About Labs
Labrador Characteristics
Digging!
All dogs love to dig. Some dig from boredom and some dig to get cool. Labradors will do both. “But” you say, I have a wonderful backyard and do not want it destroyed by my dog. Believe me, I sympathize. However, dogs WILL dig.
What to do? The best way to cope is to create a place that they can dig and teach them to only dig there. No, this does not encourage them to dig all over the yard. It gives them a place to be a dog! What I have done in the past is to create an area with either railroad ties, landscape timbers, or even a giant tire tractor and filled this area with sand. This cannot be in the far corner of your yard.. a Labrador wants to be with his people. So I have done it to the side of the back door and made it very inviting for the dogs. It can look attractive, kind of like a kid’s play box. Just for a four legged kid! The sand has to be deep enough for the dog to feel satisfied with his “dig” and also to cool the dog in the heat of the summer. The best thing I ever did was to build my deck high enough for the dogs to get under, and before the wood was placed I covered the whole area in sand. The dogs loved it and I couldn’t see their “land mine” area. Try to remember that the dog will dig if bored, so a brisk morning or evening walk will also help with the digging urges.
Chewing!
Also a Labrador specialty! They love to chew and will chew anything! I have seen them gnaw bushes right down to the ground. My dogs here love to get the fallen pecan limbs and chew them to pieces. However, they can be “redirected” to chew on appropriate items. This is a very time consuming practice so I generally just give them plenty of chew toys and a large beef knuckle. I rotate the toys so they don’t get bored with them and keep an eye on the knuckles so that I can remove them when they get too small. Again, the dog will chew with boredom, so try the brisk walk. A fifteen minute walk can do wonders for a dogs mind. Generally, a Labradors urge to chew will get better after age two. Not always!!
Candy Labradors | Burleson, Texas | (817) 925-6258
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