The Labrador, as a breed, was formed by the end of the 19th century, and as an independent phenotype was officially recognized by the English Kennel Club in 1903.
A powerful dog of strong build with free movements, with an active sociable character.
Affectionate with children, an excellent friendly hunting dog, practically without flaws.
Are they well trained?
The Labrador Retriever is an intelligent and obedient dog, confident in its abilities.
Labradors are persistent in achieving their goals and always want to please the owner. These two qualities make the breed one of the most successfully trained dogs.
In Stanley Koren’s rating, labradors rank 7th out of 80 in the ability to understand a new team in less than 5 repetitions, leaving behind Rottweilers, spaniels, Schnauzers.
Can it perform security functions and protect the owner?
Labradors are one of the most loyal dog breeds and sincerely love the family they live in.
And they also love all other people indiscriminately and nothing can make them disbelieve that life is beautiful and every person passing by wishes him and his master well.
So never and under no circumstances will a Labrador become a security guard.
It will not be able to protect the owner during an attack or in some other stressful situation. The maximum that can be expected from him in such unpleasant cases is a serious, powerful bark.
What can not be done during training?
Achieving perfect obedience, you should not rush and force things. With daily patient repetition, even a not too intellectually developed dog will learn the most important commands and will carry them out.
- yelling at the dog;
- slap her with a hand, a leash, a whip, or other object capable of causing pain;
- swing even in jest;
- lock up a pet, deprive it of food or walking.
In most cases, the dog is unable to associate punitive measures with misconduct. A smart Labrador can be offended, he will lose the joy of joint activities. Working out the necessary skills will take several months. If the dog stops responding correctly to the command, you will have to start training again. You can’t yell at a Labrador
When to start training
Puppy training begins from the moment the baby got into the family, that is, from 2-3,5 months. Raising a dog includes the ability to behave at home, on the street, in transport.
The pet should not cause inconvenience to people around him and other animals. As a rule, the first basic commands of the puppy are taught by the owner himself at home. From 4-6 months, the pet can be brought to classes with a professional dog handler to study specialized teams. Classes can be individual and group, where animals of different ages and breeds are engaged at the same time.
How to start parenting and how much you need to train
A puppy is like a small child: he needs care, affectionate, but demanding upbringing and love. From the moment the puppy appears in the house, his upbringing and training should begin with getting used to the nickname and to the hands.
It is necessary to help the puppy to be in the company of people, other pets, not to be afraid of noisy or harsh sounds, to accustom to the order and mode of the day.
Already at this age, when the puppy does not go outside yet, you should begin to accustom him to a collar and a leash fastened to him: the task of the owner is to convey to the baby that it is not scary.
At this stage, education will not take much time: 5-10 minutes a day for each skill, while constantly confirming the need for behavioral reactions expected from a dog with his confident, calm behavior and the puppy will be prepared for further, more serious training.
Do not tighten the collar too tight (2 fingers should pass freely under it) or very freely.
We teach good manners
Consider how to raise a Labrador puppy.
Collar and leash
After the Labrador puppy gets used to a new place, you can train him to a collar. Put it on the puppy and immediately offer a toy or treat. Distract the baby when trying to remove the collar and praise if he does not do it.
Having fastened the leash, first do not pull the puppy, follow him yourself. Gradually accustom yourself to a light tension and the fact that it should follow you. Do not forget to reward for success.
Behaviour
Raising a Labrador puppy involves proper interaction with other people. Don’t let the dog greet guests too violently. Starting from three months, use the commands “Sit!” or “Place!”. When everyone is settled, cancel the command and let the dog meet new people.
Like the retriever, this breed rarely shows aggression towards strangers, but it can be trusting. A trained dog should not take food from strangers or pick it up from the ground. You can ask a friend to give the dog a piece of food with hot spices or lemon (a little so that the dog does not get sick!). Attempts to take food from the ground are stopped by the command “Fu!”. Because of doghunters laying out poison, this is important for your dog’s life.
How to get used to the toilet and diaper at home
As a rule, the puppy urinates immediately after sleeping / playing / 15 minutes after eating, and before cleansing the intestines, he worries for a while, looking for a comfortable place, sometimes whining.
