Comments on: Labrador Behavior By Age

By: Sammie@LabSiteHQ

Sammie@LabSiteHQ — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 11:17:33 +0000

In reply to Brian. So pleased you've found a diet and lifestyle that works for him.

By: Brian

Brian — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 17:56:03 +0000

Our pure bred American black lab will turn 8 in janurary. He is allergic to nearly every type of wood, type of grass and storage mites amongst a few other niche things. We thought we were losing him two years ago when these issues came up.. he was very depressed seeming and lacked energy to be a dog… just laid in his kennel and avoided going outside. We provide gravel for potty time, keep the fescue blended yard very short and pickup sticks before he can get to them. He is on a raw diet with absolutely no grain, chicken or beef. Before we dialed in his diet he was producing skin yeasts that he had allergic reactions to (imagine being allergic to yourself). Likely from the chicken gizzards and hearts he gave him. He is now on a twice a day allergy medicine, vegetable an oat breakfast, pork heart/liver enriched.. and a bean/pea/pork butt/oat/pumpkin/fish oil/cottage cheese/honey dinner. Freezing his dried food (beans/peas/oats that we cook up weekly) kills off the storage mites. Diet is really so important and has brought our boy back to his active (slightly annoying) self that we remember from his early years. Hope he lives well into his teens in good health!

By: Daria

Daria — Mon, 23 Jun 2025 06:44:45 +0000

In reply to David Buckland.

It can be arthritis. Have you tried glucosamine and chondroitin supplements for him?
I’ve heard “Librella” works wonders but my dog didn’t try it.
I just read it on the Internet and also our previous vet said that her dog was taking this.

By: Daria

Daria — Mon, 23 Jun 2025 06:40:50 +0000

My black labrador turns 10 next month.
He has been suffering from chronic pancreatitis for 5 years and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD – endoscopy revealed lymphocytic-plasmacytic inflammation) for 1,5 years. We visit a veterinarian every 2 weeks, sometimes every week.
Last summer I thought he was going to die as he reacted very badly to steroids for IBD, he had muscle atrophy, started to loss weight (4 kg in three weeks) and had absorptive disorder.
But I listened to my intuition and changed pur veterinary clinic.
In the new one, they managed his IBD. Even though he has been having occasional intestinal bleedings for 1,5 years now, his blood tests have significantly improved and are almost normal now (last Summer his haemoglobin was barely 85 – normal range is from 145 – and last month it was 140 – he has blood tests taken every 1-2 months and the results have been improving gradually for lasts year).
In the new clinic, they changed steroid doses (you can’t just discontinue them, you need to lower doses very slowly). It turned out the previous vet gave him twice too high dose (!!!) which led to muscle atrophy. He was very weak at that time, he didn’t play, he didn’t walk much, he staggered, he wasn’t interested in anything. I really though he was going to die.
Luckily, his new vet helped him a lot! The crucial thing was to administer his medications in injections due to absorptive disorder (which the previous vet couldn’t figure out). So during first week, we visited the vet daily, then every 2-3 days, then once a week, until his condition was stable. He was also given IV therapy (high in proteins and other nutrients) for the first two weeks.
Apart from steroid shots, he takes Cyclonamine (500 mg twice per day – smaller doses did not help much), probiotics, enzymes (Amyladol, previous Amylactiv Digest but it seems Amyladol works better for him), Arthroflex (which glucosamine and chondroitin) for his joints, and liver supplements (Pro Hepa – a supplement consisting in phospholipids, artichoke, milk thistle, turmeric).
We live in Poland so I am not sure if these medications are available globally, but I thought I write it, just in case someone needs this information. Occasionally, he takes antibiotics (Clavudale).
Before he was diagnosed with IBD, he had food allergy tests and we also tried numerous diets (veterinary diets such as Royal Canin gastrointestinal etc.), including a home made diet plan prepared by a canine dietitian but nothing worked. It seems he only tolerates Mera Pure Sensitive Salmon and Rice.
He walks more slowly than last year, but he still enjoys his walks and looks disappointed when we go for a shorter walk so I started letting him choose the way. I ask him “Hektor, do you want to go home?” and believe it or not, but when he has “worse day”, he turns back but if he feels up to it, he continues his walk the normal path.
I don’t know how much time together we have left. It can be a year, but it also can be 2-4 years. But each month since last August is a victory to me and I celebrate each day with him.

By: Mark Pugh

Mark Pugh — Tue, 13 Feb 2024 18:14:43 +0000

Our black labrador, Toby, is now 14 years and 6 months old. He is completely deaf, no longer even hears a whistle, his eyes are very slightly cloudy, he has a bump on his right side.
He only goes for the very shortest walks now, but sniffs everything on his path. I’m talking 50m out and return and if it’s raining he doesn’t want to come out of his kennel.
He sleeps a lot. It takes a while to get up and occasionally while walking along he will stagger, even sometimes fall over. He still gets up and down the steps to our back garden, but sometimes he looks at them for a while to pluck up courage for the three step climb.
He sometimes gets a bit short and starts his poo on the way to the lawn!!! Then has a few steps while continuing the job! He stands with his back end slightly lower and back legs bent more.
He spent his whole life with a brother from the same litter, who died when he was 10 years 6 months old.
Grey in the muzzle and around the bottom of his legs, a few grey hairs near his tummy. He occasionally skips a meal, we feed him morning and tea time (smaller amounts), but he gets lots of treats and is a great size. He was always overweight as an adult dog (35-40kg), but now has a waist.
He is in his final months, maybe weeks, but doesn’t appear to be in any pain and still eats his food and loves going for a sniff around if it’s not raining. He has spent most of his life as an outdoor dog, coming into the kitchen area to sleep only when it gets very cold in the winter. For the last few months, we have re-started putting a wee mat down near the back door which he always hits in the middle!
I’ve not booked a summer holiday this year, not wanting to leave him dis-orientated for his last days. Many a time we have seen him in his kennel when he is being very quiet and had to tentively touch him to see if he is still with us.
Much as we love him, if we thought he was in any pain we would have no qualms about calling the vet immediately so that he could join his brother again. His brothers ashes are still on the side four years later so they can be scattered together in their favourite spot. Sad post, don’t realy want to think about it; but what a great forum to share our experiences and concerns. THANK YOU 🙂

By: Mary Boynton

Mary Boynton — Sat, 01 Jul 2023 18:18:14 +0000

My advise for puppy owners- if you don’t want it torn up , put it up!

By: David Buckland

David Buckland — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 22:53:30 +0000

My chocolate boy is going to be 10 in May and for the last 6 mths will not even attempt to go downstairs, even trying to encourage him turns him into a shaking mess. I just put this down to he may have slipped at some point and it scared him and now he is avoiding it altogether. But reading this it seems like it could be sight or pains or something more serious. Everything else is normal. I do carry him down now but I always assumed at some point he may try it again. Can you offer any recommendations on how to figure this one out.

Thanks