Cheerful Labradors are ready to work or play actively at any time. Despite the cozy “plush” look, they are sprinters. These dogs can run at a speed of twenty kilometers per hour. And they swim faster than ducks, at a speed of almost five km / h! The longest Labrador jump was recorded - more than 8 meters!
If you want to get a Labrador puppy, the description of the breed, education and care for him need to be studied in advance.
Acquaintance with the breed
The correct breed name according to FCI classification is the Labrador Retriever. These are large hunting dogs, and they are popular in most countries of the world.
Labradors have become faithful helpers in many aspects of life.
They mastered the profession of a guide dog. Hunters praise their working qualities. Reliable partners in families with children.
But the guards will not work out of them: in a person they see only a friend and also do not show aggression towards animals.
Labrador is hardy, has good health. He likes coolness and is not afraid of a cold, but he can be kept in an apartment. Life expectancy reaches 10-12 years.
With proper upbringing and care, the Labrador puppy is well trained, despite the wild temperament.
Why education?
Like any dogs of large breeds, Labradors grow up slowly. Their childhood lasts up to three years. Therefore, the care and upbringing of a Labrador puppy is aimed at training obedience.
The puppy will not restrain himself from splashing in the water. Let it be just a puddle or ditch.
He is ready to eat everything, always and everywhere. Happily runs to rummage in a dump.
Most of all, the Labrador loves to play and starts games with all the animals on a walk.
A teenager becomes an uncontrollable dog.
The upbringing, care and feeding of the Labrador Retriever help competently and gradually deal with the baby. Then the negative side of his energetic character will not manifest at all.
For a successful start
Get ready for the puppy to appear in the house: keep away the small things that he can swallow. Wires, extension cords and antennas should not be accessible to a curious pet.
Do not leave books, underwear, shoes, sharp objects, sewing supplies, pills, or chemicals within his reach.
Carpet a slippery floor. In extreme cases, put rubber tracks. This will help protect the joints of the young Labrador.
Before bringing the baby home, prepare in advance the care and upbringing of the Labrador puppy:
- vitamins and feed on which the breeder grew it;
- special shampoos, comb and brush for hair care;
- bowls on a stand for water and food;
- a variety of toys, soft collars, various leash lengths;
- and necessarily “place” - a mattress in a case.
Puppy in an unfamiliar house
While the pet gets used to a new place of residence, he experiences emotional stress. From this, the baby is very tired, increased irritability is manifested. Dandruff may even appear on the fur. After getting used to the new house, it will disappear. The appetite of the Labrador puppy will also be restored.
How to care for a pet? It must be remembered that these first days are the most important for your relationship with your pet. Around him is a new and amazing world. There are no brothers and sisters, a cozy mom's side. Until the baby feels calm and safe, try to understand him and do not scold for the committed "crimes". He will get used in about two weeks.
The puppy wants to examine everything by tooth: indoor flowers, books, shoes and clothes, a master's dinner, electric wires ...
Despite all this, be patient. It is important that your pet feels love and understanding. This is where the care and upbringing of a Labrador puppy begins.
If the baby grabbed small objects, first bend down his head, and then take it away. If you start to open his mouth by raising his face, the puppy can swallow them.
You can’t pull anything from a small pet out of your teeth. Be it rags, sticks, leash or toys. Because the baby's jaws are still weak and you can spoil the bite.
If the puppy whines on the first night, go to him. Caress and calm. After all, he is scared and restless by himself in a strange house.
But just do not take him to your bed, he will settle there forever.
Feeding, grooming and raising a Labrador puppy
You must remember: you cannot raise a healthy and beautiful dog on the leftovers from the table, throwing him bones and “meat for dogs”.
Labradors are great lovers of food and often do not mind taking something off the table. Therefore, be sure to adhere to the feeding regimen. The puppy should remain “round”, dense, but not fat. Constant overfeeding threatens with growth disorders that are difficult to cope with: a heavy step, a sagging back line and even joint dysplasia.
The baby is growing very actively: compared with birth, its weight will increase tenfold in five months. It becomes clear that when feeding, caring and raising a Labrador puppy, its active growth must be taken into account.
Newborn babies at the breeder feed on mother's milk. And already in the third week they are given additional complementary foods: fresh cottage cheese, boiled egg, scroll boiled meat. It is important to follow the correct feeding schedule:
- up to three months - Five times;
- in four to five months. - four times;
- at six to ten months. - three times.
A teenage puppy at eleven months of age gets food like an adult dog - twice a day. Feed your pet after a walk, constantly at the same time. The kid quickly adapts to the regime, without giving the owner additional trouble with how to care for and feed the Labrador puppy.
Natural feed
If you decide to feed your dog with natural products, consider a number of features:
- Complementary foods begin with fermented milk products. Further, they will become the basis of the entire diet. This is kefir or yogurt, unsweetened natural yogurt and low fat cottage cheese.
- The kids are given boiled meat: beef or poultry. Necessarily pitted. From two months, offer slices of raw beef.
- Puppy's vitamins are pampered with vegetables (carrots, squash, pumpkin, beets) and fruits (apples, pears and even grapes). They can be offered to the Labrador Retriever even raw.
- Of cereals, rice, oatmeal, buckwheat is recommended. From them you can cook porridge in the meat broth.
- Chicken eggs can cause allergies in dogs. Therefore, they can be given in a day or two or only once a week.
- Only marine fish are given. It should be non-greasy, boneless and boiled.
The approximate ratio of products in your pet's diet: 50% meat, 30% cereals, 20% boiled vegetables. Sometimes it’s good to include beef offal in the puppy’s menu: heart, scar, lungs.
