About Marley And Me

kendalam

Member
I am new to the doggie world, Marley is my first puppy, at almost four months he knows how to sit, lay down and his potty training has been going great, with no accidents in over a week. My only real problem with his behavior is during our walks, he is a Lab mix and loves to chew on his leash.

What do I do to get him to stop ?
 

running_dog

Honored Member
No idea about the leash but someone is sure to turn up with advice soon and I'll enjoy reading the answer as much as you!
In the meantime, Welcome to DTA!
Marley is absolutely gorgeous :)
 

laramie

Experienced Member
You have a gorgeous puppy! I've heard about trying a chain leash to stop the chewing. Please don't get this confused with a chain or prong collar. A chain leash is simply what it says, a leash with links of chain and a nylon handle at the end. This way, when your puppy chews, he gets the unpleasantness of the chain against his teeth. He should stop chewing it soon after he experiences this, so there would be no damage to his mouth or teeth. If he seems to enjoy this (some silly pups may :D) then switch back to nylon. Also, try bitter spray on the area where he chooses. I've recently gotten some Grannicks Bitter Apple spray, but my dog liked it. I don't know if yours will because I've heard good things about this spray. My pup is a little bit crazy, so this may be her problem. :LOL:
 

kendalam

Member
Thank you, and your suggestions sound great, I will definitely take the chain into consideration. It may be just what my lil pup needs.

:)
 

kendalam

Member
Concerned about Marley's agression while walking, he sometimes gets mad if I tell him to come and tug on the leash a bit, he starts biting, I also noticed him charging and growling when I walk away. I only do that cause it was what I was told to do instead of pulling.

:( he's 3 months is this normal, and what do I do to prevent it ?
 

kendalam

Member
Marley is almost four months and I'm concerned about his feeding. Currently I am feeding him 1 cup of Blue buffalo puppy 3 times a day, morning, noon, and night. Someone recently told me I should be giving Marley an unlimited amount of food. I became more concerned when another friend said she noticed he picks everything up and eats it or chews on it.

I guess my question is
Is this just the nature of a Lab mix puppy, or should I be feeding him more ?
 

jennyw

Well-Known Member
Hi I have the same problem with my 4 month springer spaniel. I was following the feeding guidelines on the pack but he looked so scrawny. I rang the advice line on the pack but they weren't much help. Also my vet was a little vague on the subject, just agreed he looked a little underweight and told me to put his food up but not by how much! She said being a springer he burns it off so quickly he needs extra. I also can't find out what he should weigh to help me know how much to feed so I'm basically increasing his portions every week and monitoring how he looks. So hard to know what to do for the best! But I'm sure someone here will have some good advice!
 

Lone Star

Member
Hey, I'm by no means a dog expert, I am about to be a first-time puppy owner so I've been doing a lot of research lately on dogs/puppies and different breeds. I read that labs have a huge appetite and will eat almost anything, even non-food items. So that may be his part-lab kicking in! As far as puppies go, I read on several sites that you should feed them only 3 times a day, not unlimited amounts, because this could lead to unhealthy weight gain. This would also prevent you from housebreaking them because with feeding them 3x a day, you know when to take them out (10-15 minutes after they've eaten). Also with puppies, you shouldn't overfeed, so if you're training/teaching them tricks, you can ration out their food to use as treats/rewards.
 

running_dog

Honored Member
Kendalam, I wonder if you re post your question in the puppies section you might get more responses. I know very little about pups - I got my dog at 5 months old and at that point in time it was hard to get him to eat anything! I'm so tired of him spitting food out I'm teaching him to "hold" a hotdog sausage at the moment, not something I'd know how to begin training to a lab without losing my fingers as well as the sausage!

Like Lone Star says, however much you feed them Labs ARE dreadful scroungers. I certainly would not be feeding as much as they want. I have a friend with several labs and he works very hard to keep them at the "right" weight, they always have 2 ribs just showing or their diet is adjusted, I'd happily follow that as a rule of thumb for most dogs (and cows :ROFLMAO:). The vet LOVES them as they are the only labs he knows that are the right weight. But these are adult dogs, I don't know whether this would be right for a pup. Lone Star's response makes a lot of sense.

I think 4 months IS one of the particularly exploratory and chewy stages anyway, but if you ask on the puppy forum someone will hopefully confirm that :cautious:.
 

Anneke

Honored Member
Hi Kenadalam!
Well, following the guidelines of your foodbrand is usually not the way to go. For some dogs the given amount is too much and they grow fat, for some dogs it just isn't enough. i feed by eye, meaning my dog should look lean. When you put your hands on the sides of your dog, about a hand witdh behind the front legs(pointy bit, elbows) you should be able to feel the ribs of your dog, without putting to much pressure on your fingers. Because your dog is still a puppy you can allow some puppyfat.
But I would NEVER give the dog unlimmited acces to food, especcially when there is a lab in the mix. Labs tend to overeat. Heavy dogs( fat dogs) are not happy dogs!
When you are training you can use light treats, like boiled chicken(my dogs love that)or look for diet hotdogs(less fat)

The picking stuff up, that is pretty normal, I think, for a puppy. It doesn't have to be because he is hungry. They want to investigate things and it is up to you to teach him what he can pick up and what not. So I would teach him " leave it"
If this is happening around the house, he picks up or chews on maybe a slipper or what ever, just trade him for it with something he is allowed to chew on(like a bone or a toy). You hold the bone or toy in front of him, and as soon as he drops the item in his mouth, you give the bone. You can add a command to the dropping part. Leave it, or drop it. Say this the moment lets go.
Good luck!
 

mewzard

Experienced Member
Marley is almost four months and I'm concerned about his feeding. Currently I am feeding him 1 cup of Blue buffalo puppy 3 times a day, morning, noon, and night. Someone recently told me I should be giving Marley an unlimited amount of food. I became more concerned when another friend said she noticed he picks everything up and eats it or chews on it.

I guess my question is
Is this just the nature of a Lab mix puppy, or should I be feeding him more ?
Unlimted food and any dog IMO is not a good idea. Feed him a little extra if he looks lean, as Anneke says feel for ribs if you can feel them easily then up his food a small amount. With Lab in the mix you don't want to allow him to over eat and they are often over eaters.
Also at 4 months they are chewy animals and teething! We gave Oka frozen banana's at this age as they were relatively healthy and being frozen they lasted a while and soothed at the same time. Also frozen dish cloths. Mouthing things, picking them up is normal, it's like a human baby - they get most of thier input from the world though thier mouth becuase that is the most sensative part of thier body for learn. This is doubly true for dogs and they don't have hands like us!
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I worry when people say puppies are aggressive - it's not a good mindset to have. He is a baby, he is a toddler having a tantrum becuase he is looking here and you are saying 'no we are leaving'. Teach him "leave" for the lead, and take treats with you to lure him where you want to go. The lead is probably still a little wierd to him. I have taught Oka to "go sniff" so she can have time to just do that but them when she has finished or i'm ready to move on i say "close" and i get very little resistance. Oka is 14months and bites the lead when we get ready to go for a walk, we tell her "leave" and she lets go if she starts to bite again we just stop moving (as often she is trying to hurry us up) and tell her to "leave" again.
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Another idea is to put all his food for the day in a bag and use it to train throughout the day so that way he is always being rewarded and doesn't have perios when he is hungry :)
 

kendalam

Member
Update: Marley is doing great ! At almost 5 months he's learned how to sit, lye down, give paw. stay and not to charge at his food dish. Since my last post we bought his new chain leash, and he walks a lot better, no more chewing. :) Thank you for all your suggestions, we are truely greatful.
 
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