Labrador Puppies

ten week old chocolate lab puppy

Labrador puppies are designed by nature to be incredibly appealing, with their soft loose skin and enormous eyes. But they can still be a handful, especially in those early days. They bite, they chew, they pee on your rug. And they wake you up in the night. It’s a magical blend of fun, nail gnawing frustration, over excitement, and falling in love.

I have raised a lot of Lab puppies over the years, and I want to share that experience with you, to help your transition into dog ownership go smoothly.

Contents

Lab puppies grow up fast, but when you are struggling time can slow down. They bring a lot of joy, but quite a few challenges too! This page is your doorway to the wealth of information that you will find throughout this site.

Advice on Your Lab Puppy

This complete guide to how to buy, raise and train your Labrador Retriever puppy will help you to choose and raise the perfect family pet. From where to buy a Labrador puppy to how to feed, potty train and care for your new buddy.

We answer your questions on growth, weight, biting and socialization. And we have a fantastic community network of Labrador puppy parents in our forum and on our Facebook page.

Our puppy section is updated constantly. We are at the forefront of any Labrador news and information. There is no more extensive Lab resource anywhere on the internet.

Our Labrador puppies are very playful

How to Buy a Labrador Retriever Puppy

Finding Labrador puppies might seem easy. But not every Labrador puppy for sale is a great potential pet. They also have a huge price range, from $500 – $2500 and cheaper puppies aren’t necessarily a bargain.

Not all Labrador puppies for sale are healthy. There are lots more resources and information to help prospective puppy buyers in this section. If you haven’t found your Labrador Retriever puppies yet, we have some great resources to help you pick the right dog.

Getting Ready for your Labrador Puppy

Good preparation creates a smoother transition into dog ownership. Make sure you have a plan in mind for who is going to care for your pup during the day if you work full time.

Doing things like puppy proofing your house before your dog arrives, will make the transition easier. Adding baby gates to the doorways, buying a puppy playpen, and removing any access to small objects or cables will all help.

Feeding and Caring for your Labrador Puppies

Feeding your puppy a healthy diet is important for his growth and health. We have lots of information on feeding and puppy growth in these three articles:

Don’t miss our other many puppy care articles:

How to Stop your Puppy Biting

Biting is one of the most challenging problems for many new puppy parents. But it needn’t spoil your enjoyment of Lab puppies. We have all the information you need to stop your puppy biting in no time at all. Don’t miss these in-depth guides:

Potty Training your Labrador Puppy

You’ll want to get potty training off to a great start. Here are some articles to help you make sure your puppy is clean and dry as quickly as possible.

Labrador Puppies and Vaccination

You will probably want to make sure your puppy is protected against infectious diseases by having him vaccinated. In this section we answer your puppy vaccination questions:

Socialisation and Raising Friendly Labrador Puppies

One of the great things about Labradors is their good nature. But did you know that even Labs need a little help in this direction? Puppies need to be socialised in order to grow up friendly and confident. Here is the information you need to get this important job done:

Life with New Labrador Puppies

Life with a small puppy isn’t always plain sailing! It can all be a bit overwhelming at times. Here are some articles to help you through the difficult days.

Information on Training your Labrador Puppies

Modern puppy training is great fun! Here are some key resources.

When you’ve read those two, head over to our Labrador Puppy Training Center for links to videos, articles, training guides, books and all the rest of the information you need.

572 COMMENTS

  2. Hi
    Please can you help me. My puppy always seems to breathe fast when she lies down. Is this normal? She’s 8 weeks old.
    Thank you

    • Hi Joanne, it really isn’t possible or ethical for us to attempt to diagnose potential health problems over the internet. Have your puppy checked over by your vet.
      Best wishes,
      Pippa

  4. Hi Pippa,

    Hw r u? I have a one and half month old male lab. My doubts are:
    1. Can I feed him cow’s milk?
    2. At what age can I shift him to his cart (permenently for the whole day)?
    3. At what age can I start him to train?
    4. What could be the reason he want to stay in water (in places like bath room etc)?
    5. Please tell me the deworming schedule for whole life cycle.