Noticing that the puppy is preparing for recovery, you need to quickly draw his attention to yourself with some exclamation.
The pet will react, his urges will recede for a while, and there will be an opportunity to put a diaper. At the same time, you definitely need to be patient and wait for the mandrel!
Over time, he will develop the necessary reflex, and when he needs to go to the toilet, he will do it for a diaper without help.
How to wean pulling the leash
Most often, the reason that the labrador pulls the leash is the wrong behavior of the owner, who does not understand the psychology of the animal.
When the dog pulls the leash, it means that she owns the situation, not the owner, and it becomes unclear who is walking whom.
To solve this problem, you need to follow the following rules
- keep the leash free from the very beginning;
- when moving, periodically follow the dog and sometimes make it turn to where you need it, using a treat, toy or goal;
- when moving, try to constantly maintain contact with the dog with voice, gestures, encouragement for correct behavior;
- whenever the Labrador starts pulling on the leash, stop or go back (the dog needs to understand that as soon as she pulls on the leash, the movement towards the goal stops, it is useless to resist).
Naturally, these rules are easier to apply when the Labrador is still small. Therefore, the upbringing of a dog, including weaning to pull, should begin at an early age.
It is not necessary to solve the problem of a stretched leash by putting on a strict collar or, moreover, a collar with an electric shock! The Labrador is not a breed that requires such extreme measures.
Learning basic commands
Training at home involves learning basic commands.
Place
The puppy is given a place in the house — a cozy corner without drafts and not at the door. A comfortable couch where the baby can relax, sleep or play with a toy. No one will disturb him on the spot. Bringing the puppy to the couch, he is laid, stroked, given a treat, saying “place”. It is not necessary to forcibly hold him on the couch, but you can attract the puppy’s attention with a toy so that he stays longer. If the baby falls asleep in another place, the sleeping puppy is transferred to the couch. In the future, noticing that the puppy himself came to the couch, he needs to be praised, repeating the command again.
You can not punish the puppy by sending it to the place.
To me
They put a little Labrador on the floor to me, they move away from him. Calling the baby by name they say “to me”. You can lure a puppy with a toy or a treat. Usually puppies run to their beloved owner with great pleasure. Fixing the team requires unobtrusive repetitions, 3-4 times during the day is enough. You can accompany the voice command with a gesture – a pat on the hip or other. In the future, it will be possible to call the dog only with a slap on the thigh or a snap of the fingers, a whistle.
Fu or not
A very important command, the perfect execution of which can save the dog’s life in the future. Performing it with a pet should be worked out to automatism. The training is based on negative experience, that is, the dog must remember that when the word “fu” was unpleasant to her. This is achieved by shaking by the scruff of the neck, pulling on the collar, and lightly slapping the newspaper on the muzzle. The command is given in a strict, harsh voice. For example: a piece of meat or other delicacy is placed on the floor in front of the puppy, when the puppy tries to take it, a strict “fu” and a newspaper clap or pulling on the collar should be followed. The strength of the impact should be determined, depending on the nature of the puppy. From the first time, few puppies learn the forbidding command, several repetitions are necessary. As soon as the baby, having heard the ban, stopped trying to take food, he is praised and given a treat from his hands. It is necessary to fix the lesson in different conditions: at home, on a walk, on the dog playground.
Sit
When the dog is sitting, it is easier to establish contact with her and attract attention for further training. The study of the team begins when the Labrador is standing near the owner. Holding the collar with one hand, the palm of the other hand lightly presses on the dog’s croup, forcing the animal to sit down. They say “sit” at this time. When the pet has sat down, he is praised and given treats. Later, when the dog learns the voice order, you can accompany it with a gesture – to lower the hand with the palm open from top to bottom. The Labrador will then be able to execute a command given only by a gesture.
Nearby
Training begins with the first walks with a puppy. It is customary to drive a dog on the left side of a person. The leash is taken in both hands, the left hand controls the puppy near the collar. Starting the movement, say “next”, trying to keep the baby near his leg. If he gets ahead of himself, he is slightly pulled back, returning back. If a puppy walks at the same speed as a person, not lagging behind and not getting ahead of himself, he is praised.