We're getting a dog!

[BrerGnat]

We are bringing home a dog on Sunday! We are sort of "adopting" him (for a price). He belongs to a hobby breeder who decided to release him from the show program because he isn't cut out for the ring...not enough showmanship. He is a just turned 1 year old black lab named Louie. Right now, he is living on a farm up in North Central PA, with 3 other labs, cats, rabbits, chickens, goats, and 4 young children in the home.

I am concerned about how he will react to being removed from his home and brought to a place that is very different from what he is used to. He is apparently a very well mannered, sweet boy with a wonderful temperament. I worry that he will be homesick, though. We live in a suburban area, in a home with a large fenced yard and lots of nice walking trails and such, so it's really a nice area to have a dog. Most people around here have dogs, so he will have lots of potential doggie friends to play with.

He is already crate trained, housebroken fully, and has good "house manners." Shockingly, for a Lab, he is not much of a chewer, which is great news! We have a crate for him all ready to go, and plan to continue crating him at night and when we go out, which is what he is used to at home right now.

Can anyone offer me any helpful advice to make the transition easier for him? Also, what kinds of behaviors might I encounter if he is homesick or anxious? We have a rather long car ride to get him back here (approx. 4 hours), so any advice for the car ride as well would be appreciated! We will put the crate in the back of our SUV and he will ride in there.

[Belle of the Ball 051411]

Congrats on the adoption of your furbaby! We have a yellow lab named Bandit (almost 5). Labs are such wonderful dogs; they have the sweetest disposition.

It sounds like you are well prepared. We also crate trained our dog. We stopped using the crate at age 2.5 (except for car trips). Bandit does fine in the car in his crate, we usually put some toys in there for him. He usually just sleeps. Occasionally we'll give him a treat or two.

Labs are pack animals so they love to be around people. Wherever we go, Bandit follows. He is definitely our best friend. We don't have any children yet but know that Bandit will be a good big brother someday. He is a protector and barks if someone comes to the door or hears a strange noise. In my opinion, labs are the best dogs to have!

Enjoy your new lab!

[SBETigg]

Sounds like a perfect match! He will adapt faster than you imagine. Having the love of new people will make the new surroundings feel less strange. It might be good if you could bring him with something that smells of his old home. But really, lots of love and attention could do the trick. Congratulations on the new addition. Enjoy!

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

I've heard that if you can bring blankets, toys or anything familiar from their old home with them it helps with the transition.

[DVC2004]

Congrats! How exciting! I am sure he will adapt very quickly.

We adpoted a kitty in December after mine passed away. He is 2 years old. I was also thinking about how he would adapt, but he was right at home from the second he got there. It's like he's always been with us. We just love him and he makes us so happy every day. Adoption is a great thing!

Enjoy your new furbaby!

[princessgirls]

Congratulations Natalie and Family!!!

That's awesome!!! Your boys will love Louie!!

We crate our dog Minnie when we aren't home, she can get into mischief, and you know, sometimes when we are home, she goes in it to escape...

Louie will adjust to his new surroundings in no time flat.
We adopted our dog, and with love and patience it went really smooth. I often wonder what her "old" life was like. She was found walking on a street and spent some time in a pound, but according the the Vet and the groomer, she was cared for.
She loves the girls, but I am her "pack" leader. She knows I am the go to person for most of her needs. One of her favorite things in the world is when I say "Minnie, you want to go in the truck for a ride". She runs to the door with such excitement. The drive up window at our bank gives out dog treats, so I usually try and take her when going there. IT's the little things...
Congratulations!!! Welcome Home Louie!!
Julie

[Daisy'sMom]

We have a german shepherd that will be 7 next week and three great danes all under three. We adopted the danes all at the same time and it took no time at all for them to fit our family. We just set down the rules, showed them alot of love and made sure they exercised alot! What ever you do, just love him. He is like a small child.

[BrerGnat]

Thanks everyone! I've had dogs before, but always got them as puppies.

This is "our" dog, I feel. My older son has had a very specific desire for a "big, black dog" since he was about 3 years old (he's almost 8 now). He is drawn to the retrievers when we see them out, so we decided a Labrador would be great for us. Our two boys are on the Autism spectrum, so finding a dog with a good, calm, even temperament was very important to us. We have inquired into lab rescues in our area, but due to our sons issues, and young age (they are 6 and 7), the rescues were not convinced that it was the best option for us. They suggested looking for a breeder who has an older dog that needs placement into a pet home. I found a few, sent out inquiries, and as soon as I talked to the owner about Louie, I had a very strong gut feeling that we NEEDED to be this dog's new family. It happened a bit faster than we thought it would, since we just started seriously looking last week (after we found out DH was being stationed here another 3 years). However, I told my DH that we needed to go for it. This dog seems like the perfect fit for our family. He is even a St. Patrick's day baby like our younger son! Plus, his full pedigree name includes "KING LOUIE", so he's already a bit of a Disney Dog.

I am hopeful that everything will go smoothly and that he will feel like part of our family in no time. I'm home all day, so I will be here with him, and I plan to start obedience training immediately so he knows his place. There will be lots of long walks for us as well, so he can explore his new territory. For their part, my boys are eager to help feed, brush, and play with Louie.