    I know it’s a big questionare and I hope you wont mind it :-)…..expecting ur reply….

      • Hi Arun, you cannot leave a dog in a crate (meaning a wire or mesh cage) all day at any age. If you have to leave the dog all day, he needs a proper kennel with an outdoor run and separate sleeping compartment. If you are going to use a kennel, you can begin the transfer at any time provided that the temperature does not fall too low. Puppies lose heat much faster than adult dogs.

        Start with very short periods in the kennel (just a few minutes at a time) But bear in mind that no matter how careful you are to transition slowly, some puppies left alone in a kennel will bark and howl. All day. For this reason and because young dogs need lots of socialisation, I rarely kennel a dog under six months of age, and I never kennel dogs alone.

        Pippa

        • I have built a concrete cage sized 6x4x5 inches (LxWxH) with grills in sides for his proper view to outside…I am not planning to leave him in the kennel for 24hrs..but can I leave him in the kennel for whole night, ie. from 10pm to 6am, at the age of 3 months…at the day time i am planning to put him in cage for some short periods….. and pls tell me hw can i secure him from mosquitos…can i use the common mosquito killers near to his kennel????

          Arun

        • Arun,

          For the dimensions of the kennel, I assume you mean ‘feet’ not inches! I can’t comment on specific aspects of individual kennel design, especially outside of the UK where weather conditions and temperatures may be outside my experience. Your cage sounds rather small and would not be suitable for long periods of time.

          You will need to make sure that the kennel cannot get too hot at any time, and that it cannot get too cold, especially at night. Your puppy will need to be able to get away from drafts, which means a raised bed of some sort. Wooden planks or boards can be used for this purpose. Part of any kennel should be a ‘run’ where the dog can go to the toilet. And you need to be able to wash the floor or it will get very smelly, especially in hot weather.

          I cannot comment on insect repellents, your local vet or the manufacturer of the product you use should be able to tell you if it is safe to use in a kennel.

          What you are proposing does not sound ideal, and my honest opinion is that your puppy would be better off indoors.

          Pippa

  5. hi I have a 10 week old red fox lab who is doing really well and looks great. his weight at the moment is 10.45kg but the vet said he is fine, he is just a big dog with big bones. at present I am feeding him royal canine puupy food for labs 4 times a day……he seems to eat it all at breakfast and at supper but his 2 feeds during the day he is only eating half. do you think it is to early to cut him down to 3 meals a day? thanks

    • Hi Gillian, I usually keep puppies on four meals a day until 12 or 13 weeks. If you cut him down to three, he will need to eat even more at one sitting than he does now and that could possibly upset his tummy. Pippa

  6. Hi….i hav a lab i dont known his proper age,but according to my vet he is four and a half month or five months old and dont even known that he is a proper breed or mix one. The problem with him is that he is annoying , he never listens to me or any of my family member,im feeding him royal canin and best food i can give him ,but still his growth is slow and he always has the problem of losmotions .he has a habit of eating anything he finds,jm giving him proper medicen and all…..but always worried about his growth and health.he is little thin also…plzzz suggest me how i can make his digestion power storng….my vet suggest me that not to give him milk,chicken,dal rice..my vet tells me to give him curd rice , he dont not even smells it when i tried to feed him that….im from india plz help me….i have seen many dogs of his similar age they are quit helthy

    • Hi there,
      Not listening to members of the family is quite normal. You will need to train your puppy to respond to your commands. You can find lots of information on training in our training section. All puppies will eat all kinds of rubbish, you need to supervise him or prevent him from getting access to things you don’t want him to eat.

      I strongly recommend you listen to your local vet with regard to feeding advice. He knows what is available to you in your area. Bear in mind that your puppy is weaned. Four month old puppies do not need milk of any kind and many puppies will get upset stomachs if given milk.

