Any lab/english pointer owners out here--HELP! (terriers, training, odor)

[tinman01]

LOL walks may seem like lots of excercise for you but to a lab thats a warm up. They need to be run. Get a throw rope and work that dog out. Throw until that puppy is really breathing hard. Don't worry thats not work to a lab. Thats all play and they love it.

[GypsySoul22]

Thanks again for the comments.

This girl loves to keep moving, as you said. She also (my husband and I swear!) sulks when we ignore her or she's bored!

[misfitz]

Not sure if anyone mentioned this yet, but you could try teaching her to run alongside a bike to burn off some energy. Maybe your son could bike or rollerblade with her. Just make sure she's obedient enough to not pull! Would run off a lot more energy than walking. Good luck!

[pez4u04]

Hello, I am new to this site. I saw the pictures you posted of your puppy Luna and I had to talk to you. I have a dog that looks almost exactly like yours!! It's amazing, I think the only difference in my dog (Ella) is that she has more large black spots. She is 9 months old. I will put up pictures as soon as I figure out how but I believe Ella is some sort of English Pointer mix. She is pretty well behaved and very smart but she does have her days where she is really crazy...I'm waiting for her to get to the stage where she starts testing me! I try to take her to the dog park as much as I can or, as funny as it sounds, I try to arrange puppy play dates with some of my friends. They play for hours straight without sign of exhaustion but when I get her alone she passes out!

[GypsySoul22]

I love her!!!!
Yes, she looks so much like Luna...Luna only has one big black spot.

They are adorable dogs but my sulks and gets bored too easily.

[scorp200]

I feel your pain. My dog was called a "hound mix" by the shelter but she points and people think she's part whippet. So I might have a whippet/pointer mix. With some lab and maybe pit.

You can only imagine...

I'm struggling with the exercise issue too but for destruction in the apartment, a great job for them to have is to eat their kibble out of a toy that makes them work for it. Nora just got the Squirrel Dude from Premier - it looks like a kong but it's got some rubber prongs that make it harder for stuff to fall out. She LOVES this thing. I know you can get it from Amazon but it was in my local pet store.

I LOVE the water bottle/backpack tip, I'm doing that today! I have crappy knees and running steadily isn't an option (though I'm looking into the bike situation)

[Pilot1]

Originally Posted by jimboburnsy

Is it just me, or is that a picture of a German Shorthair?

It doesn't look like a German Shorthair to me. The ticking is different (although there are lots of GSP variations) as is the shape of the head. It looks like and English Pointer to me.

GSP with ball.

[GypsySoul22]

The hardest part is exercising them enough in winter without a back yard. (we live in a complex).
Today we had some snow/ice/heavy rain and I was already feeling frustrated. I used to take my dog in the morning for at least half an hour but this is not possible in the ice (I have boots but the roads are hilly--one pull from her and I will fall over).

I walked her 2 times (different) this morning for about 15 each to get her outside. Fortunately my husband is home days and he takes her to the park no matter what the weather.

However, he is feeling this is unfair on him. (he's fed up feeling like the dog is his responsibility).

I try to do my part by making toys for her out of things in the house, (a waterbottle (empty) slid into an old sock is great fun, for example). At night I get my son to help out as we romp with the dog. I handle all the feeding and most of the grooming and so on...

She's so smart, I would love to think of more ideas to keep her happy. (cheap ones...). I will continue researching...

[jimboburnsy]

Originally Posted by Pilot1

It doesn't look like a German Shorthair to me. The ticking is different (although there are lots of GSP variations) as is the shape of the head. It looks like and English Pointer to me.

GSP with ball.

It may very well be just me...

Closer examination has my initial conviction wavering. I've seen GSP's that were almost entirely white, the dog in the picture looked a bit too triangular headed for an English Pointer, and the liver/almost-merle combination seemed a bit on the German side. Comparison with your pic has me crawfishin' a bit...

[savapl]

Hi Guys
It's so good to read that other people have tireless, tireless puppies! I just adopted Ginny. She is a lab/bird dog mix, but has many, many features and temperament of an English Pointer. She is currently 9 mo and I am trying to leash train her, but she is very stubborn. Got any tips? How long did it take you guys to train your dogs?