Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 22:12     Subject: Re:can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:It's a lab. A large lab will stay very active for a good few years. The behavior the OP does not like will only be temporary if you consider 5 years temporary.

If it were a different kind of puppy, perhaps. But while I agree the behavior is normal, i don't think it is temporary enough for OP. That is why I suggested OP get an older dog for her family. Most dogs I have known, especially playful breeds, stay pretty energetic until around 4 years old, maybe 5.


+1

Our lab calmed down about age 5.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 22:01     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP, why did you get a puppy if you were not prepared to train it?


Be easy on the OP. Some dogs are very difficult and don't fit in to the existing family dynamics.


Then perhaps the OP should have done more research and learning before getting a dog of any kind. We plan on getting a dog in a year and I am learning everything I can on training, the type of dog (and if mixed breed the various types), and family dynamic with a puppy. A dog is not just an animal to add to your family on a whim. Just because you talk it for walks and to the dog park does not mean it will automatically behave. I grew up with dogs, have owned my own dog (who unfortunately passed away early) and I still feel the need to refresh myself with everything before hand.


Walk a mile in someone's shoes...You sound so self-righteous. Get over yourself and practice some empathy. I also grew up with dogs, researched ad nauseum, adopted an older puppy...and had similar issues as the OP. We're sticking it out. Unless your name is Cesar Millan, take a seat and try to be more understanding. And good luck to you, since everything will turn out rosy in your situation, obviously.


I don't expect everything to turn out perfect. Not by any means. However, OP sounds like quite a few people I know who got their puppies on a whim and did not do much research into it. They also did not do much training with them either. I will take back everything I said and admit I was wrong and acting self righteous if OP spends at least 30 minutes a day, aside from the walks, working with her dog. When I was younger, we adopted a 1 year old Lhasa Apso from the shelter. She was trouble. Ran away all the time, chewed everything, dug out the potted plants that were on any surface she could jump on. My mom sent her to doggie boot camp and it made A huge difference. Training, a lot of the time, can help.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 19:44     Subject: Re:can i make our dog secretly disappear?
I think that the new trend is for people to say "hire a trainer" whenever someone has a dog who is incompatible with his/her family. Yes, training is good. And a good trainer can really help with undesirable behaviors. But dogs have personalities, too. They aren't automatons that some trainer will magically program to be the perfect pet for you.


Yes, but the issues OP is describing sound like normal puppy issues. Some of the issues would exist in any dog under 2, regardless of breed, and others, like establishing boundaries so the dog isn't underfoot while doing chores one might have to do with an older dog. It seems like OP is overwhelmed with normal dog/puppy behavior, and in her case, hiring a trainer might help her find strategies to cope with the behaviors she is finding annoying in her dog. Once you make progress in that area, it makes dog ownership much more enjoyable.

It's a lab. A large lab will stay very active for a good few years. The behavior the OP does not like will only be temporary if you consider 5 years temporary.

If it were a different kind of puppy, perhaps. But while I agree the behavior is normal, i don't think it is temporary enough for OP. That is why I suggested OP get an older dog for her family. Most dogs I have known, especially playful breeds, stay pretty energetic until around 4 years old, maybe 5.


Labs are puppish for a long time, but they do slow down faster than 5. 2 is way better than puppy, and 4 is way better than 2--t's gradual. It's not like all of a sudden you wake up with a 5 year old couch potato with no changes in between crazy puppy and couch potato. A young, energetic lab that is well trained and has boundaries they respect is not necessarily a hellion. Active doesn't mean getting into her space/digging/chewing necessarily. The goofy playing, sure--my parents' lab mix is eight and sometimes he can still be a goof--but he doesn't dig/steal food/chew.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 18:12     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:craigslist


No. That is where dog fighting rings look for dogs.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 16:07     Subject: Re:can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What is dog mixed with? Currently experiencing something very similar and it is starting to stress and overwhelm everyone in house.


