mallet Posted May 19, 2009 Report Share Posted May 19, 2009 any tips on how to slow my Lab up on a retrieve she goes off at 100mph and hammers into retrieve. 90% of the time takes it clean but has tumbled a few times and pulled muscles etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewis Posted May 19, 2009 Report Share Posted May 19, 2009 What age is she? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mallet Posted May 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2009 18 months Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewis Posted May 20, 2009 Report Share Posted May 20, 2009 hmm Lab's usually calm down after a year. only thing you could try is changing her food to something with less energy? right enough she may still grow out of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracker Posted May 20, 2009 Report Share Posted May 20, 2009 Might you have got an American performance Lab by mistake? What's described has nothing to do with "calming down" but everything to do with desire and drive. Be grateful for it. The old cautionary saw about gundogs goes, You can always take it out of them, but you can't put it in them. In this case, why would you ever want to take "it" out of the dog? Going hard on a retrieve and even running through the retrieve when picking it is a picture of utter beauty. If you've got obedience issues, that's another story. MG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mallet Posted May 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 i do love the energy she has but its the hurting herself im trying to avoid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveT Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 Hi, Have you perhaps been 'over encouraging' her into retrieves. winding the dog up with repeated throws of dummies and hyping the dog up certainly doesn't help. On the other hand, she may just have a lot of drive. If it is purely down to her having a huge drive to please then try slowing everything down. If you are encouraging her a little too much (to the point of hyping her up, then stop it!). I would reccomend working on steadyness training, get her heeling well, sitting steady to shot, don't send her out for every retrieve oppurtunity, this will also discourage running in. Just slow everything down a notch. Granted, some dogs take longer to grow out of the 'bouncy' stage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacklab Posted May 23, 2009 Report Share Posted May 23, 2009 Do you want to sell her mate, I could do with her for trialing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mallet Posted May 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2009 Nah shes as much a member of the family as the wife and guns. wouldn't trade her for the world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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