different. We like to do this outside. After a few sessions of this introduction, you can start holding the leash by the end and walking with the puppy. When the puppy tries to run or walk away, hold tight to the leash, and just let the puppy get used to the resistance. Some puppies have a hard time with this and will growl or whine and whip themselves around at the pressure, but most will not. Remain calm and after a few sessions the puppy should get used to the resistance of the leash. Do not allow the puppy to pull you around. That will make for some bad behaviors that you will need to correct later. If you cannot control your puppy with just a regular collar and leash, you may need to move to a chain or prong collar to keep control. What commands to teach Lab puppy There are only four basic obedience commands that you need to teach your young puppy. Remember when it comes to commands, less is more. OKAY — this is a release command, basically tells your dog were done training, go be a dog. As your puppy grows and learns more, there are some other commands that may be needed, but for puppies I like to start with just the four above. Dog training requires consistency Before you start with obedience training, I want to make a note about the importance of consistency. Obedience training only works if you are consistent. This means that when you say a command, you expect the puppy to perform the command, and are willing to take steps to make the puppy perform the command. If you do not remain consistent in this expectation, you will confuse your dog and get poor results from your training. You and your family must be consistent! How to start obedience training Lab puppy The first command you want to start teaching your puppy is SIT. This is quite easy to teach with a small puppy but gets a little tougher as they get bigger. Then release the puppy with the OKAY command. Repeat this process several times, then stop. If your puppy is weeks old, you can repeat this training several times a day for only a couple minutes at a time. This will be a two-person job for a little while. The other person will put the food down a few feet from the puppy. Then release the puppy to eat saying OKAY. As the pup learns and understands the command better, you will no longer need a second person to hold the puppy. You must be a little careful here because young puppies do not have great bladder control and making them wait, even a few seconds, can mean the difference between an accident and them doing their business outside. But this is a great way to teach impulse control and manners to your puppy. I do not want to have to fight for a position by the door. You can usually start working on this within a week or two of teaching SIT. A great way to teach this command to young puppies is to use two people and sit in a long hallway, one at each end. Take turns calling your puppy with a HERE command. A toy or treat can often help the process. Let your puppy run around a bit but hold onto the end of the cord. Occasionally, call you puppy with a HERE command. It can be helpful at first to crouch down to encourage the puppy to run towards you. Then release the puppy with an OKAY command. Do this a few more times and repeat daily until the puppy is coming to you without you needing to pull the cord. It is also the command most of our clients struggle with the most. Mostly because they are using the wrong tool for the job. For heeling work, it is important that you work with a chain or prong collar. This will give you more control and stop the pulling and surging that many people struggle with. Using a chain or prong collar and a six-foot leash, start walking your puppy at your side. If your puppy is young, be sure to use a puppy chain collar which is smaller than chain collars for adult dogs. And make sure that you are putting it on correctly! An alternate tool to a chain collar and leash is the Wonder or Command Lead. These work great for teaching HEEL. As you start walking use gently tugs on the chain collar with the command HERE to keep your puppy at your side. If your puppy surges or pulls ahead, simply make a degree turn and start walking the other direction giving a sharp, upward tug on the chain collar and saying HEEL several times until the dog is back in a heeling position. Many of our clients have told us they never left their driveway the first few days! But if you are patient and consistent, your dog will quickly learn that if they want to go for a walk, they need to stay at your side. If you want to learn and progress in more obedience work, check out these obedience drills for retrievers. Final thoughts on how to teach your lab puppy obedience Teaching your puppy obedience may take a lot of patience, time and work, but it is such an important thing to do. You will never regret the time! A well-mannered dog is such a joy to be around both in the home and in the field. How to obedience train Labrador puppy. This will be fun! Choose and protect your SIT cue! Your first job is to choose your cue. We keep it short and sweet with the word CUE. It is a very specific word that means something YOU do that triggers a response in your dog. Or poisoned by people around your dog associating that cue with some other actions, such as bum waggling, jumping up, or pulling on the lead. How to avoid a poisoned SIT cue This can easily happen in busy families where a lot of different people are giving the dog instructions without making sure they get the required response. Dogs learn by associating cues with their actions. In other words, it has lost its meaning and gained a new and undesirable one. When to use a new SIT cue For this reason, if your dog has a long history of disobeying the SIT cue, or if you have relatives that constantly give your dog instructions, I recommend you choose a NEW cue and keep it to yourself. I use the word HUP as my sit cue, but any short clear word will do. You can also teach your dog to sit to a whistle, but that might be a little annoying indoors. A hand signal can make a good cue too, especially when combined with a whistle that gets your dog to look at you. Dog training should be fun. For both of you. Your dog should look forward to training sessions, he should be excited to see you getting your equipment ready and keen to get started. This is partly what Stage One is all about. It is also all about getting a new behavior established. For some cues this is a quite an involved process. All dogs sit quite naturally. In other words, that you want him to repeat again in the future. You will need lots of tiny pea sized chunks of tasty food for each training session. A food lure is a temporary aid that enables us to move a dog into a position without pushing and shoving him around. A lure should never be used repeatedly — as a rough guide, try never to lure more than two or three times in a row. Otherwise the dog will become dependent on the lure. Long term use of a lure is just bribing. And we want to train, not bribe, our dogs. To keep the distinction between lure and reward clear, it can be helpful to avoid feeding the lure to the dog. They can also be toys or opportunities. BUT, I caution you against avoiding food at this early stage in training. Food is quick to deliver and consume. A dog can swallow a treat in the blink of an eye. Once you start rewarding the dog with a game or a toy, you are then committed to lengthy interruptions throughout your training session. You also have to get the toy back from the dog before you can ask for another repetition. We want to train quickly here. Stick to food at this point. Toys and games will come later. The importance of high value rewards in dog training The food you choose must be valuable to the dog. Some dogs will work hard for kibble, others, not so much. Remember that in dog training, higher value rewards can get you through more challenging tasks. Always be willing to raise the value of your reward in order to get a new behavior started or to overcome some obstacle. You want him to SIT in lots of different locations. Once you begin training in those locations you are going to need a portable treat bag. So you may as well go ahead and get one right now. This is mine. It clips easily onto a belt loop and has a nice wide opening that stays open. It also sits nicely in a roomy coat pocket. An event marker to help your dog learn For this exercise you will also need an Event Marker. I suggest you use the word YES. Your dog will soon be looking forward to the word YES in your training sessions. It will make him feel good and will reinforce whatever he was doing when you said it. So be careful to say the word at the right time. If you like, you can use a clicker instead of the word YES. This will help to make sure you and your dog make steady progress. When and where to train your dog to SIT You need to start in a fairly small indoor space. Your kitchen or hallway might be suitable. The most important point is that the surroundings should be familiar and boring to your dog. You and your pot of treats should be the most interesting thing in the room. Make sure there are no other people, not other dogs, and no disturbing noises going on outside. Set your dog up to succeed. Here are the instructions. Exercise one — capturing SIT 1. Watch your dog and wait for him to sit 2. As his bottom touches the ground say YES! Throw a treat on the ground, far enough from him that he has to get up to eat it. Watch your dog and wait for him to sit again If your dog does not sit of his own accord within a minute or so, go straight to exercise two Exercise two — luring SIT 1. Take a small piece of food in between your thumb and first two fingers 2. Throw a treat from the other hand, far enough from him that he has to get up and eat it. Repeat once more then open up your empty lure hand, so that the dog can see there is nothing in it, and quickly repeat the same hand movement that you used when luring. Throw a treat from the other hand, far enough from the dog so that he has to get up to eat it. When you have completed Exercise Two, go back to Exercise One, and wait for the dog to offer a sit. Even experts click or say YES at the wrong time occasionally. With SIT, it is better to mark a fraction too early than a bit too late. Show the dog your hand is empty then rapidly repeat the luring action with your empty hand. If you do this immediately after luring two or three times, the dog will follow your empty hand — even though there is no food lure there. You may need to lure occasionally in between empty hand lures, in the early stages if your dog seems confused. Are you telling your dog to SIT? DONT tell your dog to sit. What you want is for the dog to figure out for himself that SITs are what gets him a reward. We want him to be enthusiastic about SITs. This enthusiasm will help you in the next stage when you teach him what the word for this action is. Not using food effectively Dogs love this type of training. It is a brilliant game that gives them control over something that they want, and we all love to be able to control the flow of desirable experiences. If you use boring food — dried up biscuits for example, your dog may not enjoy the game as much, and you will make slower progress. The worst thing you can do is to try to replace food with praise or petting. Experiments have shown that praise alone is completely ineffective in changing behavior in domestic dogs. If you do this, you will not be as effective as people that use food. It also makes sense not to train your dog just after he has consumed a large meal. Your training treats will seem more valuable if your dog has an appetite. We want him to stay there — at least for a while. It complicates things. Ready for Stage Two? Be patient — just stand and look at your dog for a moment or two. If your dog is offering you lots of sits each time you start training, and it you have had at least three training sessions spread over at least two days, then you can move on to Stage Two. This is the part where we begin to pair the SITs our dog is offering, with the word SIT The important thing to remember at this stage is we are NOT using sit as a command of any kind at this point. This is a language lesson, not an obedience lesson. Have food lure ready. Exercise 3 1. Observe your dog and as he starts to lower his bottom to the ground say SIT. As his bottom touches the floor say YES 3. Throw a treat far enough from the dog that he has to get up in order to reach it. Repeat several times Try to fit twenty or thirty sits into a session, and several sessions into the next two or three days Mistakes at stage two The reason you need your lure handy is that you will almost certainly make the second of these two mistakes at some point. So have your lure handy. In this case you must immediately lure him into a sit, then mark, and reward, that sit. Your timing was out — The dog did not intend to sit Sometimes, you will make a mistake and say SIT when your dog was not actually going to sit. Your response should be the same as above. These are your foundations. Now you are ready to build on them. In this stage of training, we will be teaching the dog to respond to our cue. This means that when you say SIT, your dog will plonk his bottom on the ground. Like the good dog he is. You have laid the groundwork for this, and if your dog is just standing still looking at you and you say the word SIT at this point, he will almost certainly SIT. It goes like this 1. Observe your dog and while he is standing up say SIT. Repeat several times each time asking for a sit, before he has begun to sit of his own accord 5. If at any point he fails to sit lure him into a sit and reward as before. What if the dog sits before I tell him? Sometimes the dog is so keen and enthusiastic to sit, that it is hard to get him to stand up. In this case you can back away from the dog so that he walks toward you and cue the sit at that point. Or you can lure him into the standing position with food. If your dog often fails to sit on cue, and you have to lure a sit more than once in every ten or twenty sits, you probably need to go back to Exercise 3 for a few days. Most dogs have no problem at all with this fourth exercise. But there is a bit more work to do yet. He sees you set up the treats, he knows what is expected of him, and so he SITS You can test this by setting up your training session, looking at the dog, and giving him a completely different cue, such as DOWN. So does this mean you have failed? This is why it is quite useful to train pairs of behaviors. If for example, you have taught your dog to lie down , or to stand, you can alternate these cues now, making sure he responds correctly to each one. To do this, give the same cue SIT for example several times in a row — luring if he makes an error — until he responds correctly repeatedly. Then switch to your second cue DOWN for example , and do the same with that. Once he is getting the second cue right every time, switch back to the first one again. If you have already introduced the stand cue, then alternate these two instead. Gradually, over the space of two or three sessions, you will be able to switch from one cue to another with fewer repetitions. No matter what order you give your cues in. There are a number of fun things you can teach your Labrador to do as alternatives to the SIT — for example:.

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Our German Shepherds have been adopted for livestock herding, guard or security work, police or military K9 units, search and rescue, guide or service animals, and family companions. German Shepherd, In addition, their protective nature and gentleness makes them ideal as family pets, as. Petfinder recommends that you should always take reasonable security steps before making online payments. German Shepherd puppies for sale in Tucson, AZ from trusted …. Will be ready for their new home by May 15th! We've connected loving homes to reputable breeders since and we want to help you find the puppy your whole family will love. Find German Shepherd dogs and puppies from Arizona breeders. Hes got a lot of fur, man!! German shepherd puppy. Learn more 1, puppies available 1, certified breeders Transportation Location Color. We're focused on delivering the largest, best-in-breed, working-line, German Shepherd Dogs in the World. We strive to breed the right temperament and quality structure of our dogs. Our German Shepherds are known for their mellow temperament and their strength. But we do not Breed for the Show Ring. If that needs explaining I will be happy to do so. Both Females hips are Excellent. Most ratings come back with a Good rating. So were very Proud to have the Excellent Rating. Also OFA on the Elbows. Your Puppy goes home with a Good Health certificate from the Vet. You Might get a Puppy Cheaper, from another Kennel, but you need to make sure the breeders are doing the right preparations to make sure your New puppy has been bred properly. We know for fact, many kennels do not spend the money to give you the best pups possible. It cuts into their profits. Do your research now, or you will be doing 10 times more when things go wrong. The Proof is in seeing and touching our Dogs. People can talk and Blow smoke all day long. We want you to meet, and touch our Dogs. And let them show you what you will be getting in a Puppy. What people do not realize is how many different types of German Shepherds are out there, and what to watch out for, including your Vet. .Jennifer B.

