Aussieflyer38 Posted July 22, 2022 Share Posted July 22, 2022 Hi Nick, A couple of months ago, my wife visited a girlfriend and came home with this - Max, our now black Labrador, mate for Maggie. He's big he's black and beautiful - he's three and half. I have a question that you may be able to help me with, as you have lab's yourself - he's destructive, I thought at his age, he would have got passed that, so my question is, at what age does the "wrecking ball" syndrome quit?. Maggie is two and a half and is great, no chewing, so is this a male thing, I'm running out of furniture. And no, I would not part with him, I'll just keep buying new lounge suites. Thanks Don 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BradB Posted July 22, 2022 Share Posted July 22, 2022 I use to have a black lab year's ago and a stick too fetch and chew on kept him occupied . 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerribleT Posted July 23, 2022 Share Posted July 23, 2022 Used to breed them about 45 years ago and the chewers need more attention in the form of bonding, games, exercise and discipline - usually best as one person and one household dogs they also make great hunting or gun dogs. You are right age 3 is when they should be behaving well so you need to demand that from him - perhaps a short stint with a professional trainer may assist. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Cooper Posted July 23, 2022 Share Posted July 23, 2022 Hello, so much good advice. My own view, as suggested to me by my wife (), is that they are very bright dogs and need to be trained and then entertained. Each of our three are different "characters" but all of them know which toys are theirs and which are ours. We are also lucky to have a reasonably large garden, so at this time of year, the back door is open all day for them to come and go as they please, so they never feel trapped, or indeed bored. This is not the best picture but here they are. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulb Posted July 23, 2022 Share Posted July 23, 2022 I have a Golden Retriever - pretty close. A beautiful puppy. The first couple of years were the worst. He would destroy everything! Couldn't buy him toys as he would destroy an 'indestrucible' one within a few hours. I did think of renting him out as a toy tester. Seven now - doesn't eat the walls, carpets etc anymore. But he will sometimes tear a large branch from a big shrub in the garden. Tried everything, including dog trainers. The best solution (apart from him getting older) was plenty of exercise and attention. Also training - sit, stay, walk away, count to thirty before calling him. Seems to keep his attention on me rather than the furniture! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussieflyer38 Posted July 23, 2022 Author Share Posted July 23, 2022 4 hours ago, paulb said: I have a Golden Retriever - pretty close. A beautiful puppy. The first couple of years were the worst. He would destroy everything! Couldn't buy him toys as he would destroy an 'indestrucible' one within a few hours. I did think of renting him out as a toy tester. Seven now - doesn't eat the walls, carpets etc anymore. But he will sometimes tear a large branch from a big shrub in the garden. Tried everything, including dog trainers. The best solution (apart from him getting older) was plenty of exercise and attention. Also training - sit, stay, walk away, count to thirty before calling him. Seems to keep his attention on me rather than the furniture! Beautiful boy Paul. When we got Maggie, we opted for a Lab rather than a Retriever because of the coat. My wife bred Ragdoll cats for a few years, and even though they don't mat, looking after their coats was a nightmare. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussieflyer38 Posted July 23, 2022 Author Share Posted July 23, 2022 4 hours ago, Nick Cooper said: Hello, so much good advice. My own view, as suggested to me by my wife (), is that they are very bright dogs and need to be trained and then entertained. Each of our three are different "characters" but all of them know which toys are theirs and which are ours. We are also lucky to have a reasonably large garden, so at this time of year, the back door is open all day for them to come and go as they please, so they never feel trapped, or indeed bored. This is not the best picture but here they are. Yep we do a similar thing in summer, our dogs are indoor outdoor whatever they prefer. Max was outdoors all the time with the family that had him, so being allowed inside with us was a real treat for him. Maggie was never destructive as long as she had her chew toys, so we've found it a bit to handle with Max, he likes chew toys, but also the furniture and skirting boards. I think we will have to resort to getting a trainer for him, has to be cheaper than replacing/repairing chairs. Don 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussieflyer38 Posted July 23, 2022 Author Share Posted July 23, 2022 11 hours ago, BradB said: I use to have a black lab year's ago and a stick too fetch and chew on kept him occupied . Yes both our labs like chewing on sticks John. We have quite a few shrubs in the garden, so they have a constant supply, self service Don 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussieflyer38 Posted July 23, 2022 Author Share Posted July 23, 2022 10 hours ago, TerribleT said: Used to breed them about 45 years ago and the chewers need more attention in the form of bonding, games, exercise and discipline - usually best as one person and one household dogs they also make great hunting or gun dogs. You are right age 3 is when they should be behaving well so you need to demand that from him - perhaps a short stint with a professional trainer may assist. Thanks TT, breeding is a full on job, my wife bred cats - Ragdolls, for about fifteen years. Unfortunately we can't be a one person per dog household, for apart from the two Labs we have two Bassetts. They are smart but lazy Don 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulb Posted July 23, 2022 Share Posted July 23, 2022 1 hour ago, Aussieflyer38 said: Beautiful boy Paul. When we got Maggie, we opted for a Lab rather than a Retriever because of the coat. My wife bred Ragdoll cats for a few years, and even though they don't mat, looking after their coats was a nightmare. Lovely cat Don. Indeed retrievers do shed a lot of hair all year round . Our last dog (my picture) was a black cross Lab/flat coated retriever (1 year old from a shelter). He shed a fair bit, so we are used to it. Regular brushing is essential! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussieflyer38 Posted August 3, 2022 Author Share Posted August 3, 2022 On 7/23/2022 at 10:08 PM, paulb said: Lovely cat Don. Indeed retrievers do shed a lot of hair all year round . Our last dog (my picture) was a black cross Lab/flat coated retriever (1 year old from a shelter). He shed a fair bit, so we are used to it. Regular brushing is essential! Thanks Paul. Because he has such a full coat when he's standing, you can't tell he has only three legs, he was born with only part of his left front leg, and the vet said it had to come off. We wanted to be sure he was looked after for the rest of his days so kept him - so glad, he's a gorgeous boy. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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