When Can You Hike With A Lab Puppy

Most folks can’t hike 20 miles off the couch, neither can a dog. Blisters plague humans; dogs run into similar issues in the form of torn pads, especially if it’s their first foray onto the.

When can you hike with a lab puppy. If you over-exercise a growing puppy you can overtire it and damage its developing joints, causing early arthritis. A good rule of thumb is a ratio of five minutes exercise per month of age (up to twice a day) until the puppy is fully grown, i.e. 15 minutes (up to twice a day) when three months old, 20 minutes when four months old etc. Any hike you choose will require more food for your dog, with factors like being on a lengthy or steep trail necessitating greater caloric intake—just as is true for humans when they hike. If your dog tends to wander far off, rather than stay close to you, then up the calorie count even more. As your puppy approaches a year of age, you can begin taking them on shorter “real hikes”. The general time limit still applies but the older your puppy, the further you can go. A 12 month old puppy can hike around 60 minutes at a time, which is usually enough to cover 2-3 miles. Make sure you keep your puppy slim, with a waist, and you should be fine. You can check out our feeding your puppy article for more information. So don’t be tempted to ‘feed your puppy up’ if he seems on the small side, without talking to your vet first. He may just be naturally small, and you don’t want him to grow to quickly. Hormones

Most people would not consider taking a smaller-breed puppy for a hike that long, but with higher energy levels, larger breeds can fool us into thinking they need longer walks than is good for them. Labradors Are a High Energy Breed. The Labrador Retriever is a high energy working breed, initially bred for very physically demanding work retrieving game for hunters.. This would involve all day hiking, running and swimming in sometimes difficult conditions. So Labrador Retrievers were bred to have lots of energy and be very active. It's fine if you take her on a hike, as long as it is not too difficult, like not too steep, or rough. She might be able to swim, as long as you know the lake or wherever she is going swimming, is not filled with too much bacteria, you don't want her to catch anything, plus make sure it's not too deep. OCD is basically growth abnormalities in the cartilage that can cause lameness. Forced exercise is defined as "anything beyond what the dog would engage in with dogs of the same age." Gentle play time with other like aged puppies? A-OK. Running around with adult dogs, meanwhile, is bad (the puppy will overdo it trying to keep up with the big guys).

So it can come as quite a surprise to new puppy owners to be told the they are giving their puppy too much exercise, or walking the puppy too far. You may even have heard people say that a puppy should only walk for five minutes for every month of his age. That means just ten minutes a day, for an eight week old puppy. In the past few years, my dogs, Chipper and Cleo, and I have trekked up and down small mountains, as well as taken weekend camping trips in dog-friendly nature preserves throughout California and Arizona.. Getting Prepared. But before you lace up your own hiking boots, there are some things that you need to know to keep your hike fun and safe for your pet. Hi. I have a black lab puppy. She is now 9 months old. Walking and training her was a real challenge since she pulled on her leash when walked. I ended up getting a gentle lead from pet smart. It loops around the muzzle and hooks together at the base of the top of the head behind the ears. I can tell you it made all the difference in the world. Getting your puppy to follow you is the basis of more formal recall training that you will be doing later on. It’s important to get your puppy following you around in different outdoor locations while she’s small if you can. This will put you in good stead later when she is more independent.

Dogs can’t get off their feet as easily as we can, “which makes any and all walking torturous.” Look at the bottom of your dog’s paws. Overworked pads may have tears with visible flaps of skin present, may appear red, worn away, or thinner than normal. If infected, you may see swelling or pus. “Think of concrete as being like sandpaper. By 3 months old your puppy is ready to start learning basic commands, the training foundations you instill now are going to carry on throughout your puppy’s life. Pick a Positive Marker A positive marker is a word, phrase or sound that can be used to tell your pup he has done something right. A fit, healthy Lab can carry up to 25% of his body weight. Have your Lab carry his own food, water, and first aid supplies. Your Lab needs a hiking pack, portable food and water dishes, and whatever accessories your hike requires. There is a large variety of high-quality puppy food available for you to feed your lab. When looking for a puppy food for your labrador, look at labels that meet the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) nutrient profiles for “growth,” “all life stages,” and “including growth of large size dogs.” Foods with these labels meet the nutrient guidelines for the proper.