South West Florida Labradors. The 10 Best Places to Retire in Florida. Are you in the market for a new four-legged friend? English Labrador Retriever Puppies. Lab Puppies Ready For Homes. And if your looking for another breed, take a look at our other available puppies for sale! Florida is located in both the Northern and Western Hemispheres. We have very high standards for the care, cleanliness and well-being of our dogs, come visit us and you will. Sometimes, you may find a Labrador for free in Florida to a good home listed by an owner who may no longer be able. Tru-Heart Labradors is an established professional dog breeder situated between Jacksonville and Gainesville, Florida, that proudly produces the finest dual-purpose. We usually have three to five litters of puppies. All puppies must be picked up in person. Find a Puppy Groomers Find the right local groomer for your dog's. Florida is a state of the United States, which is located in North America. About Labrador Retrievers. We will talk to our prospective families a LOT to make sure that you receive a puppy that will fit your family dynamics. We strive to produce healthy, conformationally sound puppies. Silver Lab Puppies for Sale in Florida. The 10 Labrador Retriever Breeders in Florida. Labrador Retriever Puppies for Sale. Our labrador puppies will be well socialized. Gulfstream Park is a racetrack for horse races located in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Puppies Prairie Plains offers puppies for sale from a select breeding schedule throughout the year. You will find Labrador Retriever dogs and puppies for adoption in our Florida listings. We raise our puppies in our home. Tru-Heart Labradors; 2. Our Yellow Labrador Retriever puppies for sale make one of the best companions for a family and home. Our Labrador Retriever puppies come from top Labrador Retriever dog breeders. When considering retirement places to live, the Sunshine State of Florida is consistently ranked in the top .We take great pride in our Labs, they are part of our family. All About Gulfstream Park Florida. Lab mix Onyx is a beautiful year old Labmix. We currently have a black male puppy, and an older black adult female available. The Lab, once only the size of a small pointer, is .Tampa, Florida. These dogs were already proficient at retrieving fish from icy water in Newfoundland and would transform into waterfowl specialists. We invite you to come in and see our family of Labrador Retrievers! Our dogs live in our home, we are not a kennel. We love our dogs and what we do. We selectively breed only a few litters each year in the interest of bettering the breed and conformation. We are located on 8 acres in central Florida just west of Ocala and besides our dogs, we also have cats, horses, cows, and sheep. Osteen Florida vince vjlsilverlabradors. Remedy Labradors is located on 10 beautifully maintained acres complete with training pond and pool for the Labradors. This small town is exactly what we were looking for to raise our family. This diversity allows our puppies to be very well socialized. Dogs and Puppies, Labrador Retriever. They are following the AKC standards and provide healthy and fit pooch. We have lab puppies for sale in Blountsville, Alabama and have served happy customers in Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, and all over! Stone Haven Labradors Home Page. Our breeding program focuses on white labrador puppies that are socialized, free of hereditary health problems, well-exercised on 12 fenced acres, intelligent, and conform to the AKC Breed Standard. The 10 Labrador Retriever Breeders in Florida 1. Our puppies go to their new homes with a Florida health certificate, microchip, and all vaccinations. Showing 1 - 19 of 24, results. Labrador Retriever puppies for sale. However free Labrador Retrievers are a. We usually have three to five litters of puppies each year. Our first litter was born in and carried the Whygin prefix with permission from Helen. We raise and breed our labs on our 28 acre farm in St. Our home sits on 3 fenced acres where our dogs are able to run, play, swim and enjoy the Florida sunshine. We are open today! Come visit our beautiful Labrador Retriever puppies we. All of our puppies will be registered and micro-chipped. We are dedicated to breeding our puppies for premier health and pedigree, as well as raising them in our home so their personalities and happiness can blossom. The Labrador Retriever Puppies for sale in Florida is a large breed dog who weighs between 55 and 80 lbs. What Hemisphere Is Florida In? We currently run a working farm with Angus cattle, Katahdin sheep and continue loving our Labradors who have room to run. This diversity allows our puppies to be very well socialized around people and other animals. The chocolate lab puppies we breed for sale at Hidden Pond Labradors come with a microchip, first round of shots, one-year written health guarantee, and a veterinarian health certificate. Silver Lab Puppies for sale in Florida is a reasonably searched term. Sarasota Goldendoodles, based in Florida, is a family breeder of goldendoodles, known for. Our lab puppies are part of our family and live in a loving, inclusive, intellectually stimulating environment. NuVet Plus provides a synergistic formula of antioxidants, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and more for good health and proper development of puppies and young growing dogs. Click here to see what color Fox Red Lab Puppies look like at birth and the color changes as they grow. Puppies For Sale. Puppies for Sale. Labrador Retrievers are one of the most popular. We have very high standards for the care, cleanliness and well-being of our dogs, come visit us and you will see! Our labs are part of our everyday life, work and play! We are proud to offer quality Labrador Retriever puppies. We are currently in the process. Labrador Retriever Puppies for Sale in Florida. Our primary goal is to produce the best companion for a pet in the home, as well as a phenomenal hunting and pointing dog. Breeder of English type Labradors since .Our labrador retrievers are raised in our home with love and attention. Go to our puppies page for more information. NuVet Plus provides a synergistic formula of. They will be raised with other labradors, and be used to a wide age range of people. We offer the best in the breeds raised in a safe, loving environment. Duck River Labradors is located in Naples, Florida. The Best Time to Visit Florida. Chocolate Lab Retriever Breeders. Labrador Retriever puppies for sale from trusted breeders. Consistently one of the most popular dog breeds, Labrador Retrievers are friendly, excellent with children and other animals, and ready for any activity. Labrador Retriever Hunting Dogs and Puppies for sale. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Silver and Charcoal Kennels today at .Bell's Labradors — Purebred Labrador Retrievers. We also offer a 26 month health guarantee for genetic health issues. Hello and welcome! Home of Labradors, labrador puppies in Greenville, …. Welcome to Tru-Heart Labradors! Tru-Heart Labradors is an established professional dog breeder situated between Jacksonville and Gainesville, Florida, that proudly produces the finest dual-purpose chocolate, yellow, and black Labrador Retriever puppies currently available in Florida. Our lab puppies are part of our family and live in a loving. We love all animals and our pet family consist of 7 labs, 1 pom-a-poo 7lbs , and 2 horses. White Labrador Puppies For Sale. But what is Sunbiz? Is it legit? And what can it do for you? Southwest Florida. Each week we accept additional dogs into our program. Their area is large and they can freely run and play with their littermates. She is very submissive and super sweet. Dearborn Heights, Labrador Retriever Puppies for sale jmswls.Our females are provided high protein, high fat content foods, as well as, vet recommended prenatal vitamins during pregnancy. Labrador Retrievers are an excellent choice for hunting, therapy, and companionship. LLC bred for temperament,health and confirmation. When researching how to start a company in Florida, Sunbiz will likely appear in some search results. Make great hunting and family dogs. With its beautiful beaches and sunny skies, Florida has something for every retiree. Adoptable Labrador Retrievers. Florida Labrador Retriever Classifieds Hoobly. Our first litter was born in and carried the Whygin prefix with permission from Helen Ginnel of the renowned Whygin Kennel. Doodle Rescue Collective is a non-profit organization based in New Jersey that has rescued doodles up for adoption in many states, including Florida. Here is a shortlist of such places in Florida that deals in the sale of Labradors. Thank you for visiting Remedy Labradors home on the web! Our puppies are never caged. Yellow, Black and Chocolate Lab Puppies. Our inventory changes every day so check back often. It offers much more than horse racing however, and this article will explore how Gulfstream Park came to be and all that it offers today. All lab puppies are born in our home and remain there the eight weeks they are here at Bullis Lake. They have the experience, repute, and knowledge in the field of healthy dog breeding. Contact Us Dickson Ave. This breed is playful and requires regular exercise, and a home with a yard or a walkable location, such as a nearby park, is ideal for this kind of active dog. Labrador Retrievers are one of the most popular dog breeds in the world, and for good reason. Come and See!!! Our puppies! Here are 10 of the best: The top four auto insurance companies and the six best home insurance companies in the state. Grandparents have the right to petition for visitation rights if a grandchild was born out of wedlock, if one parent has deserted the child or if the parents of the grandchild have dissolved their marriage, according to chapter of the F. Breeder of Labrador Retriever Puppies Since .These loyal, trusting, obedient and affectionate pooches embody all the values we look for in a companion and lifelong friend. Our lab puppies will be used to all the normal noises that take place in a house full of children. Southern Palms Kennel high quality lab puppies. These pups have got to be some of the most socialized puppies in all of Florida! SoFlo Labradors; 4. Cooper our Chocolate lab. White Lab Puppies For Sale. Augustine, FL. The best time to visit Florida really depends on how you plan. We send pictures and videos of each individual pup. Home Our History I have had Labradors since .As a child, I had the unique opportunity of spending summers in El Salvador with my father and the rest of the year in the U. We bred and showed our Labs in El Salvador. We had three chocolates and I took them with me everywhere. We went to obedience classes, dog shows and I even took them to the barn when I went horseback riding. My time as a competitive horseback rider helped me develop a good understanding of balance, structure and movement, which I now apply in my activities with dogs. Correct structure is extremely important. Animals being used for performance competition, considered for a breeding program or even an active pet, need to be structurally sound to reduce the risk of injuries. In it was time for me to get my own dog, so I spent countless hours researching chocolate Labrador breeders. One of the top chocolate stud dogs at the time was a dog named Dauber and I was set on finding one of his puppies. Chambray Labradors had just bred Codi to Dauber, so I crossed my fingers and waited. Codi only had two female puppies and I am forever grateful to Sandy Herzon for entrusting us with one of the girls. It was a perfect name for our girl! As Aggie grew older, I learned the ins and outs of dog showing, breeding, whelping and puppy rearing.

About Us Here at Wildwing we work hard to balance all the factors that go into breeding quality Goldens. Good temperament, health and longevity, working ability, sound structure along with good looks, all play a part in each litter we plan. No matter the season, puppies have plenty of time for outside play and introduction to the older dogs. Socialization and play in our "puppy playground" ensure the puppies have a solid foundation of sensory stimulation. We pride ourselves on the versatility of our dogs, finding success in hunt tests, obedience, agility, and tracking. But first and foremost our dogs are hunting dogs. Whether for competition or your best hunting buddy, Wildwing dogs will fill the need. We personally hunt our dogs extensively from Wisconsin to the Dakotas to Saskatchewan, both for upland game and waterfowl. Photo Gallery We look forward to hearing from you! Please call or email for more information on upcoming litters. We like to get to know prospective families so we can be sure of placing a "right fit" puppy. Wildwing Goldens. There are many things to consider when choosing a reputable breeder: Check their reputation online. This is good news if they have many positive reviews and testimonials on sites like Facebook. Ask for references from previous clients to know how well they will treat their animals and children in the future. Ensure the parent dogs were raised in an environment where they could play with other dogs as puppies; this will help them learn how to behave around other animals later in life. They are affectionate and loyal dogs with a gentle temperament who enjoy being around people and they especially love children. Golden Retrievers strongly desire to please their owners and make them happy. Cute Golden Retriever puppy in Wisconsin Conclusion When it comes to finding the perfect dog breed, there are many options. You can find a breeder specializing in only one breed or go for a mix of two or three different breeds altogether. When looking for your next addition to this family member or pet, do not forget the importance of finding a good breeder! Share 0 Shares The Golden Retriever is one of the most popular dog breeds in the United States, and there is a very good reason why. They have friendly personalities, a calm temperament, and a beautiful golden coat. If you live in Wisconsin state then you are in luck! There are many great reputable Golden Retriever breeders in Wisconsin, and here we have listed 15 of our favorites. Their kennel is set up on a huge acre property in Clear Lake Wisconsin, and they have been members of the American Kennel Club since .They do have an application form and a waiting list before you can take home a puppy, but they also offer lifelong support to their puppies after they get adopted. They have also gotten raving reviews on their Facebook page, earning an amazing five stars. Their past buyers have recommended Rosewood Goldens to anyone who is looking for a healthy Golden Retriever puppy with a good temperament. All puppies are also up to date on vaccinations, deworming, and wellness vet visits before going to their forever homes. Name of Owner. We overlook the scenic Saint Croix River Valley. Our kennel name was created as a hybrid of Topbrass Kennels who bred our wonderful foundation bitch Cali and the Northern Flight Hunting Retriever Association who, oh so kindly taught us how to train her for field work. Our dogs are home raised and owner handled. They possess the true "golden nose" and a love of water and retrieving that make them a joy to work with. They are tireless workers in the field and calm, biddable companions in the home. Our pups are sold with a 26 month health guarantee. We strive to produce bird crazy pups with superior drive and trainability, while maintaining the classic golden temperament. We take our responsibility as breeders seriously. If a turn of events occurs in your life resulting in your inability to keep your pup, he or she is welcome back home at any age. At no time should a Top Flight pup be turned over to a rescue or shelter of any kind. Our mission is to be ambassadors for the breed we love so much. We remain available to you for the lifetime of your pup. If you are within driving distance of us we will help you with obedience training and hunt training free of charge. Whether you want a field competition golden or dream of an ideal hunting buddy and companion, look to Top Flight Golden Retrievers. Call: or e-mail netysweiser yahoo.

Breeders VS. The sad truth is that many pet store purchased pups actually come from puppy mills. Basically, there is zero authenticity with pet stores. When it comes to adopting any animal from a pet store, there is an increased risk of unforeseen health or genetic problems. You also cultivate a life-long relationship with the breeder, meaning support is available to you anytime you may need it. With My Golden Retriever Puppies , you have the option to come and visit both the puppy and the breeder in person! Golden Retrievers are an adaptable breed, meaning they are better at adapting to seasonal changes and various types of climate than certain other breeds. Goldens sport a double-coat, which ensures that these sweet pups are able to tolerate slightly colder temperatures than their friends from other breeds. Your pup deserves better than that, which is why here at My Golden Retriever Puppies , we ensure high-quality care is taken of your pet at all times. For more about the true price of a golden retriever puppy, you can read our full price breakdown here. Location Information for Arkansas Customers Our home office is located in Ohio, but we understand that long-distance travel can be inconvenient. If you prefer to meet a breeder in person, they may be able to offer private visits at their home. Of course! Here at My Golden Retriever Puppies , we value family and authenticity, which is why we always guarantee our pups through our 2-year genetic health guarantee. Like adopting a Golden Retriever from a pet store, there is an increased risk when adopting a pup from a rescue center or shelter as well. For example, pups purchased through a shelter or rescue center are far less likely to come with the kinds of health guarantees and reassurances that a breeder can provide. What type of Golden Retrievers are sold in Arkansas? We have some good news! Ready to make your Golden Retriever dreams come true? Take a look at our convenient list of available puppies. How do I know which breeders to trust in Arkansas? Our independent network of trusted breeders have already been pre-screened and verified, so that you can focus on what really matters: choosing your dream puppy. Be the first to know when we have new puppies! All Rights Reserved. Share 0 Shares Finding the right breeder for your Golden Retriever is important. You might be shopping for pet-quality puppies, but most AKC-registered breeders also sell pet-quality dogs out of each litter. This means that there is no reason not to buy from a breeder that is AKC-recognized to ensure that you get a healthy dog that will be free of genetic flaws. In rare instances, there are breeders who intentionally create a litter of pet-quality puppies each year. You might pay less for these dogs, but you will need to make sure that the breeder is still doing all the right genetic testing and care for the litter of puppies before and after they have arrived. Getting a Golden Retriever puppy is exciting, and you will want to be sure that none of the fun is taken out of the process by working with a poor-quality breeder. You will just need to use this guide to help you to track down the right breeder for your needs. Remember that there are different types of Golden Retrievers , and you might need to verify that the breeder you are interested in has the dogs that you are looking for. You can never ask too many questions of the breeders that you are planning to get a puppy from as this is a very important decision. Arkansas River Golden Retrievers are managed with pride by the family, and they work hard to create healthy litters of puppies that can be AKC registered or that can be enjoyed as family companions. They manage a large group of breeding dogs that offer different coat patterns and textures as well as different conformations and temperaments. This breeder is very busy, and you will be added to a waiting list when you are looking for a puppy. You will need to fill out an application on their site and then discuss your goals and plans for your dog with them. You will be able to select from pet-quality as well as show-quality dogs with this breeder. The price for puppies varies depending on the quality of the puppy and the care that was needed to create the litter, plus any added fees for outside stud dogs. The breeder promises to send AKC registration papers with each puppy they sell, but you are not required to pay to register your puppy. Pet-quality dogs must be spayed or neutered so that they cannot be bred. Puppy deposits are not refunded for changes of heart, but the breeder promises to refund the money if the litter does not get bred that year or they themselves do not choose to sell the puppy. Puppies and parent dogs are carefully tested for any genetic conditions, as well as provided care for parasites and given routine health checkups. Depending on the age at which the puppy is released to its new owner, vaccinations may or may not have been completed for the puppy. This breeder wants every dog they breed to have a lifelong home. If you feel that your puppy is not working out, the breeder will take the dog back. People love this breeder for its affordable prices, their commitment to their dogs, and their passion for creating pets and show-quality animals. They are easy to work with and love what they do. Name of Owner. We're located in the heart of the Arkansas mountains the Ozarks , and our pups grow up on a ten-acre farm. We are looking for dedicated families to adopt our fur babies and love them like we do. We are not a discount breeder; we take this job of placing each pup very seriously and their future and well-being is of utmost importance. Please contact Dogwood Farms if you're ready for this loving commitment. CALL The Dogwood Difference When you purchase a fur baby from Dogwood Farms, they come complete with a puppy care package which includes: a care package, AKC registration paperwork, immunizations completed by a licensed veterinarian along with immunization paperwork and food each pup is used to eating. We are dedicated to these dogs and our promise is to make sure you have the support and equipment you need to take wonderful care of your new fur baby. We also have in person delivery options for each of our puppies. Rates available to St. In Person Flight options are also available as well to most major airports across the nation for example to California, Florida, New York and even Alaska. If for any reason you need to re-home your fur baby, we are more than willing to help you with that process.

