Newbie puppy owner

[Mollymolloy]

We are in the middle of having a new kitchen fitted. A friend has offered us an 8 week old Labrador puppy. My children are delighted. I am not so sure as I am worried about damage to the new kitchen. We have never owned a dog before. However, I mostly work from home and my children will be home over the summer. Is a puppy a good idea?

If you're not sure then no. Dogs need to be a whole hearted commitment with everyone fully on board.

As a fairly recent puppy owner and a previous dog owner they are a lot of hard work and for quite some time can't be left for any length of time. There are so many implications that need to be thought through and if you're aren't 100 percent sure then now isn't the right time

My daughters and I are more than happy to spend time playing with the puppy and training her. We were planning on crating her when we went out for short periods. Can we avoid significant damage to furniture? It certainly can’t be good for her or the furniture.

Crate training will help. I've never had a problem with furniture being chewed - socks, shoes, toys etc yes. That said I have known two people with dogs who have chewed at kitchen units. You need to have eyes in the back of your head.

A puppy isn’t hugely likely to damage a kitchen that much, assuming it’s not just left there.

But that’s kind of nowhere near as big an issue as other stuff.

Why have you just randomly been offered a puppy? Why does someone have a spare one? Are it’s parents fully health tested?

Do you want a furry bitey toddler that takes up most of your day and can’t wear napped?

We have been thinking about having a puppy for a while. A friend has had some lab puppies. With the school holidays coming up, it seemed a good time to get a puppy if we wanted to get one.

We weren’t planning on leaving the puppy in the kitchen. Maybe just put the crate in there as it has a hard floor.

tabulahrasa - what do you mean by the other stuff?

Dogs are a massive commitment. We got our first dog last summer, and although I'd researched it I was unprepared for how full on he was. We love him to bits but it was a tough few weeks when he first arrived.

We use stair gates to keep him out of certain areas. Our kitchen and family room is open plan so there is a stairgate between the two areas so he doesn't get under our feet when cooking.

He doesn't chew furniture but he does chew our shoes.

Please don't get a puppy unless you have really considered all the pros and cons.

I don't think you can count your children in when it comes to playing with and training the puppy, the novelty will wear off. It needs to be your responsibility.

Mine didn't damage much but that is because we kept an eye on him all the time and used a massive crate for the times when we couldn't e.g. if cooking etc.

I WFH but it's very hard to do that with a puppy. Fortunately I could work late at night when DH came home to catch up. Have you thought how you will manage WFH? You still need to take them out lots of times for toilet training for many weeks.

Yes don’t rely on your DD’s support, my DS’ didn’t do any petcare although they did love our pets, every excuse in the book, feeding don’t like the smell, walking they didn’t want to pick up the business etc. But they make all the right noises at the time!

If you have doubts not do get the dog, for anyone that is house proud, owning a dog may not be right for you. Pups often cause damage, especially when left, it just something that they do. They are extremely hard work, even wfh, try to imagine wfh whilst looking after a baby, as it is very similar. You need to be taking them out to the garden at regular times. If you aren’t fully onboard with it, it will end up a disaster.

Good luck OP, I hope whatever you decide works out well for you.

I think if you are precious about stuff getting chewed and/or think your kids will be interested in trading/walking the puppy after a few weeks then the answer is no. Puppies notoriously chew everything ( friends puppy has chewed kitchen table legs, beds and sofas)....they are hard work and need all of your focus.

@Mollymolloy
Do you have a spare 2-3 hours/day for the next 10-12 years for training and exercising a dog? Is a lab the best fit for your family?

Can you afford insurance, vet bills, food?

Can you afford a dog walker/kennels?

Do you have a good understanding of fig body language,appropriate training techniques and safe dog-child interactions?

Have the parents been hip and elbow scored and had all of the other breed-appropriate tests ?

Have the puppies been properly socialised chipped etc?

Have you met both parents and evaluated their temperaments?

Sounds like your pal has decided to cash in on the pandemic puppy phase but is now struggling to find homes.

If you want a puppy do it properly

Also labs shed a lot and love trailing through mud and water
You'll need to spend time washing and hoovering mud and hair

If you're houseproud they may not be the best breed choice

You only need to turn your back for a minute for a Lab puppy to chew something. Mine chewed my iPad when I walked into the kitchen from the sitting room. She was very clever; I put it behind a cushion but she saw me and grabbed it out.

The other stuff....house training, teaching recall, sit, stay down, training to walk nicely on the lead. It honestly is like being a single mother. Also, as the adult, you really need to be firm with the children about them helping to train the puppy. You all need to be consistent with your methods, or the poor pup will get confused about what’s right and what isn’t. Children tend to reinforce the wrong behaviour, eg getting even more excited when puppy jumps up or barks.

My cleaner made it a game when she got out the broom to sweep the floor. The puppy was a nightmare after that when I tried to clean the floors. You’ll need at least one baby gate.

You won’t be able to go for days out if it’s somewhere that you can’t take a dog. Zoos, theme parks, etc etc.

Just my thoughts.

