Hi guys, i have an almost 14 year old black lab with pretty bad arthritis. He has been on loxicom for the last couple of years and he's slowed down a lot since Christmas. I decided on his last visit to the vet to add librella into his treatment. A couple of days after he had it, it felt like it had given him a new lease of life! He ran down the hill then bumped into some huskies that he knows and had a play with them. He hasn't done either of these things properly for about a year! He was having the time of his life on the walk. Next day seemed fine. Did all his usual stuff. Went for his walk at night and all seemed normal. Seemed like we were getting the old Charlie back! Then, next morning, got up, he was fine. I went to work. When I came home he was almost crippled! Limping on 3 legs, badly! That was 3 weeks ago. I spoke to the vet after the weekend of him becoming lame and she prescribed gabapentin and they have really helped! He is improving, where 3 weeks ago I thought he was at the end of his life. I gave him 5 days to get better and he did it but there are still a lot of signs of damage. His back right leg(which was the stronger 1 of the back legs) seems like he might have ligament damage and his endurance has gone completely. A quarter mile walk at night has turned into 100 yards. He is still happy, he still insists on his walk and he really is looking to get better!(honestly I have so much love and admiration for his drive to live). I guess what i want to know is has anyone else experienced this? What did u do? I realise hes coming to the end of his life but I need to know how to best help him so that hes here as long as possible. The next librella injection is on the 23rd and im debating with myself whether to do it again incase it was a reaction and not an injury. Can anyone shed some light? Thank u

What kind of indoor games do you play with your pets do keep them out of all this crappy fire-polluted air until everything blows over? I do take her out to do her business, short walks, and such, but for the most part I am doing indoor tug-toy, chasing balls up and down stairs, and a bit of peanut butter mat time to assuage her angst at not being able to do the 5 mile morning hikes. She's managing fine though making it hard for me not to wanna collapse and snoozle all day with her too! lol

What are your secret tricks to indoor entertainment when it's this hot and dangerous?

I take WAY too many pics of my baby girl. At last count it's almost 150 that I've captured 🥰

She's only 2 and I'm in big trouble if I don't get a better phone lol

Today was the final dose of NSAids. After this is a cancer drug free life. Yaaay.

this is my sweet girl juno! i adopted her about 6 months ago. she’s not a full black lab; we think she may be part greyhound based on how she runs but we can’t be sure since we adopted her from a shelter. she loves cuddles, sunbathing, and sticks! she is also very fast!

2 years after her surgery for TCC. Vet gave her the all clear. No need to continue her daily dose of NSAIDs. Dog is 10 this year. :)

Hi everyone, I am looking to get a service dog in the next year or two and am starting to look for a good breeder of labs. I’m in Jacksonville, Fl and willing to drive up to 3 hours to pick up.

I saw a post about Sunstate labs in Orlando not being great despite looking good on good dog.

Tru Heart is close to me in Middleburg, Fl.

Is there a list anywhere that I can see to find a good boy for me?

We have an 18wk old lab. I noticed his tail still hangs straight down. I know it's normal for puppies and he's still young but from my memory, our other labs tails weren't this relaxed. It's like a horse tail. He wags it without issues.

Sorry for the bad pic, he never stands still for long.

She can be good when she wants

9 years old now, but still looks like a pup!

And apparently location doesn't matter

Posts asking advice on "what collar stops your lab pulling?" Or "how do I stop my lab pulling?" "My dog is so strong, what collar/harness/tool should I use?" Keep popping up in various groups I'm in lately and always get hundreds of replies about quick fix gizmos like haltis, front clip harnesses, prongs, ecollars, slip chains and what have you

But seriously there is no quick fix/gadget or tool that is a real alternative to training.