We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post. As we all know too well, what we put in our belly has a huge impact on our health, vitality, length and quality of life. They have to strike a fine balance between getting enough nutrients to grow and avoiding an over-abundance that can lead to abnormal growth and disabling conditions. In this article you will learn precisely how to feed your puppy. What they can eat, what they should not, how many times you should feed them each day, basic information on home-made diets and the pros and cons of various commercial dog foods. The majority of Labrador owners feed their puppy kibble. Kibble is ground meal, shaped into dried biscuit-like pellets that are extremely convenient to buy, store and feed, providing everything a puppy needs in one easy to handle product. All the major brands carry a range of kibble and many are specifically formulated to suit the precise needs of puppies. For our recommendations of the best puppy food for labs, please read our article on: The Best Food for Labrador Puppies. Good breeders will supply you with all the information you need to feed your new puppy and you should follow this advice. Puppies almost always get upset tummies during a change of diet. The stress of moving to a new home is enough to deal with without them potentially having tummy upset on top. So try to avoid this. But expect your puppy to get diarrhea after such a sudden change. What Can Puppies Eat? With a bewildering choice of different puppy foods available, what to feed your puppy may not be the easiest decision to make. You Can Feed Your Puppy Kibble Kibble is ground up food, formed into pellets and dried for easy storage and convenience. It is a specially formulated, complete and balanced diet, containing everything a puppy needs to grow and be healthy. Many people believe kibble is the best way to feed a puppy, with it being so easy to buy, store and feed while containing every nutrient a puppy needs in the right proportions. Wet, Complete Puppy Foods Are An Option As the name suggests, complete wet dog food is complete and balanced, meaning nothing should be fed in combination. Everything needed is included in this one food. Complete wet foods come in individual pouches or tins with one pouch or tin containing one single serving. In the main these foods are low in nutrition, contain a high amount of cheap fillers, by-products and water and need mixing with a biscuit to give them some substance and to make them more complete. Because the food is such low quality, you have to feed a lot of it. And what goes in, must come out. This type of feeding was popular decades ago and I do remember my parents feeding our first dogs this way, but most people have moved on from this and are feeding their dogs in better ways now. Raw Food, BARF And Home-Made Diets Raw feeding is a diet that consists of mostly raw meat, edible bones and animal organs, though most practitioners also mix in small portions of fruit, veg and selected other foodstuffs. There are many people feel strongly that this is the best possible way to feed a dog. But I would caution most people that to feed this diet successfully, you need to do A LOT of research, gain a lot of knowledge and truly understand a dogs nutritional needs to make sure they get exactly what they need in the right amounts. Many people wonder if they can feed their puppy human foods, anything found in the fridge or larder. Furthermore, there are many human foods that are toxic to dogs that you should avoid at all costs. Too much of some nutrients can be bad in itself, but also prevent the absorption and use of other nutrients too. So supplementing a balanced diet is a bad thing to do. Can You Give Puppies Milk? Assuming you get your puppy at the recommended 8 weeks, they will have been fully weaned before you bring them home. Many puppies are intolerant of cows milk and drinking it leads to an upset tummy and diarrhea so you would do best to avoid giving your puppy any milk at all. One exception is for very young puppies under 6 weeks of age. When we have newborn puppies at our house we sometimes need to supplement and use Esbilac Milk Supplemen t. However, if you have a very young puppy that you think may need supplementing please first consult with your veterinarian. Are They Necessary? You will likely be feeding your puppy a commercially available complete and balanced dog food, in which case you certainly should not supplement their food. Supplementing this will mean too much of one or more things, making it unbalanced which can actually lead to harm. But an excess amount of calcium in the diet of a Lab puppy can lead to skeletal development problems. So adding a calcium supplement to an already complete diet can actually do more harm than good. There may also be times your vet advises you to do so. But if feeding raw, you should know more about nutrition than I do. This is a hard question to answer and sadly I cannot give you a definite quantity or weight to feed them each day. Puppies grow at different rates, some are more active than others and there can be large differences between metabolisms too. However… The biggest determining factor is how concentrated the nutrients and calories are in the brand of food you feed them. High quality foods are nutrient rich and give a puppy all they need from quite small amounts of food. But cheaper brands are full of low quality and nutritionally empty fillers that mean a puppy needs considerably more to get what they need. Start by feeding your puppy according to the guidelines on the label of the puppy food you buy for them. Then see how their body develops. Puppies should not be fat! But at the other end of the scale if they start to look and feel a little slim, up their portion sizes a little. The guidelines on the food you buy are just that…guidelines. You might also be interested in:. They are outgoing, active and affectionate companions who have a lot of energy and love making their owner happy. They have strong retrieving instincts as they were bred to be gun dogs, so they love both soft toys and diving into bodies of water. It is highly unusual for the puppy's owner to care for them during this time and is best left to a responsible, reputable breeder. Your puppy's body will double in weight as their muscles, organs and bones develop. Nutrition During the neonatal stage, your Labrador puppy will get most of their nutrition from their mother's milk. At around 4 weeks you may wish to introduce a mush of minced protein such as beef, but always consult your vet first before changing your puppy's diet at this stage. Health During this time it is important to monitor your Lab for any infections, diseases or birth defects. Puppies are unable to urinate or defecate by themselves initially, so their mother helps them but may additionally require your assistance. Keep your vet's contact details close by and educate yourself thoroughly on this stage of puppy development. By the end of this period, your puppy will be mobile and will explore the world mouth first — be sure to keep choking hazards and toxic foods out of their reach. Behaviour During most of this time your Labrador puppy will be asleep or inactive, but they will soon be playing with their brothers and sisters. After weeks they will go through as much sensory development as a human baby does in a few months. It is important to avoid disturbing the puppies' mother as she will be likely be protective, but some interaction with the young pups is normal so they become used to human touch. This is a formative time for your puppy and will be when they learn to walk, play, bite, hold their bladder, and interact with others. You will soon notice their attentiveness to you and their intense love of play — many Labs keep this caring and fun attitude for their whole lives if you foster it. Nutrition During the weaning stage, you should slowly introduce into their diet a nutritionally complete dog food which is appropriate to your Labrador's large size and young age. Labs are notoriously greedy and will quickly gobble down food and snatch treats from hands. You should familiarise yourself with lists of toxic foods and plants to avoid and hide as your puppy will soon find ways to get into forbidden snacks found only in bins. Labradors puppies instinctively like to 'dig' inside their water bowls so much of their water will end up on the ground. Make sure to get your puppy used to touching inside their small ears as they are prone to ear infections and will need regular checkups. Behaviour Due to the changes in their environment, your Labrador puppy will likely be under a significant amount of stress. It's important that you provide lots of attention and positive reinforcement for good behaviour at this time to establish boundaries early. Labradors are eager to love anyone but can be overbearing, so you should introduce them to a number of different people and environments so that they are not overwhelmed with excitement later in life. PUPPY By the time your Labrador Retriever reaches puppyhood their personality will be well developed and you will have established a loving, social friend who wants to maximise time with you and others. Your Labrador puppy will do well socially and behaviourally from puppy training classes as long as treats are involved. Nutrition Your Labrador puppy's diet should be based around a high quality, nutritionally complete puppy food. You may also wish to introduce them to fresh, lean raw meat — however, don't feed your puppy any meat you would not feed to a fellow human being. Bloat is potentially fatal but can be combatted by feeding your dog two smaller meals per day, a habit you should start while they are a puppy. A rough guide is that they should exercise for minutes per day and less after 5 years when many lose their appetite for long marathons of activity. Your pup will need brushing every few days, with more frequent grooming during seasonal changes to combat shedding. Bathing should be infrequent as this can damage the waterproofing of their coats, however, you should wash them after swimming or rolling in muck. After around 8 weeks your puppy will be due for some vaccinations, so they will need a checkup at the vet and to arrange for boosters after that. Studies showed that dogs supplemented with a diet of bovine colostrum had a quicker and stronger immune system response to CDV vaccine as compared to dogs fed a control diet. Colostrum supplemented dogs maintained a higher antibody level even after 40 weeks A diet supplemented with Colostrum helps bridge the immunity gap in puppies that occurs between 3 weeks and 5 months of age. Behaviour Do not be complacent with training your Labrador puppy — almost all are very gentle and well behaved, but this does not mean that training is unnecessary. Labs are very loving and patient with all that they meet, but they often do not know their own size. To combat this, they should be trained in how to act around small dogs and children to avoid intimidation or accidental injury. They will also benefit from obedience training to drop things from their mouths, avoid rushing across busy streets and make sure they come when called. Recommended Articles. We may receive commissions from purchases made via our links. Once they reach eight weeks, changing to dry kibble food is best. We recommend feeding a Labrador puppy dry kibble for the first months before changing to an adult food type. But to remain healthy, owners should know what to feed them. Dog owners should feed a Labrador puppy dry food kibble , wet food, or fresh human food, depending on their budget and lifestyle. There are many options for food for dogs, and it can become challenging to determine which one is the best option for the dog. We have found the best options and listed them below. They help us with our daily tasks, are always there when we need them, and bring great joy to our lives. But, it is essential to ensure that our dog gets the best nutrition possible. They have a lot of energy and need to be fed accordingly. This includes the number of calories, food type, and the number of meals per day. We will explain all of these factors to help understand what to feed these precious animals. A Labrador puppy needs high-quality protein in their diet, so they should not be fed just any type of food. This is why we recommend three food options: dry food or kibble, fresh food or human food, or wet food. We prefer using dry food or kibble in most cases, but it is beneficial to start with wet food for young puppies and transition to dry food after a few weeks. Feeding a puppy human food is possible, but it can be more expensive and requires extra work to stick to a cleaner diet at this age. We have found it to be a healthier and more convenient option for our pets. It is also a good alternative to wet food which can be difficult to store and prepare. The benefits of dry dog food are that it offers the pup a balanced diet that doesn't need refrigeration. It also offers convenience because we can buy it in bulk and store it in the pantry or freezer until needed. Dry dog food is also less expensive than wet food, which is another benefit for pet owners. Fresh Food Human Food Feeding a Labrador puppy a diet of fresh, real human food is one of the best things to do for their health and well-being. It will not only make them happy and content, but it will also keep them healthy. This eliminates the guessing game; they are only fed real, natural foods with no unknown ingredients. However, it will become expensive and require regular cooking and preparation. Wet Food Wet food is recommended for Labrador puppies when they are first born and for the first weeks while they grow. It can be either raw or cooked. Wet food is a good source of water and minerals, which are important in the early days of their life to help them grow strong bones and teeth. It should be given to a puppy as soon as it comes out of its mother's womb, but it must not be given before it starts eating solid foods because it will cause diarrhea. Once they get more mature, moving to kibbles is best. It is known for its low level of grain and carbohydrate content and high protein content. Once they reach the week mark, there are better options to help the puppy continue to develop and grow. This food also helps with digestion and weight management. It also promotes proper bone growth with antioxidants and necessary nutrients like vitamin E. The kibble is also shaped strategically to help puppies who chew fast while helping with jaw growth. Overall, this is the best food option for a Labrador puppy. It is designed for all life stages, from puppies to seniors, and we love the benefits it provides to younger labs. The product features a blend of highly digestible proteins, omega-6 fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, taurine, and glucosamine. This ensures the dog gets the nutrition they need while also reducing the risk of digestive tract problems such as bloat or pancreatitis. It also has a low glycemic index and no corn, wheat, or soy in the recipe. Dog owners can also expect an excellent protein ratio when using this food. Both veterinarians and nutritionists have recognized it for its high-quality ingredients for young puppies. The Acana High Protein formula is made with a blend of chicken, turkey, and fish meals, whole eggs, and natural beef or lamb meal. The product has a limited ingredient list with no corn, wheat, soy, artificial flavors, or preservatives. It also has no added sugar and a low glycemic index. This food also contains probiotics and prebiotics to help the pet maintain a healthy immune system. This is the perfect dry dog food for puppies after eight weeks old. This brand is also very affordable for those who want to feed their dog a healthy diet without breaking the bank. It features a patented recipe that helps to promote healthy digestion, strong teeth and gums, healthy skin and shiny coat, a strong immune system, healthy joints and muscles, and