Are Labs stinky?

[VisceralReaction]

Yeah labs shed to all hell all the time and just have the "wet dog" smell when they are wet.

Jeff beat me to it. the only dog I know of is the Boxer that doesn't ever have a smell wet or otherwise
and yes it's the only breed worth owning.

[The Architect]

if you do get a lab.  Get one of these.

http://www.furminator.com/



And a shop vac. 

[krolik]

It's paws will smell like corn chips.   


sac

Crunchy PB ftw!

[Two dogs]

Get one of these 

Australian Cattle dog aka : Blue healer /Red healer
self cleaning coat , I can take my dog mountain bike riding and he will be covered in
mud and as soon as he is dry all the dirt just falls off.
He does not smell at all unless he has rolled in something dead 
The only time I have ever washed him.

He has been de-sexed so that may add to it.
Absolutely loyal , protective and just wants to be wherever I am 24/7
he loves hanging out with the bikes too.
I don't like Labs much they are too food obsessed and can easily get fat
and act like dumb blonds unless trained really well, and yes they stink when wet.

[IZ]

If you want a waterdog, be a man and get a Newfie.

[DRKWNG]

Doberman.

/thread



Best thing about Dobes is that they'll throw up that crazy orange sweet potato shit that IZ tries to feed them.

[pitbull]

Get one of these 

Australian Cattle dog aka : Blue healer /Red healer
self cleaning coat , I can take my dog mountain bike riding and he will be covered in
mud and as soon as he is dry all the dirt just falls off.
He does not smell at all unless he has rolled in something dead 
The only time I have ever washed him.

He has been de-sexed so that may add to it.
Absolutely loyal , protective and just wants to be wherever I am 24/7
he loves hanging out with the bikes too.
I don't like Labs much they are too food obsessed and can easily get fat
and act like dumb blonds unless trained really well, and yes they stink when wet.

I will second the love for cow dogs.

I've rescued pitbulls for several years, but about 10 years ago I took in two cow dog pups. It took me a year to find a home for the one and almost two years for the other and by the time I adopted them out I did not want to let them go. Truly fantastic dogs, but then most dogs bred for performance over conformation are

[Bladecutter]

To the two people who think that Boxers are the best dog, the two of you must be on crack.
My gf is on the same Boxer crack as the two of you smoke by the pound, too.

Mollie is my gf's fourth Boxer, first female.
She loves her Boxers is an understatement.

I, however, am a Lab kinda guy.

I like a dog that knows its a dog, but tries to be a part of the family.

Boxers think that they are humans, and have some weird deformity.
They don't fetch. They don't play. They are always up in your face.
They just bounce around like idiots until you either take them for a walk, or feed them.
Then they pass out for an hour or two, and start the bouncing all over again.

Plus, they can peel the paint off of not only the walls in the room they vented in, but the next room over when the stink gets in there, and strip the paint off of your motorcycles in your garage when you open the door 3 hours later.

And if you don't think a Boxer has a smell, you obviously have never taken a whiff of one either while its sleeping, or shortly after it wakes up. It is a strong odor, I have never smelled before.

When my friends come over to visit, I have to spend half the time pulling Mollie off of my friends, because she just won't leave them alone. This includes other dog people.

And really, what good is a dog that you can't play fetch with?

Have a Boxer next to you, and throw a ball, or anything for that matter, and they stand there, look at you, and look at you like they are trying to tell you "That was a pretty good throw. Can I have a hug now?"

Have a Lab, a Border Collie, a Shepard, or just about any other dog, throw that ball, the dog will rocket off, grab the ball, head back your way, either hand you the ball back, or play a rousing game of "Keep-away" with you for a couple minutes, and then look at you like they are saying "That was a pretty good throw. Now how about you stop throwing limp-wristed, and put some sauce behind that toss?"

Plus, Boxers have one of the shortest lifespans for a dog, and just about always die from some form of Cancer tumor.
Mollie has a fused spine, and who knows what that's going to lead to in her future. She's 4 at this point, I do believe.

She is a great dog, but I'd rather have a Lab or a Shepard way before ever getting another Boxer.

BC.