OP got the puppy at 6 months and it is now 1 year. I don't know what chews/eats everything means. Some socks? Newspaper? We have a 4 month old lab puppy who still gets into stuff SOMETIMES but clearly distinguishes OBJECTS GIVEN to him from those found. Retrieves and drops. When rowdy puppy wild I walk away and don't play. He walks into his crate for some naps and at bedtime. He does need cuddle time and is now happily chewing a bone on the sofa next to DD. He is easier at 4 months in the house than a relatives 3.5 year rescue pitbull.


There are even well trained dogs who never lose the chew-everything inclination. People just learn how to set the dog up for success by not leaving things around that the dog can destroy and/or wearing the dog out in other ways to minimize the chewing habit.

I think that the new trend is for people to say "hire a trainer" whenever someone has a dog who is incompatible with his/her family. Yes, training is good. And a good trainer can really help with undesirable behaviors. But dogs have personalities, too. They aren't automatons that some trainer will magically program to be the perfect pet for you.

The training helps compensate for certain personality issues, but some dogs have personalities that some human personalities will NEVER fit right with. And as much as you can train a dog and a human, teach them how to effectively communicate, learn how to establish some sense of order, routine, et cetera, you can't completely change a dog's personality. You can only help the dog to be the best he/she can be.

I think that this current emphasis on "any dog can be trained" really denies the reality that dogs are individuals, too. And sure, any dog can be trained, but not all dogs can be trained TO BE WHO YOU WANT THEM TO BE.

You have to be able to discern whether training will be enough or if the issue is that the dog is just not the right dog for you. For example, an active dog can't be trained to be a not active dog. You can only train to discipline and learn how to exercise the dog so that his/her active nature doesn't devolve into a neuroses. So if you don't want an active dog, no trainer in the world is going to solve your issue. The best thing is to find the dog a new home and try to find a less active, perhaps older, dog.



Except that the OP doesn't have a dog. She has a puppy who is displaying perfectly normal and very likely temporary behavior.


It's a lab. A large lab will stay very active for a good few years. The behavior the OP does not like will only be temporary if you consider 5 years temporary.

If it were a different kind of puppy, perhaps. But while I agree the behavior is normal, i don't think it is temporary enough for OP. That is why I suggested OP get an older dog for her family. Most dogs I have known, especially playful breeds, stay pretty energetic until around 4 years old, maybe 5.

Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 15:52     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Mahatma Gandhi
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 15:26     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It's a dog. Just get rid of it and someone else will take it in. You're not obligated to take care of it for the rest of its life. The kids will be upset but they'll get over it. Buy them something else to take their minds off of it.


An animal is not a toy to be given away or scrapped if you haven't figured out how to get on with it.

You are a poor excuse for a human being.

+1
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 14:50     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:It's a dog. Just get rid of it and someone else will take it in. You're not obligated to take care of it for the rest of its life. The kids will be upset but they'll get over it. Buy them something else to take their minds off of it.


An animal is not a toy to be given away or scrapped if you haven't figured out how to get on with it.

You are a poor excuse for a human being.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 14:06     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
It's a dog. Just get rid of it and someone else will take it in. You're not obligated to take care of it for the rest of its life. The kids will be upset but they'll get over it. Buy them something else to take their minds off of it.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 13:57     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
craigslist
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 13:23     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?

OP, its not fair to the children, seriously. They are not just going to act like it never existed You need to put some work into this. You can do it.

My DS's friend's parents brought home a kitten for the friend. Two weeks later, they promised the friend an iPhone (!!!!!) if they could get rid of the kitten. They had a baby in the house and did not want the kitten around the baby. They also claimed they had allergies.

They could not have thought about that before they brought the kitten home (the baby was already there, in the house)??!!

Now the friend does not trust anything his parents say; and is heartbroken by the kitten being given away (even though he "visits" it, which of course, makes it worse). Also, the friend never did receive the promised iPod, which would have been fine, if it was not the contingency for the kitten being given away!

It just seems some parents really don't think, and it makes you question the rest of their judgments, too.

Show your child what commitment and responsibility really is.




Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 13:14     Subject: Re:can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What is dog mixed with? Currently experiencing something very similar and it is starting to stress and overwhelm everyone in house.


OP got the puppy at 6 months and it is now 1 year. I don't know what chews/eats everything means. Some socks? Newspaper? We have a 4 month old lab puppy who still gets into stuff SOMETIMES but clearly distinguishes OBJECTS GIVEN to him from those found. Retrieves and drops. When rowdy puppy wild I walk away and don't play. He walks into his crate for some naps and at bedtime. He does need cuddle time and is now happily chewing a bone on the sofa next to DD. He is easier at 4 months in the house than a relatives 3.5 year rescue pitbull.


There are even well trained dogs who never lose the chew-everything inclination. People just learn how to set the dog up for success by not leaving things around that the dog can destroy and/or wearing the dog out in other ways to minimize the chewing habit.

I think that the new trend is for people to say "hire a trainer" whenever someone has a dog who is incompatible with his/her family. Yes, training is good. And a good trainer can really help with undesirable behaviors. But dogs have personalities, too. They aren't automatons that some trainer will magically program to be the perfect pet for you.

The training helps compensate for certain personality issues, but some dogs have personalities that some human personalities will NEVER fit right with. And as much as you can train a dog and a human, teach them how to effectively communicate, learn how to establish some sense of order, routine, et cetera, you can't completely change a dog's personality. You can only help the dog to be the best he/she can be.

I think that this current emphasis on "any dog can be trained" really denies the reality that dogs are individuals, too. And sure, any dog can be trained, but not all dogs can be trained TO BE WHO YOU WANT THEM TO BE.

You have to be able to discern whether training will be enough or if the issue is that the dog is just not the right dog for you. For example, an active dog can't be trained to be a not active dog. You can only train to discipline and learn how to exercise the dog so that his/her active nature doesn't devolve into a neuroses. So if you don't want an active dog, no trainer in the world is going to solve your issue. The best thing is to find the dog a new home and try to find a less active, perhaps older, dog.



Except that the OP doesn't have a dog. She has a puppy who is displaying perfectly normal and very likely temporary behavior.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 12:45     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP, why did you get a puppy if you were not prepared to train it?


Be easy on the OP. Some dogs are very difficult and don't fit in to the existing family dynamics.


Then perhaps the OP should have done more research and learning before getting a dog of any kind. We plan on getting a dog in a year and I am learning everything I can on training, the type of dog (and if mixed breed the various types), and family dynamic with a puppy. A dog is not just an animal to add to your family on a whim. Just because you talk it for walks and to the dog park does not mean it will automatically behave. I grew up with dogs, have owned my own dog (who unfortunately passed away early) and I still feel the need to refresh myself with everything before hand.


Walk a mile in someone's shoes...You sound so self-righteous. Get over yourself and practice some empathy. I also grew up with dogs, researched ad nauseum, adopted an older puppy...and had similar issues as the OP. We're sticking it out. Unless your name is Cesar Millan, take a seat and try to be more understanding. And good luck to you, since everything will turn out rosy in your situation, obviously.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 12:06     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
My parents also did this to me as a kid. I too have and never will forgive them for it. For the way they go rid of the dog, for expecting me, at 6, to bear full responsibility for the dog, and for the abuse they subjected the dog to while he lived with us and they hated him. They also abused me. I do not trust people who cannot love a helpless animal.
Anonymous
Post 03/08/2014 12:01     Subject: can i make our dog secretly disappear?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP, why did you get a puppy if you were not prepared to train it?


Be easy on the OP. Some dogs are very difficult and don't fit in to the existing family dynamics.


Then perhaps the OP should have done more research and learning before getting a dog of any kind. We plan on getting a dog in a year and I am learning everything I can on training, the type of dog (and if mixed breed the various types), and family dynamic with a puppy. A dog is not just an animal to add to your family on a whim. Just because you talk it for walks and to the dog park does not mean it will automatically behave. I grew up with dogs, have owned my own dog (who unfortunately passed away early) and I still feel the need to refresh myself with everything before hand.