Labrador has the highest meat requirement at the age of nine months. A male needs about a kilogram per day, a bitch needs seven hundred grams. Then the daily portion of meat is gradually reduced. At fifteen months old, his puppy needs only five hundred grams per day. It is advisable to give meat in the evening.
Vitamin complexes are added to food. They are sold in the form of capsules, powders, granules, tablets or drops.
What your dog should never eat
When choosing a Labrador puppy, learn how to care for and feed him in detail with the breeder.
Labradors (puppies and adults) are strictly forbidden:
- smoked, salted, spicy foods;
- pasta and flour products;
- any sweets (sweets, cakes, jam, chocolate, cookies, sugar);
- tubular bones;
- pork and all kinds of sausages;
- legumes (peas, beans);
- potatoes;
- cabbage;
- onion.
Dog food should not be hot or cold. If after feeding the leftovers are not eaten within twenty minutes, they must be removed. Labrador retriever puppy is very easy to overfeed, kids have an excellent appetite.
Complete feed
Many owners of labradors find it convenient to feed the dog with finished food. It is nutritious, animal protein, microelements, amino acids, vitamins are balanced in it. The premium and super premium categories of well-known manufacturers have earned excellent reviews from veterinarians, breeders and dog owners. Feeding, grooming and raising a Labrador puppy is not difficult for them.
High-quality prepared food does not contain harmful additives - GMOs, flavoring agents, coloring agents. Additional vitamin complexes are not needed.
How much to pour such feed into a pet's bowl is indicated on the package. If a puppy eats up everything greedily, and then licks his bowl for a long time, you can do more portions.
Clean drinking water should always be available for the pet. Change it every day.
No need to mix natural food with dry granules. Complete feed contains all the necessary components.
Having noticed what brand the puppy liked, try to feed only her. Labrador digestion adapts to constant feed. A change in diet can cause upset stomach for a while.
Parenting begins
Care and education of a Labrador (1.5 months) are necessary from the first day of his appearance in your home.
The kid is introduced to the room, which will become his home, with people and animals with whom he will live. A pet is shown his toys and tray. You must immediately accustom your puppy to hygiene. Leaving him alone for at least the first month is not recommended.
Big sleepyhead, the baby needs a quiet nook where children or other animals will not bother him. The first months of the life of a Labrador largely determine the balance of his character. It is important to balance the alternation of feedings, games with rest.
Children need to be explained that a puppy is not a toy. They should take seriously that a pet needs a calm sleep.
Set aside for a while the purchase of beautiful basket houses. Until the pet understands that the sleeping mattress is not food, a large cardboard box can serve as a house for him. A slit is made in it - the entrance, the litter is placed.
Features of raising and caring for a Labrador puppy from 2 months are that puppies of this age really like to bite. This is very painful for them, because milk teeth are sharp as needles.
Explain to the foolishly that it hurt: lightly click the puppy on the nose, saying “fu”, “not”.
A little Labrador does not need active physical activity at all. Quite a little, about ten minutes, to play with him in the garden. There is no need to make long walks while it grows.
Protect your pet from slippery floors, high jumps, climbing stairs. That is, all that can cause "articular shock."
Even if the Labrador Retriever looks like an adult at eight to nine months old, he is still a baby. Any accidental oversight of the owner can have sad consequences.
Pet health
Your little pet has been treated with anthelmintic procedures in the nursery three times: ten days, three weeks and seven weeks. It will be necessary to give these drugs ten days before re-vaccinations. Repeat is done three to four weeks after the very first vaccination.
Before leaving the breeder, the Labrador puppy was vaccinated against plague, parvovirus enteritis, viral hepatitis and leptospirosis. To fully protect him from fatal diseases, a second vaccination is needed. Until it is set, quarantine is maintained. After vaccination, the puppy can not be walked on the street for another two weeks and allowed to contact it with other dogs. Be careful! After all, the virus of the disease can be brought on the soles of street shoes!
The upbringing and care of a Labrador puppy at 3 months is no different from the previous age.
Follow the feeding tips. In winter, give your pet fish oil as a source of vitamin D, in the summer wheat germ oil is recommended. Do not get carried away, follow the dosage so as not to cause hypervitaminosis.
Until six months, until the teeth are changed, the puppy can be bitten by large beef bones as a toy. But for an adult Labrador, this is dangerous - there is a risk of injuring the intestines. It’s better to buy him bones from the tendons in the pet store.
Daily hygiene
Care and education of a Labrador puppy require mandatory hygiene procedures.
After walking, wash your baby's feet or wipe them with a damp cloth. Protect the delicate pads from the harmful salt sprinkled on the streets. For this, the soles of the puppy's paws are lubricated with ointment, which includes natural wax.
Labradors do not require special care for wool. If a naughty pet fell out in the mud, they bathe him with shampoo for puppies in warm water.
For daily care, just wipe the baby's fur coat with a damp cloth. A set of them can always be bought at a pet store. In the same place, get a soft brush made of special rubber. She will give the coat a beautiful shine, and a light massage when combing stimulates blood circulation and the puppy likes it.
A couple of times a month, trim your pet's claws with special nippers. Ears are cleaned once a week with cotton swabs moistened with ear lotion. Eyes should be wiped daily with cotton pads. They can be moistened with eye liquid or just boiled water.
Proper education and care for a Labrador puppy will help you raise a great companion. A faithful friend who evokes admiring glances will live a happy life and bring many happy days to you.
The basis of the coexistence of the owner and the dog is everyone's understanding of their role. Principle: a person controls a pet strictly, but always fairly. Dog obedience is based on respect for the owner's justice.