      Best wishes, Pippa

  7. hi pippa,
    i jhave male 3 months black lab. i do not want to breed.i know dogs come into heat twice in a year(female).pl.advise me is it necessary to cross my male lab atleast once in a year or should neuter.? but i donot like the idea of neutering. i feel it as sin.cannot we dispense with crossing or neutering and still have good tempered lab.

    • Hi,
      There are two separate issues here.
      Contraception, and neutering. Yet people frequently confuse them where dogs are concerned.

      You cannot have neutering without contraception, but you can have contraception without neutering.
      Neutering is a major procedure and is a very effective contraceptive. But it is not the only form of contraception for dogs. Nor is it necessary for any dog to be bred from.

      If you don’t want to breed your dog you don’t have to. Neutering does not need to come into it. All we need do is keep male dogs away from female dogs that are in season. And keep female dogs in season away from male dogs.

      As for a good tempered lab, neutering does not significantly alter the ‘temperament’ of your labrador.
      Pippa

      • hi pippa,
        thanks for the answer but pl.clarify the below too
        i understood that neutering and breeding is not compulsory.
        but does it make the dog aggressive if we denoy to fulfill its biological urge(for all breeds in general)
        And morover you said to keep away from female dogs in season.
        But i heard males can smell faraway females that are in season.
        if that is the case how to take the dog for usual walk and still keep it away from females in season.
        can we know female dogs that are in season by looking at them?

  8. Hi,
    We are currently feeding Barney, our 8 week puppy, on Royal Canin Labrador Puppy food as recommended by breeder. However he doesn’t seem to be eating anywhere near what is recommended. Should I add water to it to soften the biscuits?
    Charlie

  11. Hi Pippa Except for regular grooming is there anything else I can do to minimize the hair all over the house. We brush her everyday after playtime, but she still looses a lot of hair. Somebody said I can give her Omega 3,6 & 9 capsules. Will it help?

  12. Hi Pippa,

    I have 45 days old male lab mix puppy (2.5 kgs) and giving pedigree 4 time’s a day but it is not putting more weight. Could you please guide me what kind of food do I need to give my puppy.

    Thanks in advance

    • Hi, There could be many reasons for a puppy to fail to gain weight. From diarhorrea to internal parasites, or something more serious. It is not something that can be diagnosed over the internet. Do take your puppy to a vet if he is too thin. Pippa

  14. Hi, Sir.
    My 3 month old off White leb is not walk or stand properly. he got vibration on rear leg when he was standing…

  15. Hi Pippa. I have been trying to find a definitive answer to the whole “amount of exercise to give a puppy” question! My Black Lab, Guinness, is 5 months old. He comes with from great blood lines and looks superb, a really good looking and strong lad. I have been trying to limit his walks since we got him at 8 weeks old. I have in the past week though, been walking him off-lead in a huge set-aside field near where we live. His recall to whistle and verbal commands is superb ad his behaviour on the walks is good. The walks off-lead have been lasting between 30 and 40 minutes. During this time, Guinness spends some time running about like a lunatic, some time practising his recall with me and some time just trotting along. Nothing apart from the recall from a distance is forced. Is this too much for a pup of his age and am I better to wait before carrying on with these walks?

    • Hi Tom, you can find a general article on exercising a labrador here and a more specific one on exercise for puppies here
      In my view there is no exact answer to this common question. I tend to play it safe with my puppies. You need to look at the evidence and choose your path based on how you feel about it.

      Pippa

      • Thanks Pippa. I have read both articles and I’m still not sure what’s best for him. I think I will carry on going to the field but do half the field instead of all of it, until he is a bit older.

  16. Can you a advise! My sister’s black Labrador has, today, just had eleven pups. She cannot feed them all herself. Please advise!

  17. Hi Pippa, I have always owned Goldens, can you give me advice on a chocolate lab. His name is Bentley, and he and I are fighting on who’s boss. He thinks he is at 5 1/2 months old

  18. hie pippa
    my dog is 1 month. he is vry slowly nd lazy… nd he is vry weak his bones is easily visible …can u help me in knowing reason for not proper growth nd weight..??

