Need a family dog

Hi, I want to buy a puppy, I have never had a dog, I have 3 young girls (ages:, 5, 8 and 10), I have a very large garden and understand that I will have to walk it daily. I was thinking of a female labrador retriever and would be grateful for any opinions or advice on this please.

Hi Paul, just wanted to say welcome, you've come to the right place to get loads of good advice first..... and well done for getting advice before you get the pup.
I've never had a lab, but know they are good family dogs, so someone with better knwoledge of them than me will be along soon.

Hello, welcome to Dogsey!

Have you had any dogs before? Have you trained a puppy?

Lots of people love labs and think they are the perfect family dog......but I'm not conviced i'm afraid! They can be wonderful, loving etc etc but, IMO, aren't always the easiet to train as they can be big and boisterous.

As well as looking into breeds of dog it is vital that you research into the newer positive methods of raising and training a puppy.

There are some great books suggested at www.apdt.co.uk and www.apbc.org.uk.

You can also find a dog training class in your area and a good trainer may be prepared to let you sit in on some lessons and meet some of the dogs.

Personally i think a good first dog is a cavalier king charles spaniel, but after all the recent publicity that raised the health issues in this breed you would have to do more research and find a breeder who does thorough health tests.

Good luck in your research! The more research you do now the better chance you have of raising a wonderful family pet as their are lots of things that need to be done while the puppy grows to prevent problems rather than dealing with issues when they arrise.

Hi and welcome to Dogsey

Good luck with your research into finding the right dog, it is all part of the fun

Hello and welcome.

Can I suggest seeing if your local rescue has any pups?
They would normally ask lots of questions about your lifestyle and point you in the direction of a suitable dog.

Good luck in your search. x

I think when choosing the type of dog best suited to you think about what that breed was bred for .
A labrador is a gun dog and fine if you are into lots of long walks and keeping it from becoming bored .
Everyone gets a dog with the intention that they are going to walk it miles and some people keep that up and some people don't .
Remember also the lifespan of the dog and that it could be a 12 year plus commitment . My 15 year old whippet is in great shape and still walks miles every day .
The type of dog I always advise people to get is a cavalier king charles spaniel too especially for people who have never had a dog before . I know their possible health issues but a lot of them live long and healthy lives .
Good luck with your choice

Great minds think alike! I think they are great little dogs.

I agree! No training needed, no toilet training either, a ready made companion for your family to enjoy, and he or she will thank you for it in a million ways! There should be a labrador rescue site somewhere too where you can take a look and read all about them, if you're specifically looking for a lab? I like the idea of a spaniel too, or something along those lines, but NOT a springer coz they can be manic and might be a bit too boistrous for your particular needs and exercise regime you have in mind.

Have fun in your search, but I think your first port of call should be in the direction of a rescue rather than a young pup, and anyways, they also have young unwanted pups in the rescues!

Enjoy Dogsey too, hope you get lots of what you're looking for on here.

hi and welcome to dogsey.

I am an owner of 2 labs and 3 smaller doglets. i am happy to answer your questions.

How about you put up why you would like a doglet, why you looked at the lab give us some info on you what you do for work ect. It might help more. Rescue dogs can be great as well and there are lots of labs that are in rescue as well, dont get me wrong we all love dogs and will give lots of help and advice but think of it as you are going to see a breeder they will ask lots of questions aas you would they want there babys to go to good homes so you would need to make sure you are 100% on the breed and can handle all that a pup can throw at.

i wish luck hun. treat us as a breeder and ask questions and we will you as if we was looking at selling a pup to you.

hope that helps a little. good luck

What an excellent post - and I totally agree, in particular with this bit You have to be so careful, Labs can be extremely energetic and can be a handful.

Also we've had a few bite incidents in our location that were from different Labs. (not limited to that breed by any means)

I would spend a little more time researching different breeds. What about visiting Discover Dogs or Crufts, there you could see a myriad of different breeds, speak to owners/breeders and find out lots of useful information? Or try visiting some local Dog Shows and (once they are not showing) approaching some exhibitors?

Good luck with your search