a healthy heart. This is a high-protein food option for Labradors too. It promotes lean muscle growth and improved body health with omega fatty acids, antioxidants, glucosamine, probiotics 5. It is made with high-quality ingredients and has a great taste and texture for labs to enjoy. This food is to help with puppy development and is suitable for all Labradors under one-year-old. This wet food provides the perfect balance of healthy proteins to support a dog's growth while providing the energy they need to maintain its fitness levels. This can be fed as a meal or as an occasional snack between meals. It has no artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, or added sugar. It also contains omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, which are important for healthy skin and the dog's coat. They are large, strong, intelligent dogs that need a lot of attention, exercise, and food. These dogs can be picky eaters and usually need a lot of calories because of their size. This is especially true for puppies so they can grow properly and remain healthy due to their increased risk of health issues. Food Type Labrador puppies' most popular dog foods are kibbles and canned wet food. Kibbles are the best option for a puppy because they are easy to chew and digest. Canned food is a good option for pups who have difficulty chewing or digesting dry food and would benefit from a little moisture in their diet. The food type also depends on the owner. Dry food or kibbles are faster to prepare, while serving human food to a lab puppy requires extensive prep time. Nutritional Value When it comes to nutritional value, we want dog food that has high-quality protein and carbohydrates. This will help the puppy grow strong and healthy. This is why we need to take into account the nutritional value, quality of ingredients, and taste. It should be made with all-natural ingredients that are sourced from human-grade materials such as vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. A brand should have all the essential nutrients for a pup but still, be low in toxic elements and preservatives too. Dietary Restrictions Lastly, consider the dietary restrictions of the Labrador puppy before choosing a dog food option. This includes any allergies or health concerns for the dog and shopping for something that suits them best. For example, lab puppies must reach a certain carbohydrate and protein number daily. Labradors are also known to have allergies, especially young ones, so planning around this is crucial. A puppy should be fed at least three times a day, with a meal size that is appropriate for its body weight. They should also be given small daily snacks to keep them satisfied and happy, including treats to help with training. We feed our puppies the best that we can. We want to give them all the nutrients and vitamins they need. We also want to make sure that they are getting a balanced diet. The most important thing when feeding a Labrador puppy is that they get enough calories from their food every day. In the first weeks, the puppy should eat four smaller daily meals. Once the lab reaches three months, this can be changed to three meals per day. And after months, we recommend two meals per day. The key is not to change the calories much when the meals change but to simply modify the size of each meal to fit the total daily food amount. Feeding a Labrador puppy is not rocket science, but there are some things everybody should know about what to feed them and when to feed them. We have covered this basis, but changes need to be made as they age. This leads to a common question about changing food to fit the needs of a grown adult Labrador. The dog's age will determine how quickly they grow and how much energy they need. Lab puppies can stick with kibbles for up to 12 months. Tomato green Moldy food I have a more in-depth article on toxic foods to Labradors that you will find helpful. Suppose you are concerned that your dog may have consumed something dangerous. In that case, the Pet Poison Helpline is another helpful resource that lists tons of poisonous stuff, including plants, household items, and medications. We all want the best for our Labradors and want to feed them the best diet to keep them healthy and happy. People usually feed their dogs commercial dry food or wet canned food. Here are the main types of dog foods you can feed your Labrador: Complete dry foods A mix of dry and wet Home produced diet Complete raw diet Dehydrated and freeze-dried According to the AAFCO guidelines, all commercial dog food should be complete and balanced. This means that the food must have all the nutrients required and be in its correct ratios. There is a ton of information here, but these are the main points: The packaging should state the ingredients of the food in descending order of predominance by weight. Details of specific nutrients should be prominent. Feeding directions must be given. Therefore, when selecting dog food, you should check both the ingredients used AND the nutritional content of the food. This statement is designed for dog owners, vets, and nutritionists to evaluate the nutritional value of the food to their pets. High-quality protein sources beef, chicken, turkey, fish, lamb, pork, etc. High-quality dog foods will also include additional protein sources, such as eggs and plant-based proteins, like vegetables, legumes, and grains. So, what type of dog food is best for Labrador Retrievers? The best type of dog food for Labrador Retrievers is dry food as this is more practicable for medium-large breeds, provides more nutrients per bite than wet food, and is inexpensive. Even if you opt for a high-quality brand, it will still be cheaper than canned wet foods. Having said that, you should choose the diet that best suits your Labrador, depending on his needs, health, and lifestyle. But you must also satisfy your own needs and beliefs. This should help you decide the kind of food to feed your dog. Dry Foods Dry foods are one of the most popular types of dog food. There are two varieties of complete dry dog food. Cold-pressed dog food is quite popular in the UK and Europe and is becoming more widespread in the US and other regions. So what exactly is kibble? Kibble is simply ground-up ingredients made into pellets of different shapes and sizes. This is made either through an extrusion process or oven baking under high pressure or temperatures. All kibble is made the same way using the same kind of machinery. Even high-quality kibble made with the best ingredients is made using the same process. What is cold-pressed dog food? Cold-pressed dog food is made by a unique cooking method. The food is produced at a much lower temperature and cooked quickly to retain greater nutritional value, vitamins, and flavor. It is then pressed into its desired shape. Cold-pressed pet food is the closest to feeding a raw food diet. Both kibble and cold-pressed provide more nutrients per bite than wet food because they contain less moisture. Dogs with dental problems may also benefit from dry food as it helps to clean their teeth and gums. Dry dog food is the most practical choice for a medium-large dog, such as a Labrador. However, kibble and cold-pressed come in all shapes and sizes, so smaller breeds can choose a smaller variety. Although I feed my dog a top brand of cold-pressed dog food, I often add a small amount of chicken, beef, turkey, or even a spoonful of Greek yogurt to her food to mix it up for her and vary the taste and texture. She also likes tuna in oil, which helps keep her coat and skin shiny and healthy and reduces shedding. When I add a topping, I slightly reduce the quantity of her dry food to ensure that she is not putting on extra weight. Therefore, the higher the water content, the fewer nutrients, so your Lab has to consume more food to get all the nutrition it needs. Another thing to know is that not every brand of canned food provides sufficient protein that your Labrador needs. Therefore, a wet diet can work out more expensive, especially if you have a medium-large breed of dog, but it may be ideal if your dog enjoys eating a larger portion. Also, a wet diet may be better for smaller breeds. Be cautious of lower-quality canned foods, as manufacturers often add thickeners such as wheat flour, white rice, or other grains. Wet food may be more suitable if your dog is a picky eater or if you have a senior Labrador who has lost his appetite and who may find wet food more appetizing. You can buy semi-moist dog foods; however, these are not as popular as they offer the least nutritional value and can also be expensive. Unfortunately, dog food companies add sugar and salts to preserve moisture and shelf life. Many semi-moist foods are also loaded with artificial colors, chemical preservatives, and flavor enhancers. A semi-moist diet may not be appropriate for your Labrador Retriever, especially if he is on the heavy side and needs to lose a few pounds. However, semi-moist food may be the best choice if your Lab finds it challenging to digest all other types of food. He may also enjoy the meaty taste and see this food more palatable if he is a highly fussy eater. If you are contemplating this type of food, you should seek the advice of your vet to determine the calorie content of the food and an appropriate daily portion for your Labrador. A Mix of Dry and Wet Some dog owners choose a mix of both dry and wet foods. You can mix the foods at each meal, or you can alternate, giving wet in the morning and dry in the evening or vice-versa. Home Produced Diet Some Labrador owners like to feed their dogs a home-produced diet known as home-feeders. Due to the convenience and variety of both dry and wet dog foods, this got me wondering exactly why someone would choose to be a home feeder? Here are the main reasons I discovered: Home feeders sought alternatives to commercial pet foods as they were concerned about the nutritional value of the ingredients used. Home-feeders simply enjoyed preparing the food and strengthening the bond with their dog, or satisfying their views. Home feeders believe their pets will simply not like or refuse to eat commercial dog food. A home-prepared diet may be needed to help with a diagnosis eg, for a food elimination trial or if a dog has several diseases for which no commercial diet exists. Home feeders sought comfort for dogs with chronic or terminal illnesses. There are several disadvantages to the home preparation of dog food. You can achieve it, but it takes a lot of dedication and hard work, and it may end up being more expensive than the best quality dog food you can buy. Homemade diets can provide complete nutrition. However, you need to make sure your Labrador gets the correct mix of protein, fats, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins. This can be pretty difficult to do daily. You can also find professional pet nutritionists, certified by the American College of Veterinary Nutrition, who have the expertise to customize a healthy diet for your Labrador. Here is their directory that you may find helpful. It is recommended to cook all animal products to kill bacteria that could make your Labrador sick unless your dog is used to a specially prepared raw diet. You should also cook vegetables and grains to make them easier for your dog to digest. There are many top-quality commercial dog foods on the market that have all the nutritional requirements your dog needs. Although sled dogs and racing greyhounds have long eaten a raw food diet, every now and again, there will be a trend for feeding dogs an all-raw diet consisting of raw meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruit, and some dairy. However, there are two essential factors to consider when feeding a raw diet to your Labrador. The first is to ensure that your Lab is getting a complete and balanced diet and all the nutrients he needs to keep him healthy and free from disease. This is particularly important when feeding a growing puppy. Like homemade diets, formulating raw diets can be demanding to ensure you are not under or overfeeding key nutrients. More so if your Labrador is either pregnant, lactating, or sick and therefore has different nutritional requirements. The second biggest concern is food safety issues relating to bacterial or parasitic contamination in raw meat. Food poisoning is a significant threat to human and dog health when feeding raw foods. If you consider feeding your Labrador a raw food diet, you should make sure you are fully aware of the safe and proper handling of raw foods and all associated food safety issues. Many raw-feeders will claim that feeding a raw diet has numerous health benefits, ranging from higher energy levels, better digestion, a shinier coat, healthier skin, cleaner teeth, and generally living a healthier life. However, there have been insufficient studies to evaluate the risk or benefits of feeding raw meats to dogs. Therefore, most of the believed benefits of feeding raw foods remain unproven. But, there is sufficient evidence for vets to discuss the human health risks of raw diets with pet owners , according to this study from the Canadian Veterinary Journal. If you choose a raw diet for your Labrador, you can either prepare the food at home or purchase commercial raw food products. These range from complete foods, which are usually sold frozen or freeze-dried, which leads me to the next section. Dehydrated and Freeze-Dried You have the option of feeding your dog a dehydrated or freeze-dried diet, and both have become more popular over the past few years. Both diets are similar in that they have their moisture removed to preserve the food, so artificial preservatives are not required. However, they do have quite a few differences. Dehydrated foods are partially cooked at low temperatures to remove most water. The food is heated but not fully cooked, so nutrients and enzymes remain intact. They are a complete diet and are often seen as a step up from regular extruded kibble. When preparing dehydrated dog food, you just need to add warm water. The result is food similar in texture to canned wet food but far less processed. These foods are convenient to feed, easy to store, do not need refrigeration, and have a long shelf life. A dehydrated diet is a good choice if your dog has a sensitive stomach, as the food is easier on the digestive system due to the gentle cooking process. Freeze-dried foods are essentially a raw diet presented differently. The raw ingredients are frozen first in freeze-dried dog food and then added to a strong vacuum that converts the moisture into vapor. The food is then packaged in an airtight container. This process decreases the number of bacteria such as salmonella, unlike a true raw diet. Freeze-dried food has the appearance of kibble and does not have to be rehydrated before being eaten. However, your Labrador may find it more palatable and easier to digest if some water is added first. They are usually very high protein diets with fruits and vegetables occasionally added. These foods are more expensive than regular kibble, but since they have most of the moisture removed, they are more nutritionally dense, so you feed your dog less. Pros and Cons of Different Dog Food Types To help you decide on the best diet for your Labrador, I have put all the above information in handy tables to easily visualize the pros and cons of each type of food. The source of protein matters when considering a high-quality diet. FATS The rest of the diet should be made up of fats, carbs, and vitamins. Labs need to have a correct protein -to-fat ratio, where protein takes the lead. Dogs tend to convert fat into glucose, so this is an important source of energy. Dogs rely mostly on protein and fats, but carbs are necessary. That said, a low carb diet is best for puppies. However, you still need the right percentage of carbs, since this gives your dog the sensation of being full. These include starches, fibers, and sugars. Try to opt for more complex carbs like starchy grain and veggies