  19. hello pippa..
    iam an indian and i have a 45 days old black lab puppy…the problem is that its not listening to me..i mean when i call it or make some sounds its not looking at my face…Is it because of its age?? or will it be having any other problem??

    • Hi Anil, you should take your puppy to a vet, if he does not react at all to sounds he may have problems with his hearing. Pippa

  20. Hi there

    I bought a labrador puppy from a breeder in South Africa and the puppy is 6weeks old. After reading up I now realise week 6-8 is crucial for puppy interaction. A friend told me that the puppy will benefit from puppy training classes. How old should he be before I start him in a class.

    Thanking you

  22. Hi pippa,
    Am from India, am a state level badminton player. I bought new lab puppy which is 30 days old. I use to go for tournaments to other state. Can I take pup with me??? And how many times feedin per day?

    • The presence or absence of white fur is not proof of pedigree. Whilst the labrador breed standard prefers a solid colour, a small white spot is allowed, and many pedigree labradors do have a white spot or patch.

  25. Hi pippa, I am from Coimbatore, India. I am owning a 45 Days old lab puppy. I am feeding her only Dog Cerelac (Samoval) now. Can you suggest me what kind of food should i need to feed her now & when can i start giving rice. Can you elaborate about the food criteria which you followed for your lab.
    Can i feed Raagi Porridge now & What kind of Foods should i need to feed now. I contacted vet too. He said to give rice. but my concern till 8 weeks to feed rice is not good to lab. Right now i am feeding her 4 Times daily. with a mixture of Dog Cerelac+water+Curd.

    Regards,
    Prakash

  26. how to take care my puppy because the luse motion is going on and in our area the climate is very cool . And my baby is 3days old.

      • Hi Pippa,
        I think wat mr.satish mean is, his puppy is suffering from Loose motion (Diarrhea) and the climate in their place is very cold….and i think either his baby or his puppy is aged 3 days….

  27. Hi,
    Snoopy is of 10 months.. He was eating sufficient food and was healthy said by vet, but from 1 month he is not eating anything, not even the meat.. and also not playing with us much.. we not yet started to take him outside for walking..
    whats the problem for not having food..
    thank you..

  28. i am looking for a puppy. i thought a lab would be correct for my house but my mom disagrees. she thinks lab is too big for the house. are there any suggetions for a dog breed that doesnt require non veg food and is suitable for a cosy medium sized house with a small frontyard?

    • Hi there, all dogs require ‘non veg food’ as they are carnivores. It is the time you are prepared to spend exercising and training the dog are as important as the size of your home. For more information about what is involved in having a labrador or any large active dog, you might find it helpful to read this article Pippa

  29. Hi my Lab puppy 4 & half months old weighs 11.5kg , but looks thin , still not lost milky teeth , but loosing lot of hair , tends to bite/chew the articles a lot. Is it normal for a good breed Lab puppy ?? when should he get adult teeth & when can we start homely diet , presently he is on dog food. br/

    • Hi Ajay,
      Biting and chewing is normal. He will have his adult teeth by around seven months of age, and will continue to chew for several months after that. I am not sure what you mean by homely diet, but there is information on feeding your Labrador here and lots of information about caring for your puppy here . The correct weight for Labradors of a given age will vary widely. As a rough guide you should be able to feel, but not see, his ribs and he should have a bit of a waist when viewed from above and the side. His backbone should be well covered and should not feel ‘knobbly’. If in doubt, do check with your vet.
      Pippa

  30. hellow ! I am getting a female labrdor,it was just born on 26th of december this year , i would like to know how to maintian a puppy mam , because I am just 12 years old , my parents dont like dogs so I have to do all the job myself, the puppy is at my uncles house (where it was born) ,mom says it would take a month more,for her to come home…………………..so please give me some tips to maintain my puppy….i have kept her name as LUCY already is it a nice name…………?

