Puppy Survival Thread - for old and new pups heading into winter

[Lougle]

A thread to continue our journey with our puppies as we head into winter.

If you're new to having a puppy, jump straight in.

She is quite big, she isn’t quite 5 months yet and she must be 15+ kg as it’s a few weeks since I weighed her. She seems to have grown up in the last few weeks, it’s nice when you start to see the training paying off. Not counter surfing so much, and when we walk I only have to remind her to heel and she starts her walk off nicely although she does get bored/tired of being good after a while.

She's going to be big, @thenewaveragebear1983. She's looking great. 😍 FluffyPup was only about 12kg at that point.

We brushed him last night. Just got a bit of fur. 😬 (Phone for scale!)

Our older pup was 14.8 kg at just over 4 months. She's ended up being quite a small lab.

Hazel was 11.3kg at 4 months and 13.8kg at 5 months. I think labs are quite unpredictable, aren't they?

Older pup ended up a bit smaller height wise than I expected based on her parents. Younger one is now a very similar height but is a different build so don't expect her to reach the same weight. She may end up taller though. We shall see.

FluffyPup isn't as big as we thought he'd be. His mum is quite small for a lab, and he isn't much bigger, height-wise, but is a different build to her. He has a working front and a show rear, according to his trainer!

Can I check - does she seem the right weight to you all? I find it hard to decide if she's healthy looking or if I need to feed her more? She doesn't seem like she's hungry after meals, but I wouldn't want to under feed her either.

Ignore the hairy floor. I'd like to pretend it's a rare thing!

Hairy floor is compulsory with a lab, let alone a lab + another hairy beastie!

She looks good to me. Can't see her ribs, but I bet you can feel them when stroking her (which is how it should be). Doesn't look skinny or chunky!

Giving the lab look out of the window!

@Lougle she looks absolutely fine to me

There's been so much rain here, a lot of our usual walking routes are flooded. This is a path/cycleway normally.

Wow! That's a puddle!

Labrador paradise!!

@Lougle I think she looks great! Very healthy.

Wow @tizwozliz that's a big puddle! We've had to give up on a common we go to because it's running with water.

Pup has gotten ribby again so I took her to be weighed today. She's 16.4kg and will be 5 months old on the 7th. I'm already feeding over the feeding guide so I've decided to switch to a working feed, fingers crossed she'll fill out a bit.

I met someone from the local GSP club at the weekend, she had lots of good advice pup's nerviness. I'll take her along to their monthly training.

@Lougle - I’m sure I’ve asked this before, is she an English or American lab. American labs are slighter compared to their stockier English cousins. My lab is 18 months and is now around 27kg.

(Another lab picture to add to the portfolio)

@Riverlee you have asked before. She's ¾ show ('English') and ¼ working ('American'), but people who know labs have commented that she has more of a working look to her.

I don't think I've ever walked so much. Our poodle shih Tzu cross just can't get enough. We do at least two a day and he is obsessed. Luckily there's a path we can be off lead on and he can go for a swim. He has so much energy. Really feel like we're through the rough patch.

Just jumping on to say @Lougle your dog looks in perfect condition. I think people get so used to seeing square shaped labs with no waist that when they see a lab like yours in great shape it looks very slender in comparison.

I've always done loads of walking. Running, however, isn't my thing. It is FluffyPup's though. 😩 We can often be seen galloping through the woods / along paths. He makes people smile when they see him, as he's so happy running. 😍

Hello!
Not had a chance to join you for a while.

Hiddenpup is currently in the vet being neutered. She is 6 months and we discussed neutering after her first season but decided that it was best to do it before.

She has calmed down a lot recently, less barking randomly and less over excited with other dogs. I suspect she will always be vocal, being a mini schnauzer it's inevitable, but I tend to think of her like a permanent 2yr old with the standard toddler loud voice with incessant chatter 😆

Pup very happy to be off lead in the woods again

Thanks @ilovesushi that's encouraging.

@tizwozliz she looks very happy.

Hazel enjoyed the field and river yesterday.

We finally had FluffyPup weighed today and he's 24kg.

Loving the happy outdoor doggy photos!

24kg is a nice size.

He's not a big lab at all. But he's also not fully-grown yet, as he's 15 months this weekend.

He's heavy enough when he stands on your foot! 🤣

Here's some outdoor photos of pup hunting for critters. She's getting braver in terms of how far away from me she's prepared to go (think speck on the horizon) but her recall to whistle is still brilliant. She stalked a crow earlier and chased it after she'd flushed it out... three pips on the whistle and she bolted back! Hopefully adolescence doesn't bite me on the bum but I suspect it might