Animals/Pets!

I have to introduce you all to my new family member...Cole! I picked him up today and now he is officially ours! I don't know if I ever fully believed in love at first sight until now. I am absolutely completely head over heels over this dog. I think I might be a lab convert for life now too. I have never been around labs much until recently, and I have to say it is like I can see exactly why this is the most popular breed. This dog is the most social, family oriented, intelligent creature I have ever met!

He immediately made himself right at home, and the transition has been so smooth so far. My Rott Ancha is a little jealous, but through the fence they seem fine. We will probably formally introduce them when both on leashes tomorrow.

This is Don, my boss's Dad who sold me the dog, working his dog whisperer magic on Cole, his mother, and one of his sisters. Cole is the one on the far right.


Cole...posing for the camera. He just loves to please. Black dogs are very hard to photograph btw!


Cole and his very happy new Mama...Note jealous rottweiler skulking in the background. Sorry it is blurry- husband was in a hurry trying to finish the dog run when asked to take this photo!

Awwww. Adorable! (Both you AND the dog).

Cole and his mommy are both gorgeous!!

He looks like a wonderful family dog!! Congrats!

Thanks for sharing!!

Ahh thanks Frazz and FC...Good thing the photo with me was nice and blurry-that worked out great! Cole is by far the better looking one of the two of us!

Mr. Cole is the coolest dog I have ever owned. My poor Rott is so insanely jealous. She just is beside herself that she did not get her walk today. She will get hers tomorrow though.

YAY! I'm so glad the adoption worked out. Obviously this was what was meant to be.

That dog probably doesn't know how lucky he is landing with a family who will love him.

I agree.........Cole and new Momma are both gorgeous. I have always had a soft spot for Labs. The pic of just Cole laying there so beautifully is precious.

OHHHHH I love him. He is so cute!!! He will be smart you will see. You will love having a very smart dog.

Well I am knackered from the scottish games. Sat was a nightmare. Winds were 30 mph , no kidding. Everyone else moved inside the rec center but dogs and sheep cannot. Sun was nice but I guess people didn't come out as much because of the terrible weather the day before. Tristan ending up going Sun. He did a great job.

Welcome to the lab lovers gang, Luca! Cole looks like a real sweet heart.

Nice pic of the two of you - enjoy your new honey!

Eeek! The gang is all here!

Sky: You are too kind! I am going for a low maintenance look these days!
Glad it does'nt look too hideous! I am now a lab convert for life~ after owning one for one day!!!!!! I love that photo too! You can even see his eyes!

GE: Thanks! I think somehow he does know! He seems to have picked us.
Don, his former owner said he felt the dog sensed he was leaving yesterday and they said their goodbyes. He admitted he was quite attached. I invited him to come visit him anytime.

Aerwin: Thanks my laydee! I think he is handsome too! These are the commands he knows already at 7 months: Come, sit, fetch, stay, kennel,
heel, give, and his name. I really need to get that dog book you told me about. Cole is so smart and eager to please, that I want to teach him much more. Can you recommend any other dog training books that don't use treats much? This dog just thrives on praise....
So glad to hear Tristan did an awesome job! At least you got one good weather day, and it happenned to be the day you showed!

ETA: Thanks Lau! That is sweet of you to say!

Wait a second! Aerwin, I thought you were'nt bringing Tristan to the Scottish games! He must have charmed you with perfect gentleman behavior this past week to make you change your mind!

Well the first day I took the girls for the demo. Remember I told you they were all business? I mean really they are all about the work. So much they wear pocket protectors and carry breifcases. But anyway Tristan is a great worker and a love bucket. So I wasn't thinking about kids being there. And after the dogs work the sheep they want to ask questions and pet the dogs. He is much better for kids. So he was a big hit. Oh i forgot to say you look very cute in the pic Luca.

That is so cool Tristan is such a lover boy and good will ambassador for the breed with kids...Cole is a lover boy too! I can't wait to get home today and be with him again!

After I fed him, took a short walk around the property, and introduced him to my rott out in the horse pasture before I left for work, I put him back into his kennel. He whipered, then proceeded to wailing like someone was killing him. I have never heard anything that pitiful in my life! It went on for about 20 minutes, then he stopped. I think they must have let him out to play most of the day with his mother after they fed him. I am hoping that after slowly getting the two dogs comfortable with each other and teaching him about the horses he will be able to be out with Ancha all day. The sorrow in his wail about broke my heart!

Aww shucks about me looking cute, I hate taking pictures...But, I felt so estatic to have my boy home I had to share it.

Luca, labs seem to reflect sadness in such a way that it pulls at your heartstrings. There are times when I have to leave the house that my Emma looks at me with such sadness, it breaks my heart.

When I first got her, I read in a book that any separation from the family of a lab, particularly the one(s) the dog is most bonded to is very painful for them to endure. I think that's why they have increased in numbers in the Seeing Eye dog programs and the handicap assistance programs. They just crave being with their human family or human partner.

My son has a yellow Lab and he has the saddest looking face. What a dog he is though. He loves to retrieve. If you even throw a ball or toy for him ONE time, that's it....he won't leave you alone until you take the ball or toy and either hide it, or put it next to their other dog. Poor Scout will not try to take it away from the other dog......

Sky, you are'nt kidding about the retrieving instinct with this breed! This puppy will retrieve until he is about ready to keel over! He has boundless energy though. Yesterday, we played frisbee for about 45 minutes! Yesterday morning, he found the horse ball out in the horse pasture that has a handle on it, and he was so proud to retrieve it and carry it around!