    • Hi Vivek, you will find lots of tips to help you with your puppy on this website. You can also join the forum to talk to other Labrador owners. Your puppy needs to stay with her mother until she is 8 weeks old. So that gives you plenty of time to prepare. But you need to think very hard before bringing a puppy into your home if your parents do not like dogs, because it will affect all their lives too, no matter how well you take care of her. Pippa

  32. Hi pippa,
    My lab of 2 and half month old is very active and he will eat anything that we offer him.(1 liter milk, 200 gms royal canin lab junior biscuits and some rice,small amount of snack items also…..). He will never say no to anything that we give. Is it safe to offer him like that or not. Please suggest in this issue.

    • Hi there,
      It is not safe to let your puppy choose his diet. He will make himself very fat and eat lots of things which are very bad for him. Have a look at this page How to feed a labrador Please note that your puppy is weaned and does not need milk of any variety. A good quality puppy food or balanced raw diet will keep him healthy. Best wishes, Pippa

    • Hi Kumar, we have an article coming out on this topic soon. The key points are to make sure that your puppy is properly wormed. And to ensure that your children do not play where he poops, and that they wash their hands after playing with the puppy. Supervise play and teach the children not to let the puppy lick around their mouths or share their food.
      Pippa

  34. Thanks pippa, we will drop/ half the exercise, they are quite energetic and thought they needed it, although they are walked leisurely on flat surfaces etc.. Was more to use up some energy as they end up in my flowerpots… No clematis left on any trellis!! .. now they have large area gated area with kennel when I’m out. They’d also mastered drawers in kitchen which now have child locks! Is there anything you would recommend us doing with them at 18wks or just give in to empty dug pots…thx will definitely grab one of your books are they all available as ebooks?

  35. hi,
    i have a 2 month old labrador male puppy.He is very active in playing and eating too and my vet told that he is in great health condition also.But the only problem with him is he is eating his own poop when ever no one sees it.How to prevent him eating his own poop.please suggest.

  36. Hi Pippa

    We have two lab puppies, brilliant coming back to whistle they are 18wks old, how would you suggest dropping the whistle to some back to a marker ie ‘come’ They go out for a walk for 25mins in morning – let off for 15mins and out for 45mins ish at night – is this too much reading from your website?
    Also which book of your would you recommend most re training – they will never be gun dogs only pets.
    We feed them beta puppy – however their ‘busines’s doesn’t ever seem to be very solid – what would you recommend?
    Thanks for your help – all suggestions welcomed..

    • Hi Carla, well done with your whistle training. 🙂 ‘Come’ is a verbal command or cue rather than a marker. You can teach a verbal recall as well if you want to. I use a verbal in the house once the whistle is well established outdoors.
      Check out this article for my thoughts on exercise for puppies.
      With regard to books, if you buy Total Recall, although it is a recall training programme, the skills it teaches you can easily be applied to any command. How to Win explains the dog training process from start to finish, but does not contain any ‘exercises’. The Right Start was originally written for gundog puppies but lots of pet dog owners use it too. The foundations of obedience are the same.
      With regard to feeding, I feed all my dogs on a completely raw diet, so I’m afraid I am not up to date on kibble. If you check in to the forum, you can find out what other labrador owners are feeding.

      Good luck with your puppies. Pippa

      • When you say a raw meat diet what do you mean? I tried beta it didn’t suit my puppy either we are currently using wainwright as suggested by staff at pets at home still not major solid stools but slightly better 🙂

    • Hi priyank,
      Some people do cope with big dogs in flats, but I would not personally recommend a Labrador to someone living in an apartment. Pippa

    • My ylf is 76 lbs, just over 9 months, her mom is 70 + her dad 120, she is not fat, and I can feel ribs easy but not see them, large blockyhead, do you think she could reach 100 and if so is it uncommon for a female, she’s a great girl with lot of energy.

