two lab puppies together

Question
QUESTION: is it better to raise two lab puppies together or wait until one dog is older to get the second one? Also if you recommend two puppies together, is it best to get two females, two males or one of each? Why? Thanks - Cheryl

ANSWER: I would wait until the first one is 6 months old to get the second and go with opposite sexes.  This isn't an area I have a lot of personal experience in, but the dog guide school I raise puppies for does.  They won't let 2 of their puppies be in the same home unless they are at least 6 months apart.  Otherwise, they fear the puppies will be too closely bonded to each other, and well bonded enough to the people.  As for the sex, usually any two dogs will do fine together if given good leadership.  There are times when they don't.  Put 2 dogs of the same sex together, both with a high drive for dominance, and even the most experienced owners may have trouble.  Females are worse than males.  May as well play it safe with one of each.  I do have abundant at least short time experience with puppies of different ages in the home.  We always have a puppy of our own, and frequently we are keeping somebody else's, plus for the last 4 years, we have had an older dog in the home.  It normally goes fine, although we have had to remind the older ones to be more gentle with the little ones.

Note, housebreaking is very labor intensive.  Two puppies at once?  Forget it.    

Have you considered rescues?  Finding a good breeder and purchasing a puppy that will make a good pet is very difficult.  Almost nobody is intentionally breeding dogs to be nice pets.  Most of your so called reputable breeders are breeding for show or something.  They may say the puppies they don't keep for their purpose make great pets, but the truth is that the parents were selected for other than health and temperament.  Often they keep the puppies in the kennel too long and they miss the important early socialization puppies need to live in the house with people.

Next are the disreputable breeders.  Puppy mills breed any 2 registered dogs they can lay a hold of looking only at the money they can make selling them to pet stores.  Pet store puppies are easy to find, but difficult to socialize into nice pets, perhaps difficult to even keep alive.  You will not get what you pay for at a pet store.

Backyard breeders are only slightly better.  At least there, most of the breeding stock is acceptable to live in somebody's home as a pet.  Unfortunately many of them know nothing about what it takes to produce quality puppies.  Some of them are breeding for the selfish pleasure of vicarious motherhood, and others the same greed as puppy mills. If you don't get good answers to questions about allergies or OFA and CERF certification, go elsewhere.  

Avoid puppies forced to live in their filth or that saw little outside their kennel between 6-12 weeks.  At 7-8 weeks, a puppy is quick to adjust to its new home, new people, and new things.  Past 12 weeks, it may never adjust to its new life as well. Even some of the better breeders hold puppies too long without proper socialization.   

One of the best sources for dogs with a predictable personality is the rescue dogs.  These are dogs that lost their home, but were taken into a foster home to be retrained as necessary and placed in the right home for them.  You may find a rescue near you starting at http://www.akc.org/breeds/rescue.cfm  The rescues charge a fee to help cover their expenses, but is much less than the price of a puppy plus all its medical expenses the first year.

Once you have selected a puppy, come back for help with it.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for your advice. We did get one blk male, he's 6 month old now & has an appt to be neutered. Regarding training. What th e best way to teach him to release the ball when he retrieves it? he thinks its an opportunity to play tug of war! What should we do about "stealing" he takes thing that aren't his and refuses to "leave it" and runs away if you go after him. I've tried distraction, throwing another ball etc. but it doesn't stop him from doing it again. How do I get him to obey "stay". As soon as I walk away he gets up. We just went through an 8 week Level 1 obedience training and scored about 50% (82 out of a possible 160). Any ideas you have would be appreciated!

Answer
When he comes back with the ball, ignore it and praise him for coming.  Keep your focus on him.  Eventually he will start to lose interest in the ball when you show no interest in it.  Then you can give him the command ''give''.  Showing too much interest in the ball makes it a high value item he will hang on to.  

A mousetrap is very effective in making a dog leave something alone. Most dogs will stay away from anywhere they were surprised by a snap. The best part is that it is not you that is correcting the dog. It works whether you are around or not. The mousetrap is very patient and is always on task as long as you reset it.  You may prefer the can can.

Counter Surfing

Does your Foster Puppy counter surf; constantly checking the tables and counters for a tasty morsel that he is sure was left there just for him? If so, teach him The Can Can! For The Can Can you will need about 6 cans (empty pop cans with a few rocks or pennies inside them and a little piece of duct tape over the hole works well). Stack the cans in a pyramid on top of a piece of cardboard or paper to which you have attached a piece of string. Tie the string to the object that your Foster Puppy most desires from the counter top. It may be a dish towel or if it is food he is seeking, use a paper towel that you have used to pat down a piece of meat or maybe some meat juice. Then wait. When the object is snatched from the counter top the pyramid of cans will come crashing down, startling the thief. Your puppy will be caught in the act red pawed! You have just created a self correction! It may take several repetitions to get the point across, but soon your puppy will decide that it just isn't worth taking the chance.

Your puppy could be one of the stronger willed Labs.  The neutering should help.  Some obedience instructors aren't up to them.  The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts. Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/ For more on being top dog, see http://www.dogbreedinfo.com./topdogrules.htm