because these are easier to digest. Your Lab puppy will thrive when his or her diet includes: Vitamin B12 especially during puppy development , Vitamins A and E, C, Vitamin D, phosphorus, and calcium, Potassium Each of these required vitamins and minerals contributes to a healthy, happy, and energetic puppy. They also help offset issues like obesity. Vitamins A and E are important because they help your dog burn calories and promote eye and skin health. Vitamin D, calcium, and phosphorus, on the other hand, are part of a trifecta that works to strengthen teeth and bones. Potassium is a heart health-preserver. Labs with poor genetics are especially prone to orthopedic issues. Osteoarthritis and hip dysplasia are common health problems for this breed. Glucosamine, an amino-sugar, together with chondroitin sulfate, helps replace and support naturally degrading cartilage during old age. Recently,"grain-free" foods are being championed as a preferred and even high-quality form of dog food. That's, not the whole story. An investigation launched by the FDA revealed that there are potential links between a form of canine heart disease and grain-free foods. So far, researchers have provided an update to this researchers have provided an update to this research staring that the issue may not just be grain-free diets. Grain-free may be part of other trends knows as "BEG"- boutique companies. Puppy diets don't' need to be complicated. They also don't need to include ingredients that humans might enjoy. Enjoyment doesn't necessarily bring any nutritional value to your puppy's development. Keep it simple, using the guidelines for fats, proteins, and carbs above and don't shy away from food with grains in them. It's not their presence that's a problem it's often the ratio. There shouldn't be more carbs or grains than protein. Nor does including only legumes, seeds, lentils, or chickpeas as the primary ingredients make the food more superior. It's perfectly healthy to include complex carb sources like starchy rice and other grains. Grain-free isn't and shouldn't be a qualifying factor for your choice in puppy food. Feeding Your Puppy Kibble Kibble is dried, pelleted food that stores well is easy to eat, and is pre-formulated with everything your puppy needs to thrive and grow in his early developmental months. There are plenty of popular brands that don't measure up to the Snowy Pines standard. That's why it's so vital for you to learn how to read puppy food labels. Puppies should stick with "puppy stage" food, while adults should stick to bags marked "adults. Instead, your dog should have regular bowel movements, allowing them to absorb all the nutrients available. You should also keep in mind that caloric intake is calculated a little differently for puppies. Kibble diets are measured by how many calories the proteins, fats, and carbs represent for each gram. For puppies, this should be 3. Sticking to these ratios will help ensure your kibble choice is a healthy one. It's also important to note that kibble calories are often higher when compared to wet food. If it's high-quality wet food, it won't have as much fat to preserve it, which means fewer calories. You may have to supplement with dry food, especially if you're trying to keep the calories of carbs, proteins, and fats in the right per-gram ratio. How often and what time to feed I will show you the best puppy foods, whether dry, wet, or raw, and look at food safety, together with schedules, quantities and even a handy puppy diet chart. Best Puppy Food for Labs The best Labrador puppy food provides a diet that is nutritious, healthy, and tasty. So, what is the best puppy food for your Lab? Puppy kibble or dried food is the most popular option. Kibble is complete and can give a perfectly balanced diet. Puppy kibble and tinned dog meat combined is another common choice among puppy parents. Feeding your Labrador puppy on home cooked food or on a totally raw diet is also possible. Raw puppy food is growing in popularity, and there are pros and cons to raw feeding your puppy. People often feel very strongly that one way of feeding is better than another, and you can always find evidence to support your view. Dog breeders, veterinarians and even nutritionists have their own strong views. The dire consequences they list for not listening to them can have puppy owners very worried. The truth is that there is no good quality evidence showing that kibble is better for the long term health of your dog, or that raw feeding is better. There are risks and benefits to both, and the main thing is to ensure that your dog has good quality food to eat. Puppy kibble suits some better, and raw puppy food is better for others. Puppy Kibble for your Labrador Puppy food made into pellets is called kibble. An airtight plastic container or tin will do the job, although you should make sure it is food grade quality. Puppy kibble is the best way of feeding your Labrador according to most breeders and your veterinarian is most likely to support this method of feeding. Good puppy kibble will contain every nutrient your Labrador puppy needs in order to grow and remain healthy. The kibble pieces will be tasty, good for keeping teeth healthy, and free from additives that can provoke allergies or stomach problems. Labrador puppy kibble only needs to be fed next to water. Puppy kibble from a reputable manufacturer is intended to be a complete and balanced food. But some owners like to mix in canned dog food or even scraps of raw food with kibble. Your puppy is likely to get an upset stomach or to not have the right balance of nutrition when fed this way. Whether you decide to feed only with kibble or you want to mix it up, pick a good dried food manufacturer and stick with them. Feeding your Labrador puppy raw food has its benefits and drawbacks. One of the downsides is that there is a lot to learn. Here is a link to the articles you need to help you decide whether or not raw feeding is for you: Although I like the raw diet for my dogs, most puppies fed kibble go on to have long and healthy lives. Whatever puppy food you choose, the most important thing is portion control. How Much to Feed your Labrador Puppy? People often tell me how much their puppy weighs, and ask how much puppy food they should give him. Your Labrador is particularly at risk if they grow too quickly. The following diet chart is for kibble fed puppies and does not apply to raw fed pups. It gives you an idea of how much to feed your Labrador puppy Lab Puppy Feeding Chart The Lab puppy feeding chart below is only a very rough guide. The quantity of food you need for your puppy will vary depending on your puppy and on the brand of food you are feeding him. Labrador puppy food must be aimed at medium to large breed dogs. Check the pack carefully and look at the dietary charts. Ideally, you want the optimal protein content and the lowest amount of additives. Part of this always comes down to the cost. The healthiest puppy food is usually the most expensive and may not be affordable for some families. The Cost Of Puppy Food Some puppy food brands are more concentrated than and contain a higher proportion of proteins, essential oils, and other nutrients. The absence of these fillers means that you can often feed lower quantities of more costly food, making them less expensive than they first seem. You might also find that cheaper brands make your puppy poop more due to those extra fillers going straight through him. While some brands are beyond the budget of many families, it is usually good to buy a premium brand. High Quality Brands of Puppy Food Some brands of puppy food have developed a reputation for producing a high quality product and have many devoted supporters, including breeders that have fed them to generations of puppies. Although I am not a veterinarian myself, I have been a lab owner for 11 years and been in the pet food industry for the last 6 years. However, if this is not the case for your pupper, no need to worry. Be sure not to feed normal cerelac or cow milk as that will result in loose motion as well as stunted growth. At this tender age, you need to feed your lab pup via feeding bottle like you would feed a human baby of age 2 months. Milk is the only food apart from purified water which your dog is gonna need till 1. After this age, till 3 months you have two options. You can either continue with milk or look at starter food options like Royal Canin Maxi starter , Drools starter, Farmina Puppy Starter, Canine Creek Starter , Orijen puppy and plenty of other brands which are available in the market. The kibble for starter food is small and most probably, your puppy will be able to chew it. Certain dry food can be extremely hard to chew, so depending on the toughness of the kibble you might have to break i. Puppies of age 1. You should be following this diet of starter food till 3 months age at least. Also, make sure you are vaccinating as well as deworming your pup at the right intervals. So, a proper nutritious diet is essential to achieve good growth. You can either go for Royal Canin Maxi Junior or Royal Canin Labrador Junior or puppy variants of other brands like drools, canine creek, Orijen Puppy and Junior Recommended , Acana large breed puppy, pedigree not recommended at this age. If you are giving a good diet like Royal Canin, farmina or even home-made food, growth should be good. For those who can extend their budget, you can go for something even more premium like Acana, Orijen, Arden Grange and the likes. No need to add additional supplements. If you are feeding home-made food like boiled chicken which itself is a very good food option, consider adding some fish oils like Beaphar Salmon Oil. However, a good diet is recommended to ensure a good life span above 12 years and muscle development. Homemade food can be a healthy option as well. Feeding guide amount to feed in grams depends on dog weight and varies from brand to brand. You will find the recommended portion for your brand based on the calories it carries on the packet you will buy. At other times, you can give chews or treats but whole meal should be fed not more than twice a day. Do not keep food available in front of the dog except during his eating time. However, you can keep water available in a bowl all the time. Sticking to schedule regularly is recommended. Wait, till now we have been speaking about commercial dry food. Yes, this happens to many dogs. While some dogs like pugs are voracious eaters, labs or goldens can be extremely choosy. They will eat whatever liquid you put in the feeding bottle at this age. However, once puppies mature and learn to eat themselves, they may not like dry food, rarely touch it. In these cases, the best option is to first add a home-made additive with the dry food. You may add many things dog like in small quantities of chicken stalk, chicken pieces boneless for puppies , curd, egg and others to the dry food. Changing or trying out another brand helps as well. I have seen many dogs who hate Drools but like Canine Creek although they are manufactured by same company. Every dog has a mind of his own. Most common diseases of Indian bred dogs like canine hyp dysplasia, ear infections, bent hind legs can happen to any dog. Take your dog to a registered veterinary practitioner in case such situations arise. Lack of appetite is also observed during this age at times. For not-so-severe cases, you may administer Himalaya Liv52 syrup or tabs or other appetite stimulants of various brands twice a day for days. In case, your dog has gastrointestinal disorders, referring to a prescription diet under the guidance of a veterinarian can be immensely helpful. This entry was posted in Pet Blog. Bookmark the permalink.

We raise high-quality Mini Labradoodles as well as a few other breeds. We also have partnered up with several other reputable breeders that raise mini labradoodle pups that meet our strict genetic criteria and testing. So we usually have a good selection of very high-quality puppies. View Our Available Puppies! F1B Mini Labradoodle Puppies are a second-generation cross or hybrid. The father is a Mini Poodle and the mother is an F1 Labradoodle. The F1B Minature Labradoodles usually have soft hair that is usually wavy or curly. Thes puppies are considered semi-hypoallergenic since they shed minimally. These puppies can be a good fit if a person that has mild pet allergies. Once F1B Mini Labradoodles reach 6 months old they require to be groomed once every 8 weeks or so to keep their fur healthy and to stop matting. Adult F1B Mini labradoodle dogs range in size from 14 inches in height and pounds in weight. The average life span is typically years of age. The F1BB puppies usually have curlier coats and will be totally hypoallergenic. Once the F1BB pup is 6 months they will need regular grooming every 6 to 8 weeks. F1BB Puppies are usually slightly smaller than F1B puppies and range from 12 inches in height and pounds in weight. Mini Labradoodles are known for their intelligence and the ability to be trained very easily. They make amazing family pets and love to participate in family activities like swimming, hiking, camping or just playing tag in the yard. This breed is also a good choice for people who live in apartments as long as they get at least minutes of exercise a day. So if you live near Los Angeles California and are looking for a healthy and beautiful Mini Labradoodle puppy that can be delivered to you then check out our available pups now by Clicking Here. Below are some Mini Labradoodle pups that have been adopted. We have answers. In contrast, the American Labradoodle is usually a cross between just the Lab and Poodle. Labradoodle puppy price will vary from breeder to breeder, with several factors affecting online puppy listings. These include breeder experience, coat color, coat type, size, and even gender. Will you only connect me with local Labradoodle puppies for sale Los Angeles? One of the great things about our network is that we can offer families tons of options from around the country. How do you screen Los Angeles Labradoodle breeders? There are so many online puppy scams nowadays that it can be hard to tell whether or not your new puppy is coming from a reputable breeder. At mills, health and safety are of little concern—instead, owners focus solely on profit, and the dogs suffer for it. Unsurprisingly, puppy mill dogs often have a shorter life expectancy than properly bred pups. Are there any Labradoodle puppies for sale in Los Angeles California available now? What is the MatchMaker process? MatchMaker is a process we developed to help save you and your family time during your puppy search, plus ensure that the pup you bring home will be a great match for your home and lifestyle. Testimonials As a veterinarian I work with multiple breeders. Charl and Jerry Beauchat have been clients of mine for several years. Their dogs are always kept in great condition. Every puppy is health checked and micro-chipped prior to going to its new home. Providing healthy family members remains a priority of mine as well as theirs Jonathan CortezDVM We can not say enough about the integrity of your program. Pete and Jiffy …head and shoulders above the pack when it comes to a quality breeder…. Do yourself a favor and visit Charl and Shadow Mountain Labradoodles if you are considering a new puppy. We have made a full time commitment to our program. Three of us work full time with our dogs, puppies and families. Charl and Jerry are in Southern California, our daughter Jena, has branched out and is now carrying on our work in Oklahoma! We are also currently training 10 new Australian Labradoodle Breeders in California, Oklahoma, Washington, Texas, Utah, Colorado, Missouri and Ohio to bless families and to protect this wonderful breed! Shadow Mountain Australian Labradoodles are bred with love and care in a home environment. We work hard to place our puppies in an environment where both the families and the puppies are set up for success. Quick Links.

