If you are planning to bring home a Labrador retriever pup then there are few critical requirements that you must know in order to keep your dog mentally and physically healthy through out it’s life. Keeping a Labrador retriever as a pet is a serious affair. It is a 24/7 responsibility on you and your family members to take good care of the dog. So please ensure that you can meet these following essential requirements of your Lab before it comes home.
Space – Do you have enough space in your house/apartment to keep a large breed like Lab? Because Labs are highly energetic and athletic dogs and need enough space to move around despite regular exercises and walks. I would not recommend this breed for people staying in small apartments where there is hardly any space for the humans to stay. This breed is best suited for homes with a backyard, if possible with a small pool, because Labs instinctively love water and are excellent swimmers. It would be heaven if you can give your Lab some space with a bed or a rug that it can call its own – to play with its favorite toys, sleep and take rest.
Finances – Keeping a Lab can be expensive for a middle class family. So if you are planning to bring home a Labrador you must be financially prepared for it. You will have to shell out anywhere between $70 to $100 monthly towards feeding and grooming your Lab plus occasional medical expenses. The medical expenses will come up – depending on the age of your dog - in the form of vaccinations and other regular check ups. The costs will surely vary depending on the quality of everything. But I would only recommend good quality food - that is rich in protein and vitamins – and medicines for your Lab to keep it healthy and strong forever. The same goes for grooming articles too. Remember, if you are compromising on the quality you are compromising the health and well being of your pet.
Exercise – As mentioned earlier in the article, Labrador retrievers are highly energetic and athletic and need a lot of physical exercise in order to utilize its energy. The exercises can be in the form of long walks or playing fetch-a-ball or tug-of-war etc in your backyard or a dog park. An under exercised dog will be restless due to pent up energy and can be a menace to you and your society. It can also develop many behavior problems like destructive biting, restlessness, barking and so on. So you must make sure that you have the time and commitment to give regular exercise to your dog before you bring it home.
Time – Labs require a lot of human interaction and you must be ready to spend quality time with it – for grooming, socializing, petting and playing. So you must ensure that you can spend quality time with your dog before you buy one.
Care – Labs require a lot of care and attention from its owners in the form of socializing, grooming, exercise, playing and so on. So you must be prepared to give utmost care to your dog. Socializing is very important, and you must introduce your dog to other animals and humans at a very early age to prevent any behavior problems - like getting timid and aggressive towards other animals and human beings - from creeping in. If you are going to leave your dog un-attended for the whole day, you must ensure that it is safe for the dog to stay alone and it gets enough food and water until you get home.
Training - An untrained Labrador retriever is not only an unmanageable beast but also a menace to you and to the society. Training should start early – when your Lab is around 2 months old. And the best training method is positive reinforcement training – clicker training - which is the most humane and efficient way to train dogs. A Lab trained using clicker training or positive reinforcement training will be not only happy, healthy and confident, but also your best friend through its life time.
If you feel that you will be able to meet these critical requirements of your Lab, then who’s stopping you? Go ahead and give a Lab a loving home! Happy petting!
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