I’ve always lived with dogs. I have an 8 month old lab puppy, an older dog and 4 young grandchildren. I’m retired. He’s a lovely pup, great temperament, wants to please. He is happily crate trained, was house trained in a week.
He weighs over 25kg now. Lifting him into the boot to avoid him damaging his legs is a challenge. I have a ramp arriving today. He chewed the kitchen skirting boards at each corner - my husband was in the kitchen but missed stealth chewer sadly.

He can knock my younger grandchildren over by wagging his tail. He picks up anything from the floor, has a good ‘drop it, leave it’ command but can’t be left to joint the children’s floor play with dinasaurs/farm/dolls house.

I have a large utility, the dogs spend time in there, child safety gate to separate them and the children at key points. No malice, lovely kind gentle dogs
The dogs are in training groups, insured, stay with ,my dog trainer friend when we are away, or out all day. Labs eat huge amounts of expensive food. Vet bills just for routine are not small, mine are insured in case of disaster.

If you’ve any doubts don’t take this puppy. It’s a 24 hours each day commitment for 12-17 years.

Puppies are hard work and your DC will get fed up of being nipped, jumped on and scratched very quickly. Only take this puppy if you're prepared to do all the work - every single walk, training class, vet visit, poo pick, feeding session - the lot.

What will do you over the summer if you want a day out? You can't leave a puppy all day (or even for longer than 1-2 hours) so you'll need to find someone to care for them. They'll be too young for a dog walker so maybe a pet sitter or daycare, but they'll probably be fully booked for the summer break already people were booking for me in this summer, last summer!

Our puppy chewed the corner of the skirting board, and the furniture legs.
I think if you have any misgivings or doubts about what having a puppy might entail, don't do it yet, as reality could be ten times worse.
Puppies are Hard Work & will destroy stuff. Children are not safe, reliable or appropriate trainers or walkers, so it's down to you.
A dog will bring your family a lot of joy & entertainment like nothing else can, but don't underestimate how they will turn your life upside down.
Your puppy needs to be more important to you than an undamaged new kitchen.

Oops, didn't mean to press post

You say you mostly work from home but can you do that and toilet train a puppy at the same time? What will they do while you're working? And what happens if you do have to go into the office?

Can you afford all the related costs - holiday care (kennels aren't cheap), a dog walker if you're away all day, vet bills, food, flea and worm medication, insurance, leads, coats, collars, toys, chews, bowls etc?

I'm not by any means saying "don't do it" but I think you'll find you end up spending most of your summer break up at home with the puppy as they're too young to be walking for hours and will need lots of chances to rest and sleep.

Just be aware of what you're taking on and don't rely on anything your DC say when it comes to caring for it! If they do step up, fantastic, but there's thread after thread on here from overwhelmed owners whose DC (and DH!) have promised to do "everything" yet after a week they're bored and OP is left to do it all.

My friends lab eats EVERYTHING. scrapes and chews the floor tiles, has ruined sofas. He has a play pen to sleep in most of the time as he is rather destructive.

Training has helped....

The main reason that I am getting the dog is because I do a lot of walking and running. We live in a beautiful area with lots of lovely walks. I had horses for many years before I had children so, am used to the commitment and going out in all weathers. As we have cats, I was advised to get a puppy so that they all get used to each other. My daughters will be leaving home in a couple of years so, I thought that a dog would be good company/running mate. I am just worried about the puppy stage.

The puppy stage and then the teenage 'deaf and stubbornness' stage can be very long in labs when I think about the ones I know.

Maybe have a read on the puppy survival threads to see whether you really want to go ahead with a puppy.

Btw I adore my dog but never again. He was hard work as a young puppy and dog 😁

You should not get a dog. You honestly do not sound prepared.

I assummed the post would be about how noise from building work would impact the dog...not how the dog would impact your building work...

You will be taking on a lot and it will fall to you.
Who will look after it if you go on holiday for the next decade?
Who will look after it when you are not working from home.
Labs eat most things not bolted down and can be destructive.

Our not particularly destructive dog has caused hundreds of pounds worth of damage.
Their paws will scratch a lot of floor types.
They roll in things which they then roll into the carpet... You get the picture

www.thelabradorsite.com/health-screening-for-labrador-diseases/

Health testing

We had a new kitchen installed in October, got our puppy in March, he has done no damage at all to the furniture or kitchen units, mostly just goes for any shoes he can find but we got him loads of chew toys which helps.

Having a puppy was the worst 3 weeks of my life, no exaggeration haha. She is over a year now and the loveliest chill dog, but it was an absolute NIGHTMARE - they do not stop biting you until about 4/5 months when their adult teeth come in, they do chew everything, you do have to watch them constantly like a hawk. I would never get a puppy with young children either, you can really spot the ones who have young children in the family as their training wasn’t as good - super hard to click train a puppy to respond to certain words when you have a 5 year old yelling “dinner!!!” At it and chasing it around the park. If your children are 7+ it would be doable. I think labs are famous furniture chewers. Don’t assume it will be good in a crate, some dogs are but some never take to it. Assume sleepless nights like you have a newborn for the first 4 weeks. Just telling you how hard it is so you think on it! People tell you human babies are hard but no one ever seems to let you know how hard a puppy is. Like a newborn baby that is completely mobile, not in nappies, and biting you and all wires/the carpet/houseplants.