New baby for our family

[tigerlily]

She is a cutie pie

Yes, she is.

She is adorable!!!

I agree about the Akita thing...

If thats the case, she should be big!!!

Thanks.

I don't think she'll be an overly large dog, but she could suprise me. She doesn't have the huge paws. She lacks the fuller coat of an akita, but I definitely see a bit of the markings and build in her. I was thinking maybe Austrailian shepard too, or even a bit of Jack Russell.

Awww she's adorable Christie!

Thanks Jo. She's been a blessing to our family for sure.

Thats a good lookin' pup ya got there! I own labs myself, but boy that one is cute!

Thank you.

I love labs, but have never owned one. I think all of the dogs we've ever owned have been mutts.

I've taken her with me to pick up my kids from school to help socialize her, and she has made a LOT of friends. She's very good with the kids, minus the nibbling and licking.

All in all, she's learning very quickly. She's almost got sit, but I've only been working on that for a day and she knows she doesn't get her cookie until her butt is on the ground.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

She has a poor taste when it comes to cloths but she is adorable, congrats on the new puppy Christie.

[Muze]

She's super cute! Congrats! I think her face looks akita-ish, just a guess though!

The key to potty training is getting them out frequently, sounds like you're doing awesome with it!!!

Definitely looks Akita-ish to me too! She's soooo pretty! Congrats.

[kjhowland]

I agree with Deborah, she needs a new clothing designer. Cute pup

[tigerlily]

She has a poor taste when it comes to cloths but she is adorable, congrats on the new puppy Christie.

Thanks Deb!

Well you can't actually fault the puppy on the taste in clothes... that was ALL my daughter. She's a bit loud in her fashion choices, and I always warn her teacher at the beginning of the year that if she comes to school looking like she was hit by a paint truck, I had nothing to do with it.

Definitely looks Akita-ish to me too! She's soooo pretty! Congrats.

Thanks. She's really become a handful, and a bit crazy on the chewing. We keep giving her an appropriate chew toy or bone, but it only helps briefly. Anyone have any tips when it comes to curbing the nibbling?

(I haven't done this puppy this in a LONG time)

I agree with Deborah, she needs a new clothing designer. Cute pup

Thanks.

[frankykeno]

They need to chew especially as they lose their baby teeth and are breaking in the new big chompers. Personally I love anything from the Kong line of dog toys but especially the classic snowman shaped Kong. You can put kibble in it or a dab of peanut butter around the edge to encourage her to want to chew her Kong over other stuff. Other than that of course is just policing the house for chewable stuff.

Bella our lab is 2 now and still not at all trustworthy with anything from the Nerf line of toys or the small plastic figurines that Mikey loves (Star Wars type things). We've just learned to keep that stuff away from her because she can't seem to help herself. She never chews anything but those things and of course her Kong. She's a big time chewer, Christie, and that Kong has got to be a good 18 months since we bought it but she can't chew it up. Well worth the higher price of that dog toy line as Bella can chew up a cheaper toy in a single afternoon.

If she's after furniture corners and so forth try one of the natural product chew repellants. Bitter Yuck comes to mind.

[tigerlily]

They need to chew especially as they lose their baby teeth and are breaking in the new big chompers. Personally I love anything from the Kong line of dog toys but especially the classic snowman shaped Kong. You can put kibble in it or a dab of peanut butter around the edge to encourage her to want to chew her Kong over other stuff. Other than that of course is just policing the house for chewable stuff.

Bella our lab is 2 now and still not at all trustworthy with anything from the Nerf line of toys or the small plastic figurines that Mikey loves (Star Wars type things). We've just learned to keep that stuff away from her because she can't seem to help herself. She never chews anything but those things and of course her Kong. She's a big time chewer, Christie, and that Kong has got to be a good 18 months since we bought it but she can't chew it up. Well worth the higher price of that dog toy line as Bella can chew up a cheaper toy in a single afternoon.

If she's after furniture corners and so forth try one of the natural product chew repellants. Bitter Yuck comes to mind.

I have been contemplating one of those Kong toys. Right now she loves to chew and chase rope toys. I think we may have to pick one of those up. My biggest issue with her nibbling is on fingers. I may go and see if I can find some of that spray, if it's safe to use on our hands. I expect chewing, so it's no big suprise. I'm trying to look at the bright side, that I won't be vaccuming up any small toys.

The funniest thing about her is trying to get her attention after she sees bugs. Good heavens can she focus on hunting! (I may have to video it tomorrow) There are a TON of these flying bugs on the ground right now, and she likes to eat them and all the worms (dead or alive) on the driveway. I feed her three times a day, since she is thin, and she's still eating those nasty bugs.

Thanks for the tips Jo. I'm going to google some more tips, but I think the trick is just keeping her too tired to look for anything to chew.

[katiadarling]

You can try a bitter product on your hands, but be careful not to get it in your mouth (I use Bitter Apple and I've never tasted it, but from our animals' reactions, it's not good!)

The first thing that I'd recommend doing to discourage puppy mouthing is to squeak like it hurts when she mouths you. This is what her litter mates and mom would do, so it's something that she should understand. It also helps her develop bite control so that she knows how hard she can bite things as a grown up (when taking treats for example). You can also try to redirect her to other things (a close by chew toy for example) and if she's really bad about it, you can get up and walk away for a few seconds and then come back.

[tigerlily]

You can try a bitter product on your hands, but be careful not to get it in your mouth (I use Bitter Apple and I've never tasted it, but from our animals' reactions, it's not good!)

The first thing that I'd recommend doing to discourage puppy mouthing is to squeak like it hurts when she mouths you. This is what her litter mates and mom would do, so it's something that she should understand. It also helps her develop bite control so that she knows how hard she can bite things as a grown up (when taking treats for example). You can also try to redirect her to other things (a close by chew toy for example) and if she's really bad about it, you can get up and walk away for a few seconds and then come back.

I did read about the yelping thing. It worked twice, and then it didn't deter her at all. I read about trying lemon juice, and I'll have to see if that helps. If not I may try the bitter stuff too. Is there an options of removing all of her teeth? (I swear I'm only joking!)

I went and bought her two kong toys, and that keeps her occupied for about ten minutes and then she moves on.... short attention span. I think most of this is something that she will grow out of... I hope. *deep sigh*

[Bruce Whitehead]

Two beats of my cold heart in one day... I think I need to lay down for a bit.

She is just too amazing. Glad you could give her a home and that she is compatible with your kids.

Congrats Christie and best wishes for your other girl.