Rudy, 4 month old Yellow Lab puppy.

March 7, 2018

Rudy is an incredible puppy and sometimes seems so much more mature than what you would expect for a 4 month old Lab. Rudy has many wonderful qualities:

• He is very intelligent, eager to please, highly trainable, and very alert
• He makes great eye contact and regularly checks in with his person on walks
• He can self-entertain with antlers and bones and will put himself to bed when he is tired
• He is not destructive, although he does enjoy shredding paper (especially toilet paper)
• At just 4 months old, he already knows sit, down, come, paw, go bed, sit/wait/release at door or for food and is learning more every day
• He loves to cuddle and enjoys attention from his people
• He can be your shadow but is not Velcro; oftentimes he is perfectly content just napping on a bed in another room
• His tail never stops wagging
• He loves playing with other dogs; roughly with my young dog but very gently with my older dog; when he gets excited and his hackles go up, he looks like a ridgeback!

Rudy still play nips and needs to learn bite inhibition. He sometimes gets too excited when he is tired or overly stimulated from playing, and he can get grabby with his toys, treats, or anything you might be holding in your hands. However, this behavior for the most part is typical of puppies. He just needs to be trained regarding appropriate behavior. He needs a LOT of exercise. His nighttime sleep period is about 6 to 6-1/2 hours (to bed at 11 PM and up between 5 AM and 5:30 AM). He is eating 3 times a day and will need to do that until he is about 6 months old, at which point he can be fed twice a day. He needs to pee after eating, drinking water, napping or playing, and he needs someone very attentive to his cues as he still occasionally will pee in the house. However, he has recently been peeing excessively, and I suspect he may have a UTI, for which he is being treated with an antibiotic.

March 4, 2018

Rudy continues to do well with me and my dogs.  Both of my dogs are around 90 lbs. and Rudy is 37 lbs. We think he has sprouted since he’s been with us – in only a week, it seems as though he has grown much taller.  My Labs are English and I think Rudy is American, which means he will likely be a tall Lab. At 4 months old, he is probably almost ¾ the height of my Labs. He and my 3 year old male play very roughly together and most of their play seems to focus on bitey face. Bitey face playing with my dog means he is not doing it with me as much, which is a good thing! With my female, Rudy is much more gentle, almost as though he understands she is 10 years old and not up to dealing with his puppy behavior. Rudy is mostly house trained, but not 100%. When I am not watching him for cues, he has peed in the house a few times. He loves being with me and follows me everywhere, yet he is not a Velcro dog. He is oftentimes perfectly content to put himself down for a nap on one of our many dog beds and is confident enough to be in another room than the one I am in. I have 3 fenced acres so I can put my dogs out in the backyard as long as I am watching them.  However, Rudy has no interest in being out there without me – he jumps up on the door and barks to come in if I put him outside without going with him.

His nipping has improved since he has been with me and we are actively working on trying to control that. I am starting to learn what triggers his nipping and am working around it. I have said this before, but Rudy is incredibly intelligent and trainable. I have been handfeeding him some of his food and will continue to do that to be able to praise him when his bite is appropriate. He is a fast learner and I have no doubt he will eventually grow out of that behavior. He is one of the most alert dogs I’ve known.  He looks up to the sky when a bird or plane flies over and follows it until it is out of sight. He continually checks in with me while we are outside, which is a wonderful indication of his trainability. I have to credit his owner with working with Rudy since he already knew come, sit, down, and paw when he came to me. We are working on other commands and Rudy is proving that he is a quick learner.

February 28, 2018

It’s amazing how quickly Rudy has settled in.  He is my shadow and goes everywhere I go. He continues to enjoy exploring my yard.  As all puppies do, he explores with his mouth.  Although he is very mouthy and has not learned bite inhibition yet, he primarily does it when he is overly tired (think cranky toddler) or overly stimulated from playing with my dogs. He and Buzzy play with deer and elk antlers and like kids, they each want what the other one has and keep swapping them back and forth. He is just 4 months old and already knows come, sit, down, paw, other paw, and sometimes sits up on his hind end with his front paws in the air.

Since he arrived here 4 days ago, he has learned the sit/wait/release command at the door and for meals and is learning to trade when he has something he shouldn’t. He has great focus and makes wonderful eye contact, continually looking to me for cues. Each time he comes in from outside, he runs to the cabinet where the treat jars are stored. It certainly didn’t take him long to make that connection! He gets lots of outside time, walks and exercise, which he absolutely must have. The exercise helps to keep him calm indoors. He is a cuddle bug and will curl up next to you on the sofa. He is very curious but also wary of some things such as new people, new dogs, certain noises, and people coming into the house. He is fairly vocal and when he is uncertain about something, he whimpers. He loves shredding paper of any type and has a particular fondness for toilet paper!  He will occasionally countersurf on the dining room table and steal whatever he can reach. He now has the nickname Rudy Tootie, which I’m sure needs no explanation.  LOL!

See Rudy’s cute video here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/QE8UZP1bqSJAGP5q2