Why your German Shepherd is skinny It is likely that each of the different reasons will come with some clues. Below, I will show you why it might be skinny and what would make each of the reasons more likely. Genes The reason why your German Shepherd is skinny could be that it is in its genes. This would be more likely if it was relatively skinny as a puppy and if you have been feeding it the right amount according to a vet. In this case, it would not be something to worry about unless it has been showing signs of the cause being due to one of the things mentioned below. Diet The cause of it being skinny could be that it has not been getting the right diet. It could be that it is eating the right foods but it is not getting enough calories for its activity levels. German Shepherds require to calories per day but active ones require to source. On the other hand, it could be the case that it has been eating the wrong foods. You can look here to see what you should and should not be feeding your German Shepherd. If you are unsure of what food to get for your German Shepherd, consider getting dog food designed specifically for German Shepherds. Exercise It could be the case that it is getting too much exercise. However, this is unlikely since German Shepherds were bred to be working dogs and it was not unusual for them to spend entire days working alongside their owners. If your German Shepherd is very active then it would be more likely that it is not getting enough calories. It would help to discuss this with your vet the next time you see them. Illness If your German Shepherd has become skinny suddenly then it might be the case that it has gotten an illness. This would be more likely if it has been showing signs of being ill such as vomiting, being fatigued or a change in its behavior. If it does seem to be ill or it has become skinny suddenly and you have not changed anything in its lifestyle then it would be important to take it to a vet. Anxiety It might be the case that anxiety is causing it to be anxious. This would be more likely if it was not always skinny and it became more skinny since something happened that could be causing it to be anxious. Things that might have caused it to become anxious could include someone mistreating it, moving homes, another pet dying or an owner leaving. Consider whether or not it has always been skinny When trying to figure out what has been causing it to be skinny it would help to consider if it has always been skinny or if it has suddenly become skinny. If it has become skinny suddenly then it would be more likely that it is due to things such as illness, anxiety, suddenly being a lot more active without eating more or a sudden change in its diet. It would help to consider what else happened at around the same time that it became skinny. In this case, it would be important to take it to a vet. If it has always been skinny then it would make it more likely that it is in its genes to be skinny. How to get your German Shepherd to be less skinny The best way for you to get your German Shepherd to stop being skinny will depend on the cause. However, I will show you some options that you have below. Take it to a vet If you are unsure of why your German Shepherd is skinny, it has become skinny suddenly or it has been acting unusually then it would be the best option to take it to a vet. Make sure that it is getting the right diet As mentioned above it could be the case that its diet is the issue. Generally, a German Shepherd should be getting to calories per day unless it is very active in which case it should get up to .You can also look here to see what you should and should not be feeding it. Make sure that it is eating the right amount for its activity level When feeding your German Shepherd it is important to consider how active it is. Generally, a German Shepherd should be getting an hour of exercise per day. If it is getting around an hour of exercise per day then it would be adequate to feed it a regular amount. Whereas, if it is spending most of the day doing exercise then it would be necessary to feed it more. If you want a happy and obedient German Shepherd, this is one of the best online dog training programs available right now. You can get the first month free using This link. Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. Do you want to know how to fatten up a German Shepherd to make them gain weight in a healthy way? Are you worried that your German Shepherd is thin and underweight and want to know how to bulk up a German Shepherd for safe weight-gain? Is Your German Shepherd Underweight? Your dog should have a trim, athletic appearance. They are large breed dogs with fast metabolisms that are active and energetic in their daily lives. Fit German Shepherds may at first seem slightly underweight. They are lean, athletic dogs with a strong, firm figure and you should avoid learning how to make a German Shepherd fat. Instead, you want to bulk-up your German Shepherd to make them fit. But if you see their ribs protruding or their hip bones raised and easily felt when petting, this is a sign of being underweight. You should first check with your vet for possible medical issues. You want to know if they are gaining weight, losing weight, or remaining the same. This helps you to decide if your weight gain plan is working — or if you need to adjust your plan. If your dog continues losing weight or if you see a lack of progress, take your dog back to your veterinarian. You need to see this as a long term plan and not an overnight fix to get your German Shepherd fat and by fat, I mean bulk-up not obese or overweight. Look for foods that have a higher percentage of fat and protein than your current food. Adults and seniors should eat about 20 to 25 percent of their daily calories from protein and 25 to 50 percent from fats. The rest of the calories should come from carbohydrates. This is anywhere from 8 months to a year or longer. Change to Puppy or High-Performance Food If you have an adult dog, switch them to a puppy or high-performance dog food to help them gain healthy weight. Both puppy and high-performance also known as a working breed food is higher in calories to support complex energy needs and sustained growth. Puppy foods generally have added nutrients to support puppy growth which can help your underweight German Shepherd gain weight and fatten up in a controlled manner — which is what you want. Mixing regular adult and puppy or high-performance food helps your GSD gain weight and fat in a regulated manner. For More Calories Feed Dry Kibble Dry kibble dog food generally has more calories if you want your dog to gain weight. Dry kibble is denser and contains more calories than wet food because the moisture has been removed from dry foods. Therefore, dry food has up to 4 times the number of calories as the same amount of wet food — dry kibble is a weight gaining powerhouse! If your dog is currently eating wet meals, then try mixing in some dry food with their wet food to help stimulate weight gain. Wet foods may taste better to your dog, so mixing in the dry foods with the wet still encourages your dog to eat in order to not lose more weight. Look for dry food with higher protein and fats to encourage weight gain in a healthy manner and go with one of the foods mentioned above for fat gain that is healthy. Begin by feeding your dog a bit more of their current food spread out over one more meal per day. Add a quarter to half a cup of extra food per meal. You can also take their regular feeding and the additional food and increase their feeding schedule to four times per day, splitting the food equally at each feeding. If your German Shepherd is picky about when they eat, then it may help to leave food out for them all the time. This is called free feeding. Dogs who can free feed tend to gain more weight than dogs fed on a schedule. Free feeding allows your dog the chance to eat a little whenever they are hungry or bored. This type of feeding may help them eat more overall. But only use free feeding with dry food, since wet foods spoil when left out for more than a couple hours. They may follow you around rather than eat when you offer their food bowl — this may be especially true of Shepherds since they tend to get fixated on their caretaker. But, just keeping your dog company while they eat may stimulate their appetite. Find a comfortable spot to sit and wait on your dog while they eat. Bring a book or do a quiet activity while they eat close to you. Simply sit with them and enjoy your time together while they eat. Keep the treats handy and offer them to help get extra calories into your dog. Adding these foods into their regular kibble may also entice them to eat more of their dry dog food, which can help an underweight puppy or adult. They also add extra calories which are healthy and nutritious. To get your dog more interested in their food, try sprinkling on a topping to their usual meals. You can even buy healthy toppers that are easy to add. Seniors, adults, and puppies all have various nutritional concerns. Most commercial and pre-made dog foods specify their intended age range on the packaging and state what groups the food is aimed at feeding. Underfeeding a German Shepherd puts your dog at a serious health risk. You need to make sure they get enough food for their age and energy needs. Puppies generally eat almost double the number of calories an adult dog needs, so be sure to check out this post on what amount to feed a German Shepherd puppy to keep them healthy. While a senior GSD may eat significantly fewer calories, if they are losing weight or underweight and a vet has been consulted, they may need extra feedings or food to help them gain the weight back. German Shepherds thrive on consistent physical activity. Walking and swimming are activities that build muscle and are lower impact and less intense on their joints and bones. They can be done every day to keep your dog active and help them to maintain their muscle mass. But these two exercises can be performed at a lower intensity so that even older dogs and puppies can enjoy their benefits make sure your puppy can swim first. Keeping muscle mass is important to prevent wasting and help maintain their health and mobility, as well as their athletic appearance. Try walking up hills to improve muscle growth or a gentle game of tug using a spring pole in which your dog can start and stop on their own. Some of the herbs used to increase human appetite are also safe for use in dogs. Dandelion is available in this for-1 multivitamin , along with other herbal supplements to make your GSD gain weight. B vitamins are natural appetite stimulants and are readily available over the counter and online. Visit Your Vet Regularly Always see your vet regularly. Regular vet appointments are especially important for your underweight German Shepherd. Your vet will use your notes to help make medical adjustments, as necessary, and to give you the right tips and advice. Helping Your German Shepherd Gain Weight Knowing how to fatten up a German Shepherd can help you and your dog achieve their ideal weight and maintain this healthy condition. There are many reasons why your dog or puppy may not be gaining weight. But there are also ways to help your dog at home to become healthier and have more energy. She has a Bachelor of Science degree, with Honors, and has been training dogs for over a decade. Related Posts. Itching around the anus. Sometimes the answers are on what kind of food they have and how much they eat. German Shepherds can grow really big. Thus, they need the right amount of food to sustain their growth. In addition, they are tireless dogs. They can run, move or exercise all day. They need the right amount of food to replace the calories they burn. There are a lot of dog food choices out there. Some or most of them may have ingredients that have no nutritional value. But is it the same for your German Shepherd? Could it be the reason why they refuse to eat? Now, this is one huge misconception that many dog owners seem to fall victim to. You think they get tired of their meals so you buy them a new one. And then your dog eats it with gusto so you think it solved the problem. Along with their being smart and manipulative. Think of it this way. Losing weight, on the other hand, cannot go unnoticed. Dogs will have a hard time eating if they suffer from dental problems. These can lead to them losing weight over time. Dental problems can be an abscess, ulcer or sores. These also include gum problems, infections, and chipped or broken teeth. Discover problems before they get worse. A dog suffering from advanced dental disease does not feel well over all. It will lead to other complications such as infections in the heart and kidneys. For a German Shepherd, getting old means becoming less active. They eat less and less. And they also lose appetite. These could explain why they are skinny. Sometimes, they are afflicted by health problems such as cancer. These health issues also play a role in them getting skinny. They are picky. It is the failure of the pancreas to produce insulin. Insulin is a hormone that regulates glucose, or blood sugar. It then allows glucose to be an energy source for cells. Sometimes, the pancreas messes up and produces an insufficient amount of insulin. It spells trouble for your dog. Too much glucose then enters the bloodstream and gets excreted. The body will then break down fat and protein. This leads to increased urination, excessive thirst and weight loss. One reason for developing diabetes is a genetic predisposition. Some dogs are more prone than others. In addition, unspayed female dogs are at a higher risk because their hormones mess with insulin production. Did you get another pet? Did a girlfriend move in with you? These things seem small to you. But these can stress your German Shepherd for a while. As a result, they may have problems eating properly while adjusting to new changes. One is to release nutrients to make the body healthy. This leads to a loss in appetite and vomiting. And we know this eventually leads to weight loss. Did you know that German Shepherds are prone to liver disease? This could explain them being skinny. Years, health, life. It leads to weight loss because of the metabolic demands of the tumor. Hemangiosarcoma, lymphoma, and osteosarcoma are the types of cancer associated with weight loss. Cancer is more common in senior dogs. And German Shepherds are prone to a canine oral melanoma. It is an oral tumor that makes it painful to eat and swallow. The pain and discomfort prevent your dog from eating properly. When depressed, a German Shepherd loses appetite and cannot eat properly. If not treated, it can lead to weight loss. Your German Shepherd is depressed if they show the following: Lethargy. Loss of interest in things they enjoyed before. Major changes cause depression in dogs. It could be moving into a new house or place. Even having a new baby, spouse or another pet can cause depression. But the biggest causes are the loss of an owner or a companion animal. In this article , the author related how her dogs went through depression after the death of another dog. It was as though the dogs were grieving. They refused to go on walks, refused to eat and drink, and kept hiding. You need to be concerned about chronic stress. Your German Shepherd becomes susceptible to infections. This is not like other conditions where weight loss is a symptom. The disease may have already progressed before it is diagnosed. So when your dog is checked up, they have already lost weight. Only then it becomes clear that the dog has been losing weight for quite some time. The condition worsens when the dog experiences vomiting, dehydration, and loss of appetite. No wonder the dog becomes emaciated. Only to find out that the gain weight is actually fluid accumulation. If they have lost some weight, add calories to their food. If they gain weight, then it should be okay. This is caused by a decrease in hormone production from the other part of the adrenal gland. The adrenal glands are located near the kidneys. Vomiting and diarrhea prevent their bodies from getting the nutrients from their food. Aside from these, dogs can suffer from malabsorption or maldigestion disorders. These disorders prevent the intestine from breaking down and absorbing nutrients from the food. German Shepherds that suffer from these disorders are skinny. So do dogs. Your German Shepherd suffers from hormonal imbalance if they have thyroid problems. As a result, their body experiences rapid metabolism. This leads to extreme weight loss. The right food is one of the first steps in helping your dog gain weight. The dog food may not contain the right calories your German Shepherd needs to gain weight. You should give them between 1, to 2, calories a day. But this depends on their activity level. Commercial dog food has calories in a cup. This means you need to feed your dog cups a day. Divide that into 2 meals. Aside from all that, your dog food needs to be of high quality. Also, avoid dog foods made of fillers. To help them gain weight, give them food with a high amount of calories. So when choosing their dog food, check the labels for calories. As you may know, dog foods are not equal. Some may have more calories than others. Choose the one with higher calories and fat to help your pooch gain weight. Filler will not satisfy and make your German Shepherd healthy. BUT… Consult with your vet first. You can feed your German Shepherd 4 small meals a day. Or 2 big meals and one small meal. Four small meals a day is the best choice since your dog is struggling to eat. Especially if your dog is picky and on their way to being overweight. But we are talking about your German Shepherd being skinny. And we are looking for ways to help fatten them up. Giving treats can aid in bringing your German Shepherd to a healthy weight. You can easily buy from a pet store. Choose ones that are high in calories. Or you can actually make your own home-made treats. The advantage to this is you know what goes into the treats. That way, you know that your German Shepherd gets nothing but healthy food. There are many simple recipes for dog treats. Some only need a few ingredients from scratch. Just do some mixing, pop it into the oven, and in no time at all, you have home-made treats! Here is a sample of a three-ingredient recipe: Half a cup of peanut butter. A cup of whole wheat flour. A cup of mashed sweet potatoes. See how easy it is? And your dog will surely love it. Feed your German Shepherd some home-made meals. Dogs love having variation in their food. Introducing new food can motivate them to eat more. Some of the food you can give them are chicken, rice, egg, and vegetables such as pumpkin. But before doing this, consult your vet. You want to make sure you are giving the right food and the right amount. There are several ways to do that. One is to weigh them weekly. If you can afford a dog scale, then go ahead and buy one. There are scales where your dog only needs to step on it. Or you can take your dog to the vet for a weigh in. Two, keep a journal for your dog. Record what they eat and how much. Check the recorded weight every two weeks or so. Wet food is easier to chew. And since they can eat with less discomfort, they will be motivated to eat more. Including whether they have medical conditions that make them skinny. If this is the case, take your dog to the vet. Your vet can recommend tests to eliminate diseases. If your dog is diagnosed with something, you can start the treatment asap. If your German Shepherd is one, there are some ways to correct the behavior: First, make them understand that the food you prepare is the only option. Second, time their mealtimes. For instance, give them 15 minutes to eat the food. When the time is up, remove their bowl. You may also consider the reason why they are picky. For instance, they eat wet food more than dry food due to dental problems. As they age, they lose interest in a lot of things. Including their food. In their case, limiting food options is not the right choice. The good thing to do is feed them appetizing food. Try adding chicken broth or canned food for variety. You can also give them home-made meals to encourage them to eat more. Related posts:. The genes inherited from the parents and other ancestors in their lineage will significantly influence their growth and development. If your German Shepherd comes from bloodlines consisting mainly of smaller dogs, they will likely end up on the smaller side themselves. Reputable breeders focus on breeding dogs that meet the breed standard, which for male German Shepherds is inches tall and pounds. Females are inches and pounds. However, backyard breeders or puppy mills may not pay as much attention to size, producing German Shepherds outside of the standard. So if you obtained your dog from disreputable sources, this could explain the smaller stature. Examining the Parents One of the best ways to estimate the size your German Shepherd will reach is to look at the parents. If both the sire and dam are on the smaller side, chances are your puppy will be too. This will give you a good idea of what to expect as your dog matures. While environmental factors can influence size too, genetics lay the foundation. Some of the most common issues that may stunt growth include: Panosteitis Panosteitis is a condition that causes painful inflammation in the long bones of large breed puppies during growth spurts. It usually develops between months of age. The pain causes affected puppies to become reluctant to exercise and play. Without proper activity levels, muscle and bone development can suffer. Puppies with chronic panosteitis often end up undersized as adults. Treatment involves pain management and anti-inflammatory medications. Hypothyroidism An underactive thyroid gland prevents adequate production of thyroid hormones. These hormones regulate metabolism and growth. Without enough thyroid hormones, a German Shepherd puppy may demonstrate stunted development. Blood testing can diagnose hypothyroidism. Once treated with supplemental thyroid medication, normal growth can resume. But if left untreated for a long period, the dog may remain undersized. Orthopedic Problems Issues like hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, and osteochondritis dissecans OCD can impede proper limb development. The pain and joint changes make exercise difficult. Lack of exercise can allow muscles to atrophy and bones to stop reaching their growth potential. Corrective surgery and medications to control orthopedic diseases may help get development back on track. But any damage already done may prevent the dog from reaching full size. Congenital Defects Birth defects impacting the skeleton or vital organs can interfere with growth in some cases. One example is a liver shunt, where blood bypasses the liver. Liver shunts disrupt nutrient absorption and metabolism, often resulting in stunted growth. Surgical correction may allow more normal development. But if the dog is older at the time of diagnosis, they may remain small for their breed. Parasites Could be Robbing Nutrients Intestinal parasites like worms can infest puppies and drain vital nutrients. Roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, and tapeworms are common parasites found in dogs that prevent adequate absorption of calories, protein, vitamins, and minerals. Severe infestations can even be life-threatening without proper deworming treatments. All