A very interesting phenomenon occurred last night. Well, Cole does this wailing, moaning thing when he gets put away and does'nt want to be. Last night, after being out, played with, fed, excercised...he proceeded to get lonely and wailed, then started barking. After about 15-20 minutes of
it, I went out to check out if there was a cat on the property or something.
Well, the horses seemed to be hovering around the end of the pasture that is near Cole's kennel. I went in and when Cole was quiet, went back out to let him relieve himself for the last time of the evening. The horses lined up along the fence line and gathered around. They were acting very friendly and curious about Cole. The lowered their heads and sniffed him.
I then decided to introduce him to them in the pasture, so went in with him on a leash and let the horses approach him. It was a very unusual, magical experience. I think they know he is a baby animal and they perceive him as a baby horse. They were so tender, gentle, and curious about him. My rescue horse Milagro, came right up and touched noses with Cole. Cole was not afraid either. They have accepted him into the herd as the baby member.

They let me know they understand he is a baby and they will treat him like a baby horse. It was one of the most miraculous animal experiences I have had. They acted the same way when a friend brought her 1 1/2 year old daughter over to see them. The tender looks on their faces told the entire story.

Soon Cole will be able to be out with Ancha and the horses during the day when we are at work. We just have to secure all the fencing. I think we will try to see how he does this weekend.

Aw, that post has me in tears What a sweet and beautiful experience! The closest I can come to that is the daycare girls have tenderly excepted my new dolls! Makes me wish we could have pets.....

What a lovely story. Made me feel peaceful just reading it.

I have to share these pics of my son's Lab of the first time he had the nerve to go into the pool to get a ball. He wanted to retrieve that ball so badly, but just hadn't had the nerve to go into the water.....until this day. The first shot, he wanted the ball so bad.....and the second pic....he finally got the nerve and dove in for it! I snapped the pic at the moment he went in, but his hind legs and tail were still on the edge of the pool! Too funny!

How cute!!!!!

I love retreivers. If I did not have a border collie that is what I would own.
I love your story Luca and that goes to show that animals truly have feelings.
My dog Halle can tell I am going ti have an asthma attck before I do. This is true. My husband and son have seen it with their own eyes.


Anyway the name of the book I was speaking of The intelligence of Dogs by Stanley Coren. It is about intelligence and emotions of dogs.
I really don't use a training book for dogs per say just make sure they know all the basics. Walk on a leas , sit , stay lie down , kennel, ride, etc. Good manners . No jumping or excessive frantic licking. After my dogs learn the basics they learn to work the sheep. I think there is a competitive sport for retreivers . It looks fun where they fetch in the water ? I can't think of the name of it right off though...

Just priceless Sky! Thanks for sharing that! How old was your son's lab in that photo? I am curious because Cole is also kind of timid. He got scared when we let him in the house and he slipped on the Pergo floors. He was afraid to move and was shaking!

I wish I could record the wailing/crying sound he makes...it is the most pitiful sound I have ever heard, It almost sounds like Wah-Wah!

Aerwin, what does Halle do when she senses you are going to have an attack? I am going to go order Coren's book...it sounds fascinating! I also will have to look into Retriever sports...that sounds really fun!

Update on the sweet horse/cole story. Hubby was off today and let Cole into the horse pasture while he worked on the fence. My oldest, most agressive horse, Ardeo tried to charge Cole...he tried to show him who was boss to establish the pecking order. Unfortunately he may try to do that a few more times, and Cole does'nt know he is in danger-so his future horse experiences will need to be extremely well supervised until he figures out to watch himself when he is around them. That may take a while. I am trying to remember how old my Rott was when we let her mingle unsupervised with the horses. I don't think she was much older than Cole. She has been run over a time or two...and she learned very quickly. That is a dangerous way for them to learn though. I would die if anything happenned to him, so will proceed this time with absolute caution.

Run over by horses! Poor baby Hopefully that will never happen to Cole. Sounds so very scary, but I am sure all will be OK.

Aerwin, is that book one that an 11 year old could read and enjoy? One of my daycare girls just got two puppies and her birthday is in April. I thought maybe she would enjoy a book about dogs as a present.

Luca, I honestly don't remember how old he was in the pic, sorry. Growing up, my family always had dogs and they were always Labs. They are such a people kind of dog. They do get lonely when left alone though. I'll bet Cole's wail is a tear jerker. Our dog (not a Lab) had been heard by the neighbors to cry/wail when we weren't home.

I can see why your family is hooked on labs Sky. I truely love this breed with a passion. I always heard people rave about them, but until you experience it first hand you really don't know how special they are.

I feel very strong maternal instincts for this dog. He is so people oriented and so wants to be right with me and my husband. FC -I will not risk Cole
getting hurt by the horses. Ancha has always been a tough dog that liked to be agressive with the horses and try to herd and chase them around, and that is why she got run over. I just won't put Cole at risk of getting hurt by them...he is too precious. Not that I don't love my Rot, but she has always been more independant and no where near as devoted or attached as Cole is.

Cole is used to having his mother around and he must be going through that separation process as well as settling in with us as his new owners. I wish I could bring him in the house, but I think he has been trained to not come in the house-so he is afraid. I guess it will just be a slow gradual process. First, I think he needs to feel fully secure here and with us, then we can gradually expose him more and more to the house.

He has not gone to the bathroom in his kennel yet. I think he would be a cinch to house train.

I can't wait until he comes into your house! He sounds like a perfect house dog! I never knew there were dogs afraid to come into the house Growing up we had 4 dogs (not all at once) and they all were house dogs and house trained. My mom even paper trained them all so if we all were away all day the dogs would just go on the paper!