[luvDaMouse]

Congratulations on adopting your new 4 legged "child" We have a yellow lab Malibu who is 5 years old. You need to have many, many toys for him. They are mouthy animals so when they get excited to see you when you get home they usually need something in their mouth. Mine loves anything with a squeaker! Also they are very food motivated, you can teach them anything with a "cookie" As a previous poster said they are pack animals and will love to be with you at all times, but they can also get into some mischief , just remember never to treat his crate as a punishment place it always needs to be his "safe" home place.
Love him and he will love you back always!

Dana

[Belle of the Ball 051411]

Congratulations on adopting your new 4 legged "child" We have a yellow lab Malibu who is 5 years old. You need to have many, many toys for him. They are mouthy animals so when they get excited to see you when you get home they usually need something in their mouth. Mine loves anything with a squeaker! Also they are very food motivated, you can teach them anything with a "cookie" As a previous poster said they are pack animals and will love to be with you at all times, but they can also get into some mischief , just remember never to treat his crate as a punishment place it always needs to be his "safe" home place.
Love him and he will love you back always!

Dana

I second everything Dana said! My yellow lab also loves squeaky toys and his crate is safe domain. Also, labs have a TON of energy so it's good you plan to take him on long walks. They also love to swim. We take Bandit to doggy daycare 2 times a week. He loves it and is sooo tired he sleeps all night after we pick him up.

[MNNHFLTX]

Natalie, your post made me smile, as we used to have a beautiful big black lab named Louie. He left us two years ago, but he was the best dog ever--a sweet, gentle giant.

I'm sure he'll assimilate into your environment with a little time and patience. The one thing I would suggest is to teach the boys not to bring their face down to his level, at least not at first and definitely not when training him. Even the best-behaved dog can get nervous when another "pack" member gets in their face. It's always best for the "alpha" dog to be taller.

We too had our dogs (we have another smaller black lab too) crate-trained and it worked well. We never kept them in the crate for longer than four hours, especially Louie as it was a little cramped for him (and the crate was huge!) We stopped using them after moving here to Houston, but so funny--years later, if we were to give the command "crate!" to either dog, they would immediately go lie down on their beds, which used to be in the crates. They truly are creatures of habit.

Good luck and enjoy your Louie!

[disney obsessed]

Congrats!

Labs are the best.

[Mickey'sGirl]

Congratulations!! I remember past posts that you were looking at getting a lab. They are such wonderful dogs!

[BrerGnat]

Natalie, your post made me smile, as we used to have a beautiful big black lab named Louie. He left us two years ago, but he was the best dog ever--a sweet, gentle giant.

Awww. Sorry you lost him.

I'm hoping this Louie doesn't turn out to be a giant! His owner says he is on the small side, though, more like a female size, and she's fairly certain he's done growing vertical. But, he will be plenty big for us! Our boys are little.

[wildernesslady]

Congrats on your new addition. We also had a black lab and she became part of the family in two minutes. Louie will bring such joy to your lives.

One thing about labs, and I say this with kiddingly. They aren't the brightest. Ours had the biggest heart, but really lacked in the brain department. We lost her 4 years ago and we still talk about her crazy antics.

Enjoy Louie, you won't be disappointed.

[DebK]

Congratulations! We have a black Lab named Sparky who just turned 11 and we adore him. A word of caution......Have his hips checked. Our dog has severe hip dysplasia (Apparently is common) and if our old vet had told us to have Sparky's hips x-rayed when he was young we would have discovered this and had his hips replaced. We switched vets last year and found this out too late as he is too old for that type of surgery. So now we deal with monthly acupuncture and Adequan shots to help him.....

[BrerGnat]

Thanks Deb, for the advice. Both of his parents were OFA excellent hips, but I know there is still a chance of hip problems. We will make sure he gets his hips checked and x-rays done.

[RedSoxFan]

Congrats on getting a lab. I remember you asking awhile ago about dogs. My niece has a 1 yr old black lab name Louie. He is 90 lbs and is a good dog. Our yellow lab, Bella, is almost 3 years old. And like your Louie; Bella is not a chewer. Never chewed anything but her toys. Just love her to pieces!! Good luck and enjoy.

[TheVBs]

Awww! Congratulations! Wish I could offer advice, but we've only ever had one dog. He was a big Samoyed, so sweet! We "adopted" him from a "friend" who had just decided he was tired of having a dog. So, we had the benefit of knowing him from a puppy. He passed away about 3 years ago. I've often thought of getting another dog, but the work and expense keep holding me back. Plus, I think I may have come to the conclusion that what I really love are other people's dogs.

[DisneyDog]

That is very exciting news! I have always rescued my pets. We had 2 rescued Corgis and now we have a Pekingese and a Poodle mix, and two rescued cats. The most important thing to help your new dog feel comfortable and at home is consistency. Do the same routine every day, as much as possible. Get up and take him for a walk at the same time each day, and at dinner, too. Feed him at the same time each day. The more things stay the same, the more he will know what to expect.

I have found that with rescue dogs, it takes a good year for them really to settle in to your life. So, be patient. Everything will work out fine.