[VisceralReaction]

yeah Boxers are energetic and need training.
all of mine were trained off leash and responded to whistles and hand commands.
Friends would come over and I would snap my fingers and the dog would sit and wait to be greeted.
All of them fetched and all had a prefered toy that they liked to fetch best.
All of them loved to swim.
None of them ever smelled nor farted.
Now I always fed high quality food and never allowed rawhide because it would make them fart.
Nor grocery store treats, just makes them fart.
Average life span is 8-10 years and it's not the shortest.
The larger breeds like the Danes are shorter.
None of mine have had any issues with cancer either.

[pitbull]

yeah Boxers are energetic and need training.
all of mine were trained off leash and responded to whistles and hand commands.
Friends would come over and I would snap my fingers and the dog would sit and wait to be greeted.
All of them fetched and all had a prefered toy that they liked to fetch best.
All of them loved to swim.
None of them ever smelled nor farted.
Now I always fed high quality food and never allowed rawhide because it would make them fart.
Nor grocery store treats, just makes them fart.
Average life span is 8-10 years and it's not the shortest.
The larger breeds like the Danes are shorter.
None of mine have had any issues with cancer either.

8-10 years is short for a medium size dog

I love all bully breeds, including boxers, but most lines have been utterly ruined by retarded breeders. There are a few trying to bring the breed back to some sort of functional use and reasonable health, to whom I sincerely wish the best of luck , but it's an uphill project to be sure........ especially given the monsterous popularity of the breed at present.

[VisceralReaction]

^ I agree, alot of breeds have been ruined due to breeders trying to make money rather
than further the breed standard. When you can trace the Boxer breed back to 5 ancestors
and alot of inbreeding to start the breed it makes it easier to ruin.
Sorry for the thread jack

[SacDuc]

Average life span is 8-10 years and it's not the shortest.
The larger breeds like the Danes are shorter.

That's only true because most people shorten the lives of their large dogs out of ignorance.

The short life span of the Danes is a common misconception. The animals usually have shorter lives because they are fed wrong. You really have to watch how fast they grow when they are puppies (and Danes are puppies for 3-4 years). They can develop severe joint problems if they grow too fast. A food with less protein takes care of this. Making sure they don't get too much exercise helps this as well. They seem a bit more prone to developing cancer earlier than other breeds. A natural food with a good mix of veggies in it seems to take care of this. But the most startling thing I learned is that 75% of early Great Dane deaths are caused by bloat. This is 100% preventable in a young to middle aged healthy animal. Some basic feeding guidelines are:

Raised the food so that the dog only has to bend his neck slightly to feed
Feed 4-5 times a day as much as the dog wants (this keeps them from over eating because they know they will get more soon)
No play/exercise one hour before and one hour after eating.
No eating two hours before and two hours after a car ride.
No excitement while eating (keep the toddlers away, don't throw the ball for other dogs, etc.)

A lot of people don't do this stuff. They are basically killing their dogs early. So you hear things like, "But, but, but . . . I work and can't keep a feeding schedule like that!" Then get a different breed. Or don't whine that your dog died at the age of eight.

The rescue we got two of our dogs from has adopted out over 11,000 large breed dogs. Their Danes are living between 12-16 years on average as opposed to the 7-10 you often seen quoted. My wife's Belgian Shepherd/Dane mix lived until 16. Despite their large size Danes (and many other large breeds) are quite fragile. But if they are properly cared for they should live a long happy life.

sac

[VisceralReaction]

Interesting...
Thank Sac!! 

[YellowDuck]

My lab doesn't stink, he just waits his turn to jump in the dishwasher.

[pitbull]

That's only true because most people shorten the lives of their large dogs out of ignorance.

while the bloat issue and death by a flipped stomach is a very common cause of shortened life span of danes, I've never heard of dane living to 16 years. I'm not saying it's impossible, I've just never seen or heard of it. I've known a number of danes who never died from a flipped stomach or bloat, but all of them had hip and/or joint issues that had them put down long before 16. I did have a dane/rottie cross who made it to 13 which I thought was really good. Arthritis got him.

and as for a low proteine diet........ that's a great recipe for joint and arthritis issues. Grain free with more protein is the way to go for most dogs, especially large breed dogs. Certainly control portions to regulate growth as a pup, but low protein is a bad deal, unless they have a pre-existing kidney issue.