I have not had a dog since I was a girl growing up. Somehow our lives were just too busy to give a dog enough attention, so we never got one. Now we are empty nesters and I had been longing for a dog for a few years now. At around the end of March, we got a 6 week old Chocolate Lab pup named Savannah.
She is now house trained (as far as peeing and pooping go) and we are ready to take her for her first camping trip in our motorhome.
When I first got her, I had her sleep in her crate at night and before long, she was sleeping through the night without messing her crate. When she got bigger, we moved her out to the large pen we bought for her which houses a very nice dog house we bought for her. She spends her days out there while I'm at work. At other times (and during my lunch) she is with me playing outside or with us inside. So she is an inside/outside dog.
We are really anxious to see how she does camping. We thought we will bring the large crate we have for her (though she has not been in that one much as she no longer sleeps in a crate) during the trip. We will acquaint her with our motorhome a few times before we go. On the trip, we will probably let her free in the RV because she loves riding in the car so I think she will do fine. When we get there, of course we will just keep her on leash. Then at night we will put her in her crate (either inside or outside I'm not sure).
We plan on spending our entire time with her and not leaving the campground. We are staying at Willow Tree Resort in Longs, SC from Friday night til Sunday...a short trip. We hope to be able to rent a golf cart (it's first come, first serve)and we can ride her around in it around the big lake and the campground, and take her for nice walks around the grounds and lake and the nature trails they have. Now it's going to be hard keeping her out of the lake because she is a swimmer, lol!
I am a complete novice at taking a dog to a campground so please give me any advice you can or comment on my plans...good/bad, needs improvement or just anything that can help me.
She is almost 4 months old, weighs about 29 pounds is super active, still a nipper (but getting much better). She's a good dog, but we are taking her to obedience school once a week. She is still in training and needs work with not chewing things she is not supposed to and nipping. But she's a good dog and I want to socialize her as much as I can. And camping is certainly one way to do that. I have dreamed for years of getting a lab and taking her camping!
I'm really excited, please give me some pointers.
My baby Savannah:
Rhonda
Enjoying life with my wonderful husband Allyn,
Our 2003 Newmar Mountain Aire Motorhome,
& various other assortment of wheels
She is a cutie!!
I think one of your problems with nipping is that she wasn't trained by her mother. There is a reason that most breeders would rather you wait until 8-10 weeks before you take a puppy. Most of the nipping seems to be trained out of them by the mother during the 2-weeks you first had her.
I noticed on your blog, that she really likes to chew on your hands....I'm going to invest in BandAid stock tomorrow....Anyway, what we used to do, and it appeared to work...every time the puppy starts to bite, we'd yell "Ouch!"....not yell at the dog, and especially not hit the dog...just let it know that it had hurt us. Then don't play with the dog for awhile...they soon learn that biting means no play....and they love to play!
I'm sure that with training, you'll break her of that bad habit, but it's a shame that you have to deal with it.
As for camping, it sounds like you have things pretty well under control. You will probably want to keep her in the crate inside....with the A/C, and the knowledge that she won't get stolen by someone, if you had her left outside.
You will probably want to invest in a ground screw and tether, or some other means of giving her a bit of room outside, but still keep her under your control. We've got 6 little Papillons, so a tether is out of the question...we use the X-Pens and set up a little play yard for them.
Before you know it, she's gonna be a regular camper. The more you socialize her, the less problems you will encounter with her seeing other dogs or people around the campground. Taking her for walks around the CG will let her see what is all around, as well as burn off a bit of that energy she's got!!
Have fun!!
* This post was
edited 05/25/09 03:18pm by PapPappy *
Bill & Claudia / DD Jenn / DS Chris Dogs: Sophie, Abby, Brandy, Kahlie, Annie, Maggie & Beau RIP: Cookie (Sheltie) & Gidget (Lab-mix) over the Rainbow Bridge.
2000 Winnebago "Minnie" 31C, Ford V-10
Purchased April 2008 FMCA# F407293 The Pets
Beautiful dog, you asked for tips -- we have a dog and take her with us and a lot of people you stop and talk to will have small children or be older and a dog that jumps up on a person to us is a definate NO NO so keep a short leash and teach her to heal or lay down while socalizing will be a big +. I understand that a pup will be all excited with new people, smells and especialy childern, control on your part will be important and not have the attitude of (oh she just likes to play). JMHO
PapPappy wrote: She is a cutie!!
I think one of your problems with nipping is that she wasn't trained by her mother. There is a reason that most breeders would rather you wait until 8-10 weeks before you take a puppy. Most of the nipping seems to be trained out of them by the mother during the 2-weeks you first had her.
I'm sure that with training, you'll break her of that bad habit, but it's a shame that you have to deal with it.
As for camping, it sounds like you have things pretty well under control. You will probably want to keep her in the crate inside....with the A/C, and the knowledge that she won't get stolen by someone, if you had her left outside.
You will probably want to invest in a ground screw and tether, or some other means of giving her a bit of room outside, but still keep her under your control. We've got 6 little Papillons, so a tether is out of the question...we use the X-Pens and set up a little play yard for them.
Before you know it, she's gonna be a regular camper. The more you socialize her, the less problems you will encounter with her seeing other dogs or people around the campground. Taking her for walks around the CG will let her see what is all around, as well as burn off a bit of that energy she's got!!
Have fun!!
