I'll be raising a new dog in a month...questions

[JayDee]

My current Golden, Hoss, is 6 years now and lives at my parent's place. He is going to stay there, so the girlfriend has found me a new pup. She's a light blonde instead of a dark red male like Hoss. She'll be ready in mid August, so I'm getting the house ready for a new member.

It's been 6 years since I raised a dog... Hoss is especially well-mannered and I would like to see the same in the new pup. Anyone want to give me some refresher tips on establishing a good foundation for the new Golden?

Hoss usually slept in my room, but NOT my bed. I'm going to allow this again with the new golden. We (the people) also eat first, then the dog. Everything fun is earned. I walk in front of the dog.

Her name will be Maggie (She's on the right)

[DryHeat]

Other than making sure she has a grasp of Sit and Stay I am not much help. I talk to my Lab like he is part of the family and I think he understands most of what I say. Actually, I know he understands more than my wife.
You may want to check out THIS book.

[p_bratton]

Get a dog kennel. Craste trained dogs are the easiest to train. Be sure to buy a full sized one to fit the adult dog, but partition it off to restrict access as the pup grows. Barely enough room to turn around should keep him from soiling his space.

Remember they need to go out often as pups, (slamm blatter).

Don't give food or water in the kennel.

Start early with sit and down commands, work on come and then the leash.

And be consistant... They are very smart pups.

BTW: I have a long hair dark Golden as well as a Chocolate Lab.

[Bayou Titan]

My 11 year old golden is named Dakota.^^^ (he yawned right when I took this pic)

I would make sure that your golden is socialized to be near other dogs so that he won't go crazy around other dogs when you are at a park, etc. I would also get your golden accustomed to car/truck travel. I know a lot of people who didn't do this and their dog gets sick every time it gets in the car.

The most important thing to know about goldens is that they remain in the "puppy stage" longer than any other breed. This can last 2-3 years. That's why you see a lot of 1 or 2 year old goldens for sale, abandoned, or given away. Your golden will be very energetic during this stage-be patient. There is a saying about goldens that rings very true, "a tired golden is a good golden". You should walk, play fetch, swim, or do some other kind of physical activity with your golden every day. This will make him want to rest and not be overly wild when he is indoors.

The link below is a good site for golden retriever enthusiasts.

http://www.topgoldenretrieversites.net/

[stefnch]

Something we did was instead of using the word no with our dog (Greater Swiss Mountain Dog, very stubborn), was to use the words "mine" and "off". The reason being is that our breeder told us that we use the work no and know so often the dogs will get used to them, but if you use mine and off, that you use less frequent, once they understand these words it is much easier. From my experience now when I tell Ruben the word "mine" he drops whatever he has in his mouth. Off is good if you don't want them jumping or on the furniture. Hope all works out well

[keiffers]

Just name it "stay"....sorry I couldn't resist good luck with the new pup

[dragonhead08]

When I see that picture I cant help but think that anyone who says money cant buy happiness has never bought a puppy.

[FLfinfan]

Very cute pup. Nothing like a new best buddy.