puppies should be dewormed starting at 2 weeks old, then regularly throughout the first year. Adult dogs require periodic fecal testing and deworming to keep parasites under control. Keeping your German Shepherd free of parasites ensures they can properly digest and absorb their food to support healthy development. Puppies who miss out on deworming are at risk for remaining undersized. Feeding an inappropriate diet with deficient calories or nutrients during crucial developmental stages can result in a smaller dog. Not Enough Calories German Shepherds need more calories per pound of body weight when young to fuel their rapid growth. Pregnant and nursing dams also require increased calories and nutrition. If the mother was fed poorly, growth could be impacted even before birth. Switch to a high-quality puppy formula after weaning to ensure adequate calories for your German Shepherd puppy. Follow feeding guidelines based on their current weight and activity level. Missing Key Nutrients German Shepherd puppies need proper amounts of protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals in their diet. Diets deficient in certain nutrients will not properly support full growth and development. For example, inadequate calcium and phosphorus levels can impair bone growth. Lack of protein may result in muscle loss and slow weight gain. Omega fatty acids like DHA are essential for brain, eye, and nervous system maturation. Choose a premium commercial puppy food formulated for large breed growth. Alternatively, work with a veterinary nutritionist to develop a custom balanced homemade diet. Avoid cheap diets with nutrient fillers. Transitioning Foods Too Quickly When switching your German Shepherd puppy to a new diet, allow at least days to transition gradually. Abrupt changes can disrupt digestion, limiting calorie absorption required for growth. Mix a little new food with the previous food, slowly adjusting the ratios over a week. This gives their gastrointestinal system time to adapt to different ingredients and nutrients in the new food. Proper diet transitions help ensure your puppy maintains proper growth and development on their new food. Drastic switches could result in nutritional imbalance. Activity Levels Impact Growth Potential German Shepherd puppies have lots of energy and need adequate exercise and activity. Without enough exercise, their muscle and bone development can suffer, resulting in a smaller than expected adult size. Not Enough Exercise Regular activity and play encourages bone lengthening and muscle growth. When puppies get insufficient exercise, bones and muscles do not receive the stimulatory signals to reach their genetic potential. German Shepherd puppies need at least minutes of activity per day. This might include leash walking, playing fetch, or running around a yard under supervision. Keep sessions short but frequent for young puppies. Overexercising On the other hand, exercising a German Shepherd puppy too aggressively can also impair growth. Their bones and joints are still developing, so excessive jogging, jumping, or similar activities can damage their body. If they seem reluctant to exercise or limp afterward, the sessions are too extreme. Stick to moderate, controlled activities that encourage extension and motion without overstressing the limbs. With the right balance of activity tailored to their age, your German Shepherd will develop strong muscles and bones to match their genetic size potential. Other Environmental Factors Aside from the key reasons covered above, other environmental factors may contribute to a smaller than expected German Shepherd. If the mother rejects the litter or cannot produce enough milk, growth may be impacted even before weaning. Signs of poor maternal care include low birth weights, failure to gain weight, and increased health problems in the litter. Taking over supplemental feedings and care of affected puppies can help get nutrition back on track. The physical recovery combined with emotional impacts may limit their ability to reach full genetic size potential. General Health or Illness Any illness that causes poor appetite, maldigestion, or malabsorption of food can potentially slow growth. Examples include parasites, infections, liver or kidney disease, and gastrointestinal disorders. Once the underlying condition is treated, normal development may resume. But extended illnesses during crucial growth periods could still result in a smaller than expected adult size. While a smaller than expected German Shepherd may simply have genetics for a petite size, rule out any medical reasons for their limited growth. Schedule a veterinary exam to check for parasites, orthopedic disease, thyroid problems, and other conditions. Discuss their current diet and activity levels with the vet as well to ensure their nutritional and exercise needs are being met. With any identified issues properly addressed, your German Shepherd should continue to develop normally toward a healthy adult body condition. As long as they appear proportional, fit, and in good body condition, a petite German Shepherd can still live a long, full life. Focus on health rather than specific size measurements. Not all German Shepherds will meet breed height and weight standards. With the right care and nutrition, you can ensure your small-statured German Shepherd reaches their own ideal weight and figure. A responsible dog owner knows that good health comes in all sizes! The best way to estimate adult size is to look at the parents. German Shepherds generally fall within a few inches of height and 10 pounds of weight compared to their sire and dam. Growth charts also provide reasonable projections. What is a standard-sized German Shepherd? The American Kennel Club breed standard states male German Shepherds should stand inches tall and weigh pounds. Females should be inches tall and pounds. But size can vary naturally. Is my German Shepherd underweight? You should be able to feel but not see the ribs in a healthy weight dog. Severely underweight dogs will have ribs, spine, and hip bones visibly protruding. Follow healthy feeding and exercise guidelines tailored to their age from your vet. Forcing overfeeding or supplementation can actually harm bone and joint development. At what age is a German Shepherd full grown? German Shepherds reach their full adult height between months old but can continue filling out muscle and thickness up to years old. Make sure to transition to an adult food at around a year to meet changing nutritional needs. The Takeaway If your German Shepherd is smaller than expected, take a look at their genetic history, health, diet, and activity to identify any factors that could be limiting their growth. With the right care and barring any medical issues, most German Shepherds will reach a healthy size in line with their genes. Focus on good health and nutrition rather than specific measurements. Related posts:. It can be a minor issue or flat-out hazardous. So, we applaud you for trying to learn why you have a skinny German Shepherd. Excessive Exercise It could be likely that your skinny male German Shepherd is overly active and getting a lot of exercise. More work means more food, not just any food but those high in calories. Dental Issues We often let dental problems in our dogs go unnoticed. It can be a sore, abscess, ulcer, or even broken teeth and gum infections. It can cause weight loss over time or even spread to other areas in the body if not treated quickly. Health problems that affect their weight can range widely. Parasites and worms are common issues in many dogs, while more severe problems like cancer and heart disease also cause unusual weight loss. Look for other symptoms like diarrhea, vomiting, and dizziness as they usually accompany weight loss when the dog suffers from a serious health issue. Your dog can get undesirable effects too. Not getting enough attention, training , exercise, or not socializing enough can lead to anxiety in your dog. Other causes include moving to a new home and bringing home a new pet. Think about what might be causing stress in your dog and consider how you can improve its overall living quality. Genetics Sometimes, the reason for a skinny German Shepherd can be as simple as its genetic factor. Most working German Shepherds are lean, so your dog will most probably be skinny because it is from this bloodline. Try to recollect how it looked when it was younger. Aging causes dental problems and appetite loss, which makes them skinny. However, it can also be because of deeper health problems brought about by aging, like cancer. Here are some effective options you can consider: Visit the Vet The foremost thing to do when your German Shepherd is suddenly losing weight is to see a vet. Consider Puppy Food Puppy food contains ingredients that help puppies grow rapidly and healthily. Try feeding puppy food to your older dog to let it gain weight. However, consult with the vet before implementing this step to ensure safety. Try Wet Food German Shepherds with dental problems will benefit tremendously from wet food. It is much easier to consume, making your pet want to eat more. Let Them Eat When They Want German Shepherd parents who cannot make time to give them multiple meals daily should consider leaving the food out for them to eat anytime. Leave dry food instead of wet food, as they will remain fresh for longer. Homemade Treats Might Help Making treats for your dog at home ensures a healthier diet. Cheese and peanut butter are great options. While buying them, make sure to look for those high in calories. Note: Steer clear of grapes and chocolates while preparing homemade treats for your GSD. It can also relieve you to know that your pooch is gaining weight, even if slowly. The Takeaway Whether you have a skinny female German Shepherd or a male one, seeing them lose weight can be disheartening. While some breeds are lean by nature, a variety of underlying health issues might be causing it. Take it to the vet to rule out all possibilities, or treat them ASAP. You can also help your dog gain back weight by following the above measures. I admire German Shepherds. They are magnificent dogs! I have been dealing with dogs, namely German Shepherds, throughout my life. I have been working part-time as a dog trainer and instructor for about 5 years, dealing mainly with German Shepherds. So I know a bit about these animals. Therefore, I decided to share my knowledge and experience about this fantastic breed. If you need help with advice and care tips or want to know more about German Shepherd dogs, welcome to this blog. So too will a GSD that is consuming low-quality food in general. Getting the calories right! Moderately active German shepherds need around calories per day, whereas highly active German shepherds need around calories per day. Highly active working GSDs may even need upwards of calories. Either the quality of the food is fine, but the portion sizes are too small too few calories , or the quality of the kibble is lacking. Again, this ties into calorie consumption. If your GSD is super active over 3 hours of exercise a day , she will likely need calories per day. Health issues In most cases, health issues are the cause of sudden weight loss. Health issues that affect weight can range from harmless and treatable all the way to serious, even fatal issues rarer. Common problems like worms and parasites particularly in puppies can cause weight loss. Rarer and more serious things like heart disease and cancer can also cause weight loss. Health problems usually always come with multiple symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue, dizziness, or any noticeable change from her normal self. If this is the case, then it would be evident right from puppyhood. If you were lucky enough to see the mum and other puppies in the litter, they would have all been similarly skinny. Some GSDs are just smaller than others. Stress and anxiety Just as stress can have many undesirable effects on us, it can do the same with our furry friends, too, weight loss being one of them. Common reasons include spending too much time alone, not receiving enough exercise, attention, or training. Additionally, it could be down to a change in their environment like moving homes, new neighbors, or even the addition of a household pet. Consider your GSDs overall quality of life, basic needs and think about the possibility of them being stressed. Bad eating habits Fussy eating is something many owners have to deal with at some point. The issue is that this could be the cause of weight loss. Once again, it comes back down to the calories in versus the calories out. I have an entire article dedicated to why your GSD might be refusing their food. Dental issues If your GSD is suffering from any kind of dental complaint, this could cause them to refuse their food and lose out on calories. So I think it deserves its own section. In fact, this was actually what happened with my GSD when she was 7. After refusing her food and simultaneously losing weight, I checked her mouth to find some serious gum irritation thankfully not gum disease. We got that resolved with the help of our veterinarian, and her appetite came back right away. Aside from using the scales, one of the best ways to know if your GSD is underweight or not is to simply feel them and look at their waistline. Ribs Run your hand along their side with light pressure. You should be able to feel their ribs a little this is normal! Waistline Waistline abdominal tuck should be noticeable but not extreme. Check out this chart from Petcarerx source. If the weight loss has happened suddenly for no obvious reason, it is advised to see a vet. Important note: If you suspect your GSD is losing weight for an alternative reason like stress or dental issues, the best solution would be to address those issues instead of adjusting their diet. Always consider the cause first. Add wet dog food My all-time favorite way to stop fussy eating while adding a boost of nutrition and calories is to mix in a small amount of wet dog food to their kibble. This is a known and safe method that veterinarians recommend to help with weight gain. Mix in some wet dog food preferably the same brand , and your GSD will likely benefit from this greatly. Add it once a day or every other day. This will enhance the flavor and beat most cases of fussy eating. Just ensure the meat broth you use is a healthy option without a high salt content or artificial flavorings or additives. Increase portion size Assuming you are already using a high-quality kibble and your GSD is getting on well with it no digestive issues or diarrhea , then it could be a simple matter of increasing the portion size. Be sure to check the back of the bag and work out how many calories you are adding. This is a noticeable difference for a dog, so you should see some changes in weight over weeks. Avoid giving too many treats Although we are trying to add calories and encourage weight gain, treats are not the solution to this. Especially if your GSD is refusing the food anyway. These brands focus on high-quality ingredients that are fresh and close to their natural state. Brands like these also prioritize protein and fat over carbohydrates, which is an instant sign of higher quality. Inferior brands are known to use carbs to bulk out their food while keeping prices cheap. In addition to this, canines, in general, are better adapted to eating a wild diet. Wild diets are high in protein and fat while low on carbs. This results in better digestion and absorption of the food they are eating. Just remember to change foods gradually over the course of days, phasing out the old and incorporating more of the new. This should prevent stomach upset. Additional articles that may help:. So as well as checking for a loss of weight you should also look for the following. Dull, Lifeless Coat A dull lifeless coat is also another sign of an underweight german shepherd. Once again without the proper nutrients in their diet, their body will begin to suffer. In a lot of cases, the quality of their fur will suffer first. On top of this, when the body gets too starved of energy it will begin to eat itself. And muscles are the first thing to go. This might show itself in a loss of appetite, vomiting, and diarrhea. And it can also be a sign of a serious health issue. Ribcage Showing In extreme cases, an underweight german shepherds ribcage will show. You should never allow your dog to get to this point, however, if you do then you need to take them to the vets immediately. Looking Down At Them When your german shepherd is standing up, stand over them and look down. They should look bulky and full. Slimming at the waist is to be expected as well. Feeling Their Ribs Another great test is to run your hands along their ribs. In a healthy dog, you should be able to feel their ribs ever so slightly under a small amount of fat and muscle. However, if your german shepherd is underweight his ribs will feel like skin and bone. And if it is, are you feeding them enough? On top of this food also has different calories. Check out the best food for german shepherd puppies. This is one of the reasons you need to take your dog for frequent check-ups at the vets! Dental Problems A lot of the times dogs have dental problems that you may not even be aware of. For example, one of my labradors had a tooth that chipped and went rotten. However, if it was, it would have only been spotted by accident. As well as having a broken tooth there are also other dental problems that may be causing your german shepherd to stop eating. Diabetes One symptom of diabetes in dogs is weight loss. However, as well as weight loss you may also notice symptoms such as excessive thirst, urination, and urinary tract infections. If you think this is the case then you can try changing their food and leaving them to eat by themselves. You Have An Old Pup! As your german shepherd enters their senior years they may begin to eat less and less. Things that seem small to you could be stressful to your german shepherd, and their weight loss could be caused by this. Find out more common reasons your german shepherd may not be eating or what to do if you have an overweight german shepherd! How To Fatten Up A German Shepherd When you notice your german shepherd is underweight then your best choice is to consult a vet and make sure nothing is wrong with them. However, if your vet has given them the all-clear, then here are some great ways you can help your german shepherd gain weight. If this is the case, then you should consider swapping to a different type of food. You should look for foods that are high in protein and fat. Check out the 5 best foods you can feed a skinny german shepherd. Try Puppy Food As well as using high-calorie dog food you could also give your german shepherd food made for puppies. This type of food is designed to sustain a puppy when their growing. If you do plan on feeding your german shepherd puppy food make sure you consult your vet first. Two big meals and one small meal have the added benefit of already being similar to the routine they have now. Secondly, if your German shepherd realizes they can eat whenever they want, they may end up eating even less than before. If you feed your german shepherd to many treats then they may end up being too full to eat their regular meals. Apples, bananas, peanut butter, eggs, and strawberries are all great choices! Giving them peanut butter and cheese is a great way to introduce excess calories in small amounts. However, when giving your german shepherd home-made treats remember there are some foods that are fine for humans but not for dogs. Stay away from chocolate and grapes and make sure you check before introducing anything new to their diet. Add Home-Made Food To Their Meals Chicken and rice is a staple for my dog whenever they have an upset stomach, however, it can also be used as an addition to their regular dog food. As well as chicken and rice you could also try adding egg and pumpkin. Wet food is going to be a lot easier for them to eat, and once they can eat easily they should start gaining weight again! FAQ Here are the answers to your frequently asked questions in relation to a skinny german shepherd! They grow at different rates and oftentimes they may end up being skinny and gangly. You should be able to feel your german shepherd spines, however, you should also be able to feel skin and muscle around it too. A male german shepherd should weigh between lbs and a female german shepherd should be between lbs. This should also be in proportion to their size though. So they do definitely tend to have sensitive stomachs. Cheaper than replacing everything they might break. And definitely cheaper than a lawsuit against you, if they decide to bite someone. And the best part is it also has a day money-back guarantee! You can also check out a full review here , to learn exactly what the course has to offer! Recap As you can see there are plenty of things you can do to help your german shepherd gain weight. There are also plenty of things that may be causing them to lose weight. Give them puppy food as it supports growth. Try feeding them more meals a day or letting them free feed. Give them more treats and try making homemade treats. Add homemade food to their meals such as rice and chicken, peanut butter and pumpkin. Lastly, journal their meals and weigh them regularly. If you liked this article or have any more questions leave them in the comments below, otherwise have a great day! Related Posts:. Your veterinarian can check for worms with a stool sample. Certain types of worms such as roundworms can be fatal in puppies if left untreated, so it is crucial that you take your puppy for regular checkups. Has your Puppy Been Traveling Regularly? If you feel that your GSD puppy is too skinny, consider if you have been taking it along for car rides on a consistent basis. Many puppies experience motion sickness. This does not necessarily mean that they will vomit or have an upset stomach only. Some puppies will do neither, and instead, decrease their eating to the point of losing weight. If this is the case, limit the amount of time your puppy spends traveling in a car. This will allow your puppy to have you as a reference point and a distraction. Provide a small puppy bed on the seat. Make sure that the temperature in the car is neither too hot or cold. Pay attention to how you drive. Often times we take our driving for granted without considering the comfort of our passengers. Puppies can be especially sensitive during car rides, so be sure to take turns gently, and do not brake or accelerate suddenly. A change in the environment is a common cause of a longer-term loss of appetite and weight loss in puppies. A change in environment for your puppy does not just mean that it has moved from one physical location to another. They learn and function well with routine. This can sometimes result in a long term lack of appetite and weight loss. You may likely find that if one or more of the above changes are addressed, that your puppy will resume a normal eating schedule and quickly bounce back from being underweight. Your GSD puppy needs adequate nutrients in its diet for growth and to maintain a healthy weight. GSDs are considered medium to large-sized dogs, and they need to be fed the appropriate breed-formulated dog food, especially as puppies. If you are not feeding it the right formulation for its breed size, this can result in undernourishment and a skinny puppy.