      • Hi I have just bougt a 5 moth black lab. Been with me 1 week he on a quality food but is very loose, he weight is 15.2kg is this very under weight

    • Hi Karen, it’s quite normal. Teething is usually over by about seven months. No need to do anything other than make sure he has something safe to chew on. Pippa

  40. We have 45 day labrador male.
    How much food we should give ?
    We were told by vets shop that puppy food – 5-10 pallets every 5 hours be okay.
    but he appears skiny
    Regards
    goggly

    • Hi Rishabh,
      Labradors are all one breed but there are different types in some parts of the world. Neither is better than the other, but each has different qualities this article is about the different types in the UK (and USA). If you are resident elsewhere it may not apply. Pippa

  43. Hi, we have a 2 month lab and she is very calm and loving whenever the kids are not at home or are not playing with her however whenever they start playing (with her) she gets very nervous and agitated and bites every one. why is that? is it her temperament? should i keep the kids from her or playing with her so she could grow to be nice and calm? thank you

  44. hi, I bought a one month old yellow puppy lab today. I am feeding him milk and pedigree infant. I want to know when should i start feeding him meat.

    • Hi Kim, your puppy should be allowed as much water as he wants. If you think he is drinking excessively it is a good idea to get your vet to check him over. Pippa

  46. We lost our last girl, Biscuit, in April, with a tumour on the heart. She was rather overweight, which also exacerbated an otherwise moderate hip problem, so our current girl Polly gets very few table scraps. She is 5 months-old today, is 20 1/2″ tall and weighs 14.7kg. She is slightly underweight, and her ribs are just visible. My vet says he prefers this, as do I, but were she to get fat as a puppy, would this predispose her to constant weight problems throughout her life?

    • I don’t know if there have been any studies done on the relationship between obesity in puppyhood and obesity in adult dogs. But I would not be surprised to find a link. One of the main reasons that we need to keep puppies slim though is to prevent overly rapid growth which together with the extra weight is believed to be disadvantageous to orthopaedic health. Pippa

  47. Hi. I have a large five year old yellow male lab (Charlie) who receives a lot of my attention. He has sired 10 black pups (Mum is a small chocolate lab). I hope to keep one male from the litter. I wondered how to introduce the pup to Charlie, so that I do not make mistakes and cause any upset/jealousy? Thanks.

  48. sir,
    i have a 2 months 20 days lab and named as scooby it is always biting me i have a lot of problem with that, tell me any anything to stop my dog biting,i hope you will answer this question, and thanks at advance

    • win confidence of your lab. might be this is the teathing time which create such irritation into ite canine. hope soon you will get rid of such problems.

      BP.ROY
      PATNA

    • Hi Jill, there isn’t really a right and a wrong time. When I fed my dogs on a commercial dog food, I changed to adult food at six months old. Some people stick on the puppy formula for a full year but I haven’t seen any evidence that this is necessary. Pippa

      • Well in my case with my labs. i knew when they were ready, when they started eating from the mother’s bowl at 7 weeks old. i still attempt to feed them dog food from the supermarket even now at 7 months, but they prefer home cooked meals.
        i guess u just observe them to know when they are ready

        • They prefer home cooked meals because the dog food at stores are filled with corn and sprayed with animal fat. That stuff is terrible for dogs.?thank you for cooking for them. If you buy a better brand of dog food with with no corn it fillers you probably could taper off the home cooked meals.

  50. sir i have a labra golden white of 2 month 7 days and his weight around 3-3.5 kg ….bt the rips bones is easily visible …can u help in knowing reason for not proper growth…short in height ….

    • Hi Rohit, there could be many reasons why your dog is thin, including parasites, insufficient quantity of food, or some kind of illness. You need to get your puppy checked over by a vet.

      • Hi Pippa, i have Got a 5 months Older labrador,3 days Back,, His Name is Charlie, Actually I am the 2nd Guardian for him, Previously he was with another Family and Home, I dont Know why , But he Barks a Lot when he is tied in a Corner When We are Busy, May be he is Not Getting Familiar with Us, and I am Worried About his Diet, He eats a Lot, Please Advice me like How can I Take a Good Care of Charlie

    • Hi,pls take good care to ur Labrador ,mine lovely Labrador Bobby has just death just now,same as you my labra was only 2months 6days ,cherish it, don’t think it bother to you! cherish it,my fren

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