Question:
Hey all;

I'm currently considering obtaining a Chocolate Lab. He is 7 months old, the current owner has had the Lab, Chandler, since the age of 3 months. The Lab is partially house broken and received very little discipline. I've done some reading on various breeds of dogs and the Lab would be a good fit. The Lab appears, from the photos, to be a pure but there is no pedigree and he is not CKC registered. There are no tattoos (I think pures are usually tattooed?) or markings that the current owner is aware of. The current owner is asking $400 CAD for Chandler but I feel, in light of what I've been reading and reviewing in the local ads, that this may be a tad high for a dog with extremely little background information. I'm hoping to obtain some sound advice from others here in the forum. My daughter is 8yrs of age and falls prey to the autistic spectrum. She has good motor coordination skills, a solid comprehension of language (although she does have trouble communicating) but is a very happy young girl. She tends to spend a lot of time on the computer but always talks about other dogs that she has encountered. I have a decent sized home with a large lot and have researched the level of exercise required for various breeds. I've researched such breeds as the German Shepherd, Huskie, Lab / Retriever, Bernese Mountain Dog, Doberman Pinscher and a few others. I'm currently seriously considering a German Shepherd or Lab / Retriver. (I see a lot of Lab or Retriever breeds are the two terms synonomous? IE Labrador Retriever) Please excuse my ignorance, although I have owned dogs in the past, I was young and never honestly took the time to get to know about the dog, other than on a personal-bond level).

Thanks in advance for any input.

Carter


Answer:
'Labrador Retriever' is the breed name, but if you're looking at ads and see Labrador/Retriever, it could mean Lab/Golden Retriever mix. Be sure to ask a lot of questions about the dog. Go see the dog in person. Be sure to have the dog meet your daughter before you make a final decision and see how they interact together.
As far as cost goes, if your looking for a pet, try a shelter. Dogs are a lot cheaper than 400 and may either already be spayed/neutered and be utd on shots or may come with vouchers so the animal can be altered and vaccinated later for little or no additional cost.
If for whatever reason, you want a purebred, look at breed specific rescues or breeders in addition to shelters.
Consider the age of the dog. I can't say much about smaller breeds, but large breeds (like Labs) take 2-3 years to fully get out of the 'puppy' stage which can involve a lot of destructive behavior (teething, digging, 'accidents'. rough housing, and more). They need to be taught what behavior is acceptable and what isn't. They may jump up on people, nip at people, scratch, play bite, etc and you have to teach them not to do all of this. It's more work. Some dogs are harder to teach than others. A puppy will have to be potty trained, which takes time and patience. A shelter dog of any age may require re-training after being in a shelter for some time.
Also, Labs sometimes have 'whip' tails. Some are worse than others. When the dog is happy and the tails goes crazy, they can unintentionally whack you repeatedly and it doesn't always feel good. With your daughter, it's something you'll want to consider.
The dogs personality is more important than size, breed, and appearance. Some dogs just don't mix with children. Some dogs are ok with the people that are close to them, but are nervous around strangers. Some dogs think all humans are their best friends.
I've got two Lab mix mutts and a Golden Retriever mutt. They are awesome dogs. Matty loves kids and just about everyone she meets, but is a little cautious of people with gloves and hats, though she has not done more than move away from them. Matty is very active, sometimes knocks even bigger kids down. She gets depressed if life events get in the way of our playing with her. Matty's tail is fluffy and spirals. She doesn't shed much and is not a big drooler. She doesn't mind being left alone for long periods as long as you play fetch or Frisbee when you get back. Matty tolerates cats, but wouldn't be at all sad if there were no cats left in the world. She shows little interest in the caged critters.
Bear is usually carefull not to bump into to people. He's not allowed around small kids. Bear is cautious of strangers and is not good with small children. He doesn't like anyone other than his immediate human family grabbing onto his head or neck. He likes to have something in his mouth almost all the time, usually a the remnants of a stuffed toy. He doesn't fetch or play tug-o-war. He's just happy to just be in the same room as you and he doesn't require as much attention as Matty. He hates to be left alone though. He's got to have another person or dog with him at all time. Bears got a tail that hurts when he wacks you with it. He sheds and drools more than Matty. Bear loves cats and does well around small animals.
Lucy never learned to play with toys and isn't interested in them. She loves everyone and will let little kids pull her tail and ears, lay on top of her, and give her kisses. She just likes attetion. The worst she does is wack kids in the face with her tail, which isn't as whip like as Bear's, but hurts a little. She's good with cats and small animals too, though I'd never trust her with a bird as she hunts the quail outside. She doesn't mind being left alone for long periods of time, and actually enjoys being outside by herself without the other dogs every once in a while.
I think you'd need a dog that's more like my Lucy. Be sure to ask a ton of questions if you get a dog from an individual. Consider:
- personality
- age (personality will change)
- grooming
- size (bigger dogs require more space, food, and there's more dog to groom)
- good with kids
- good with strangers
- activity level
- will a dog fit into your schedule
- health
Ihope that extremely long post has helped some what. I think I babbled some.


Answer:
Thanks for the information, I greatly appreciate it. One further thing I missed inquiring of is the food. Apparently the current owner is feeding the Lab Actruim1 (lamb) because other brands were found to upset the dog's stomach. I'm wondering if this might indicate an internal issue with the dog? Maybe I'm digging too deep but at 7 months and I'm guessing no vet visits or shots, I'm wondering if this might be an indication of parasites?