Your puppy will need its next round of shots at 12 and 16 weeks. Your Puppy Food and Supplies: You will want to be prepared with the food the puppies are eating now. A sudden change of food will cause digestive problems at this age. Because your puppy's digestive system is sensitive, we do not recommend giving your puppy any treats until 6 months old. Use the puppy's food as a treat when training. We will supply you with a small bag of the puppy's food on the take home day. We highly recommend keeping your Labrador Retriever puppy on the Large Breed Puppy Purina puppy food until 2 years of age. And then at 2 years switch to Large Breed Purina dog food. Probiotics: We recommend giving your puppy probiotics for the first two weeks to help with the changing environments. Even with preventative care, expect your puppy to have a loose stool every so often because they explore the world through their mouths and therefore ingest things that affect their immature digestive system. Giardia, Coccydia, and roundworms are all common parasites that puppies get and are effectively treated with dewormers. Dog Crate: We are starting your puppy's crate training, so if you plan to continue using a crate, you will want to purchase this item beforehand. Make sure your puppy does not have access to electrical cords, they love to chew on them. If your puppy is a yellow, black or chocolate lab they all love to play, so having lots of chew toys around helps a bunch! Arranging for Pick up: If we haven't already scheduled your pick up time, please email me so I can coordinate that with you. Pick up times are usually scheduled one to two weeks before your puppy is ready to go home. Email jeanette almondblossomlabradors. When you pick up your puppy, we will give you the necessary paperwork to register by mail or online as the owner of your dog, so you can receive the official AKC pedigree papers. Photo Gallery. Published on Copy link Are you looking for a furry best friend to take home? With their sweet demeanor and energetic personality, chocolate Labradors are perfect companions for any pet parent. Your puppy will go home with AKC registration papers, three generation pedigree, microchip, first puppy shot series, deworming, veterinary health certificate and written and signed guarantees. Erica and Carrie were wonderful to work with and super knowledgeable about their dogs. I highly suggest. You can find their available puppies here. You can find their upcoming litters, here. All of their breeding dogs are free of hip and elbow dysplasia and their eyes are certified through CERF. For more information and to get in touch, you can visit their website here or email jubett bellsouth. Mythic Labradors have been wonderful from the exceptional breeding process to answering questions throughout the puppy phase and to adulthood dietary needs. I love the honest commitment to the breed and the client. Riley is exceptional because of great breeding, training and love. And it all started with great breeding. They are dedicated to breeding for temperament, health and confirmation. Here is their list of available puppies. Before leaving, all puppies will have a veterinarian health certificate, AKC registration, their first shots and will have been wormed four times. All I can say is Buddy was definitely worth the wait. You can find their upcoming litters here. We have been established since .We are experienced, proven and conscious breeders! We are Selective in our breeding pairs as we have searched worldwide! We will not compromise the rich heritage, pure quality of our Traditional and International breeding lines. We are Dilute Clear!! Official AKC Standard for the Labrador Retriever, General Appearance: The Labrador Retriever is a strongly built, medium-sized, short-coupled, dog possessing a sound, athletic, well-balanced conformation that enables it to function as a retrieving gun dog; the substance and soundness to hunt waterfowl or upland game for long hours under difficult conditions; the character and quality to win in the show ring; and the temperament to be a family companion…… The most distinguishing characteristics of the Labrador Retriever are its short, dense, weather resistant coat; an "otter" tail; a clean-cut head with broad back skull and moderate stop; powerful jaws; and its "kind," friendly eyes, expressing character, intelligence and good temperament……The Labrador is bred primarily as a working gun dog; structure and soundness are of great importance. Some of our breeders come with hunting titles as well!! Over the years, our dogs have made great companions, hunters, and service dogs. Our pups and dogs have been featured in commercials and magazines! Please send in your Pictures!! Janice M. We could not ask for a better puppy than Robin for a family. She is everything we were looking for. She has the sweetest temperament and I cannot believe how smart she is. She has been such a joy to train. She is already great with off leash recall and as soon as we tell her to stop doing something which is not often she listens immediately. Potty training and crate training were a breeze with her. What we love most about Robin is she is completely devoted to our children. She is with them before they go to school and then is at the door a few minutes before they walk in. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. He was smart, well tempered, and just an amazing friend. He was an ultimate protector of Jenine. We have been so happy with everything about him! From Maggie X Manny Litter of 12 pups, ! Our Puppies are Veterinarian Examined! We send stool samples in to eliminate all parasites! Your Health Certificate will share the details! All breeds of Labrador Retrievers are known for being kind and gentle — and this trait runs especially strong with the chocolate-colored sweeties. While these dogs are very friendly to strangers, they have even more affection to give to their beloved families. Your Chocolate Lab puppy or adult will be happiest spending time with their favorite people. If you have young children, a lab is a great fit, as this breed is usually quite tolerant of the horseplay of small children who are still learning how to interact with pets. Just like many people, Chocolate Labs enjoy both downtime — especially if it involves being pampered by their family — and active high-energy fun. We recommend daily exercise, which can include anything from fetch, to tag, or even frisbee games. The average Chocolate Lab lifespan is between 9 and 11 years. The most common Chocolate Lab health problem is hip dysplasia, which occurs more commonly in older and overweight dogs. This is just one of the reasons to make exercise a common part of your time with a Chocolate Lab puppy or fully grown adult. Another problem that occurs in overweight labs is joint and movement issues. The other most common Chocolate Lab health problems are: Progressive Retinal Atrophy Cataracts Elbow Dysplasia As is the case with any dog, when you bring home a Chocolate Labrador, make sure that you have a good vet to handle routing vaccinations and check-ups as well as emergency health problems. Learn more about the Keystone Puppies Health Guarantee! Chocolate Lab Coat Care In general, Chocolate Lab coat care is easy compared to many other dog breeds which require weekly or daily work. Labrador Retrievers all have double coats, which includes an under layer of short hairs and a slightly longer top layer. This coat is useful for repelling water and keeping them cool in warmer temperatures — and warm in cooler ones. Their coat is also noted to be slightly dry and oily. Chocolate Lab coat care is fairly minimal and considered low maintenance. The coat should be brushed with a firm bristle brush 2 — 3 times per month to minimize shedding. In addition to that, baths are needed fairly infrequently. What is more crucial is ensuring that their toenails are well cared for throughout the year. Meet Chocolate Lab Puppies for Sale. It quickly became clear that this new dog, at the time called the St. Then, in the 19th century, visiting Englishmen took note of these incredible dogs, brought them home to England, and soon perfected and standardized the breed—which had now been dubbed the Labrador Retriever. When they began as the St. While this is still true today, the recessive colors of yellow and chocolate have become more and more coveted by those seeking Labs as pets. Thanks to years of breeding efforts, those recessive colors are not as difficult to find as they once were. Chocolate Labrador Retriever Puppies for Sale Chocolate Labs are a favorite among those looking to add a member of the breed to their family. Coat shades can range from a warm, light brown to a deeper chocolate color. Both parents must carry and pass on the recessive chocolate color gene in order for a puppy to be born with this coat. Just like their black and yellow counterparts, chocolate Labrador Retrievers are known as doting and capable dogs. You can put them to work as hunting or service dogs, but they make excellent cuddle buddies as well. Their beautiful coats and breed stature make them great show dogs too. The chocolate lab puppies we breed for sale at Hidden Pond Labradors come with their first round of shots, one-year written health guarantee, and a veterinarian health certificate. We are dedicated to breeding our puppies for premier health and pedigree, as well as raising them in our home so their personalities and happiness can blossom. Experience the love, joy, and comfort this amazing breed has to offer with a chocolate Labrador Retriever puppy of your own from Hidden Pond Labradors. Give us a call at or message us online to inquire about our available and upcoming Lab puppies! Life Span Did You Know? Labrador Retrievers are one of the most popular dog breeds. The Chocolate Labrador Retriever is not a distinct dog breed from other Labs, but it is a separate coat color variation that is specifically bred for. Similar to the other standard coat colors of Labrador Retrievers, Chocolate Labs are energetic dogs that get along well in a family setting. As a Retriever, they also make great hunting dogs and have also been known to fill other working dog roles including service dogs, guide dogs, search-and-rescue dogs, and more. They are even one of the common dog breeds employed in K-9 units. A point of interest is that all modern Chocolate Labrador Retrievers can be traced to three specific Black Labradors that lived during the s. Chocolate Labs are industrious little pups. They were bred for retrieval and will often sniff about for something to get into. They are also one of the most affectionate dog breeds and absolutely love being with their favorite humans. Properly socialized and well-trained, Labs are one of the kid-friendly dog breeds. They get along well with children, other dogs, and other pets. They are famously even-tempered and playful. This makes them fantastic dogs for a growing family, as they tend to be gentle and patient with little ones. They can have a high prey drive. They usually do well with small pets within the family that they have been raised with or socialized around, but likely will still have the urge to chase other animals while out and about. They also tend to be open and friendly with strangers. After all, strangers are just more people to give them attention and play with them. Chocolate Labrador Retrievers may be high-energy dogs, but they are also highly adaptable. They will thrive in homes with fenced yards where they can run freely. They can adapt well to apartment living as well as long as they get plenty of daily exercise, attention, and mental stimulation. Their natural urge to dig and bark when they are bored or agitated can be quelled with a little training and exercise. Although they can handle some alone time, Labs love to be with their families and thrive on attention from them, so they do not like to spend long periods of time alone. Chocolate Labs also have a water-resistant double coat that makes them well-suited for most habitable climates. As with most dogs, they are sensitive to heat. Although they can handle some cold and will likely love to play in the snow, they are not a snow dog breed and may need to bundle up while out on walks in areas with harsher winters. Potential health concerns to be aware of in a Chocolate Labrador Retriever can include hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia , progressive retinal atrophy, cataracts, hereditary myopathy, and heart disease. There is also a condition with a genetic link called exercise-induced collapse EIC , which can occur in young adult Labradors. Carriers of this can be identified by DNA tests and it is advised that breeders test for this and avoid practices that would produce the disease. Good breeding practices make a big difference in the health of puppies and reputable breeders will screen their dogs to avoid passing preventable issues to puppies. Make sure you ask about the health and genetic history of both parents and about any health tests or clearances that have been done. As a large, deep-chested dog breed, Labrador Retrievers are at a higher risk for bloat. Bloat in dogs can be dangerous and can quickly become fatal if the stomach flips gastric torsion. Chocolate Labrador Retrievers are incredible companions and are also one of the best dog breeds for first-time owners. Their energy can make them a handful at times, but their intelligence, adaptability, patience with people, and eagerness to please make them easy to train. Labs are one of the smartest dog breeds , so they pick up on things easily. As long as training is consistent and focused on positive reward and praise, a Chocolate Lab will do their best to respond as expected and will often exceed expectations. Chocolate Labs have a short, water-resistant coat that will shed year-round. Brushing a few times a week, daily brushing during seasonal shedding, and the occasional bath are all that are needed to keep a Lab coat healthy and looking great. They may need baths more often if they are avid swimmers, go on a lot of outdoor adventures, and get dirty a lot. Floppy ears tend to trap dirt, moisture, and debris. Proper dental care for dogs is imperative to help prevent painful dental diseases like gum disease or tooth decay later in life. You can also supplement your dental care efforts with vet-approved dental hygiene chews. Labrador Retrievers are one of the most active dog breeds and need a lot of daily activity to be happy and healthy. Daily walks plus playtime, time to run, and other activities are usually enough, but your Chocolate Labrador will likely be up for more activity if you are. One of the facts about Labrador Retrievers is that they have an extended puppyhood and tend to maintain that puppy-like energy and maturity until they are years old. Swimming can be a great lower-impact activity and Labrador Retrievers are one of the dog breeds that tend to love water. Between that, their water-resistant coat, and webbed toes, you may have trouble getting your Chocolate Lab out of the water. Fully-grown Chocolate Labrador Retrievers usually stand inches tall and weigh pounds. Chocolate Labs generally live for years on average. Fourteen years later, the American Kennel Club did the same in .Featured Chocolate Labrador Retriever Article.