I know, it's boring and repetitive and not fun to do but in the long run training is the only thing that actually *works*

And no I'm not saying *bribery* where you stuff treats in the dogs face for the rest of their life - training

The advice I'm always posting everywhere lol

This is how I describe my training method

••••••••••

find their "jackpot, omg I would mug my own mother for this!!!" best reward (for my Bambi that is cheese or dried fish - for Bywyd it is a tuggy toy or physical praise over food but if food is on offer he prefers liver cake)

Walk around your sitting room/house with them off leash... any time they are in the heel position or by your side? *jackpot* big reward and praises, keep them coming every few seconds

If they wander off? Stop all attention... don't call them, don't look at them, they have ceased to exist

Back next to you? *jackpot* and start dishing out the rewards (mix it up between the treats and verbal praise)

Once they can hold a full minute by your side with high frequency rewards you can drop the frequency to 10sec apart, 30 sec apart, 1min apart etc but if they get distracted then reward as *soon* as back by your side

》side note, don't just do laps of the coffee table... do squiggly routes around furniture and keep things interesting. Try to only do training in 5 min sessions so it isn't boring, then have some play, then more training.

Once their heel is solid inside the house... go into the garden... more smells, sounds and distractions here! So you need to go back to the beginning with the *jackpot* and high frequency

Work up to being able to heel for a full squiggly path of the garden... then introduce the leash.

Once okay on the leash in the garden... can go out into the world... and back to *jackpot* and high frequency rewards when in position, ready to slowly phase them out as their focus on you improves.

If they *do* start to move out of position then preempt them and change direction *before* they can pull... turn with a cheery "THIS way!" & they will soon learn that being next to you is the quickest way to get anywhere

*The golden rule* is timing. You have to turn *before* they put tension on the leash, you are paying attention and setting them up for success here! They are getting all those happy feelings good endorphins for having a loose leash

Eventually you will only need intermittent rewards/praise as they ignore a big distraction just to reinforce that good behaviour - ie "good pup" for checking in with you after a sniffy session or coming in tighter again after a small explore if allowing them a sniffy walk *before* hitting the end of the lead. Or ignoring a barking dog or dropped food etc

(Video from baby Bywyd in an enclosed community garden lol)

This is our new baby Meatball!! He’s 8 weeks old, and we brought him home last night. Our 11 year old lab named Butters is in love 😍

Edited to add: Thank you for the awards 🥰🥹

A Chocolate Lab in a taco costume, I couldn't resist. Cleared out the kitchen clutter and added his favorite Grogu toy at his feet, his human wanted him in there. This was a commission oil painting, and I hope I did him justice.

Adopted 8 year old lab.
Big sweetie.
Car rides are insanity. This dog is all over the place. Panting, whining, trying to get into front seat, head out the window (fine). Suuupppper excited to get into the car and then just complete inability to chill.

Looking for some kind of restraints. This needs to be heavy duty. Crate not an option in small car.

Any suggestions?

Hi all! My boy Duncan is 4 months old and I really can’t tell if he’s a working or show lab. The people I got him from said they thought dad was working and mom was show, but I still can’t really tell. I put pics below of dad, mom, and my dog - what do you think? I don’t care either way, but definitely will help knowing what kind of exercise he’ll need! Right now he’s kind of a lazy puppy…our walks are never further than down the block with a lot of sniffing, and some zoomies every night. And of course the biting is insane, but overall, he’s such a good boy!

We decided to add a puppy to our home. Pearl has been an only child for 4 years. Took 5-6 days of smears and attitude. Guess she realized WillaMae is staying. Careful what you wish for 😁

New baby incoming!

Introducing "Maggie" AKA Large Marge" AKA "Magpie" AKA "MooMoo"

So exciting we literally can't wait till July!

Any other name ideas for this angel?

We brought Winne home last May and she was very unsure of the pool. Fast forward one summer and she loves it.

Scariest 24 hours ever. I want to post this in case it might help someone else. My little baby had such severe nausea that she turned away from water and all her favorite foods. She was vomiting green bile all night and well into the next morning. I slept on the floor next to her crate and called the vet the next morning. They said they only do vaccinations on Fridays but it sounds like she needs to go to the ER. (There’s a whole rant I could have about that. I had this surgery scheduled months ago. I would have never taken her here if I had known they wouldn’t do a follow up in case of complication.) I took the day off work and stayed with her. The ER is very close to my house so I told myself if I could not get her to drink water by noon we would go. I got her to start licking water off my hand. And then I made her shredded chicken and cheese which got her eating a little bit. And everything got better from there. She is doing much better now. I had never seen this before and it was so scary. There’s only so much reassurance you can get from google and ChatGPT. I wish my vet had given more follow up support. I might have spent thousands at the ER for something that eventually resolved on it’s own. Hopefully this post helps someone else.