quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:

That's going to be vet/location dependent. I don't pay even a third of that per year for regular checkups, shots, and preventative meds.

I pay ~$150 for checkup and shots and another ~$160 for a year of Heartgard meds.

Same here, maybe even less. I give him all of his shots except for rabies myself, as well as doing his baths and toenails. The vet is pretty much just for the rabies shot (legal requirement), heartworm prescription, and general checkup. Our dogs have always been very healthy.

As to the original question in the OP:

They don't live long enough. And it's a lot harder than you think when they go. But it's absolutely worth it. Enjoy every minute!

I have a Shepard/Australian/Husky mix.

I have never been a fan of crate training and have never used it.

What you get with a mix is a lottery. Depends on what genes dominate.

Mine was a rescue, we brought him to a professional trainer to speed up the process to get him trained.

Consistency is the key.

Trainers train the owner and the dog.

The Australian part in mine wants to instinctively heard things, including people.

They should get exercised one to two hours a day.

I found out from our first Shepherd, that you can potty train them.

Not just to pee/poo out in the back yard-
We have a run in the back corner of the yard, brick border with pea gravel (about 4” deep). We trained our dogs to go potty there.

Female dogs urine kills grass.
This way, we don’t have a bunch of brown/burnt spores in the grass, and Im not looking for “land mines” every day.
Cheap poop scooper and the pea gravel falls through.
Every month- 6 weeks, Ill spray it down with simple green just to keep it clean!


Oh, when a German Shepherd Pup howls at a passing fire truck/police car siren, it’s kinda cute.
When a 3 year old German Shepherd howls at a passing siren at 4am, it’s irritating.

Most dogs, especially working breeds, require physical AND mental activity. We have Australian Shepherds that get no free rides. For example, they wait until told to eat, go outside and get into vehicles. If they get a treat, they are told down or sit; sometimes turn left or turn right and sit. I play "hide and seek" with our dogs by making them sit and stay in the kitchen while I go into another room at which time I call out "RELEASE, come find me". Nothing too complicated but it works their minds while reinforcing basic commands.

Be consistent with your commands. To avoid confusing the dog, choose words that EVERYONE in the family can be consistent in using.

I'm in the camp of crate training. Our dogs sleep at night in their crates and travel in crates. Reason is, if an accident occurs, the last thing I want is one of my dogs loose on a road or freeway where they might get struck by a car. Also, if we travel, most motels will accept a dog that's crate trained knowing the owner will control their bathroom habits and not allow "accidents" in the room.

Figure out a method for flea control. Several options out there, talk to your vet and see what they prefer.

Also, I am not a fan of tennis balls for dogs. While the outer coating seems harmless, it is very abrasive and can wear a dogs teeth, especially the canines.

Best of luck with your new pup, they can be the greatest addition to a family.

Someone else said it, but you should play with their ears, mouth, feet, tails to desensitize them from being pulled by someone down the road.

We sent ours to school and she’s crate trained like Rock was. It’s super nice to just look at her and say “crate” and she goes in and will chill so I can run an errand w/o her tearing something up.

Congratulations. I recently lost my bird dog after 15 years. I miss her every single day.

If this is a new puppy, they will chew and need to chew when teeth come in. They can destroy anything they find to chew on. Electric cords included. They can also eat many things that can kill them. Don't leave them unattended. Try and have everyone onboard with using the same commands. Simple ones. Here..for come etc. Not 15 different commands that are supposed to mean the same thing. Patience and firm gentleness. No swatting with a newspaper etc. did I mention patience?

Sounds like you are very prepared! The only things I would consider are more of a raw diet vs all kibble and getting titers for vaccines vs just getting the vet scheduled ones. Pets are being over vaccinated when antibodies are still at adequate levels. This leads to cancer and other autoimmune
compromises. Labs are especially susceptible to cancer. Doing this from the get go may help decrease chances of it.

Most of all congrats! And, post pics when you get your new pup!

Good advice above. I'd add getting a Gentle Leader when you start to leash train. Which, BTW, should be damn early..... Incredibly effective without the harshness we had used at times.

We had a lab as our kids grew up up who was a joy to have around and a constant pleaser, aka easy to train. However even with her being part of the family we had strict boundaries about what she could/couldn't do and everybody, EVERYBODY, had to adhere to those for the success we had over her 14 years. Agree on this up front if at all possible.

Best advice we got from her "parents" was to remember that she was here for our enjoyment and control/direction, not the other way around.