Thank you so much for your comments and advice!! And you are right. I do believe that the reason she is such a nipper and I'm having to go through so much getting her out of it, is that she was taken away from her mother and siblings too early at 6 weeks instead of waiting til she was 8 weeks. I have learned that they learn bite inhibition at that time. But ignorant me, did not know this fact until after I got her, experienced the problem and started asking questions around Lab forums. The man had them for sale at 6 weeks and I thought that was the right age. Oh well, only thing to do now is work through it.
I was wondering about the screw and tether before I posted. I think that will give her some room and give us time to relax around her without having to hold onto her leash constantly.
She really needs socialization. She is an extremely outgoing dog and she loves every person and animal she meets. The only problem is she is too rambunctious and I have not taught her not to jump on people all the time but we are working on it. She loves other animals, but if they are small, she jumps and steps all over them in her exuberance. But I think it will get better with time and work.
Hey, Wilmington is 1 hour from us and we go there all the time. As a matter of fact, we are taking the obedience course at Petsmart there.
Sounds like to me your doing a great job. I just hope your not to much over 50 cause that dog takes lots of energy to raise. It will take a good 8 years for that one to slow down. One thing for sure since your from the south you should know see your vet about regular heartworm medication. They get them from miscreeters and traveling you'll get all kinds. Ounce of protection will let them live happier healthy lives. Good Luck and Happy Trails
The Ark 91 PACE w/ 4dogs 1cat 1bird, http://community.rv.net/cpwomer
Itchey Feet wrote: Beautiful dog, you asked for tips -- we have a dog and take her with us and a lot of people you stop and talk to will have small children or be older and a dog that jumps up on a person to us is a definate NO NO so keep a short leash and teach her to heal or lay down while socalizing will be a big +. I understand that a pup will be all excited with new people, smells and especialy childern, control on your part will be important and not have the attitude of (oh she just likes to play). JMHO
I agree very much with what you are saying and plan on keeping complete control over her and not let her jump on anyone. She does have a problem with this and I will make sure she doesn't do it. Plus this will be a great learning and teaching opportunity for us. Great advice. Thank you.
Get a Lab and experience love & devotion! Our 8 yr old Lab died suddenly last year and we now have a 9 week old yellow female lab. What a bundle of energy and into every things. We now also have a 7 yr old Black Lab which is a great mentor for the pup. Our Labs have always been 24/7 companions and love to go for a ride. We're going thru the puppy house training bit and putting out a number of acceptable chewable which are always available to her & him. Labs love to chew and their enviornment needs to be puppy proofed. No electrical cords, plants, do dads on coffee/end tables, or anything you don't want chewed (e.g., hearing aids, glasses, shoes, etc. Right now Dorie is working on my tennis shoes as I type. We also have "doggie den" aka, crate which Dorie sleeps in at night. She uses it during the day for napping. That's a must when traveling. We always taken our labs with us on our RV trips and have encountered no problems. We're retired and take plenty of breaks when on the road so us & Labs. We only leave dogs alone in trailer for short periods when camping. If at all possiblle we take them with us, but in hot weather we leave them in air conditioned trailer. Our Labs have been basically non-barkers. Happy Trails...
cpwomer wrote: Sounds like to me your doing a great job. I just hope your not to much over 50 cause that dog takes lots of energy to raise. It will take a good 8 years for that one to slow down. One thing for sure since your from the south you should know see your vet about regular heart worm medication. They get them from miscreeters and traveling you'll get all kinds. Ounce of protection will let them live happier healthy lives. Good Luck and Happy Trails
I'm 48 years old and fit as a fiddle, lol!! But she IS a huge handful of dog already and she will get to be 80 to 90 pounds of pure energy. I keep her exercised as much as possible. I knew all of this before I got a Lab, but the breed really appeals to me and I love big dogs. She keeps me on my toes thats for sure.
I took her to the vet the day after I got her and she is on an on time schedule of puppy shots, worm treatments, and heartworm treatments. (She had already had her first worming treatment and puppy shot before I got her). Tomorrow she goes for her next set of shots, Rabies Vaccine and another Frontline treatment. I also plan on having her spayed as soon as she's old enough.
Rhonda....
Great advise from everyone. Controll now before she gets to 80 lbs......
My ADVISE......ENJOY each and every moment with a confident attitude......
and perhaps you will rescue another loving companion
Labs are great dogs - but they do act like for puppies for a long time (3-4 yrs in some cases!!). I once had a 100# male who thought he was my lap dog - you'd be surprised how much of himself he could fold up on my lap if the chair had arms!! The key to training, I think, is to be consistent and firm but not harsh. You might want to reconsider letting her be loose in the MH while travelling - a fast stop will throw her around and possibly hurt her. I loop a 4' leash around the base of my chair, hook that to Katie's harness (a harness is safer than a collar) and she stays on her pillow bed while we are driving. She can move around but not get hurt in a stop. I can reach her to pet her (and share a snack or two!) Although I don't worry about Katie running out the door, I would consider this a good possibility in a lab pup. And, when she is just a bit bigger, she will be able to push you over if she really wants out so having her fastened until you are ready to put the leash on is a good thing. Thank you for being a responsible dog owner!!
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....Anyway, what we used to do, and it appeared to work...every time the puppy starts to bite, we'd yell "Ouch!"
....not yell at the dog, and especially not hit the dog...just let it know that it had hurt us. Then don't play with the dog for awhile...they soon learn that biting means no play....and they love to play!
