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    Eggs's Avatar
    Eggs Posts: 8, Reputation: 1
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    #1

    Jul 20, 2007, 09:04 AM
    Lab and boxer puppies
    I have a 9 month lab, and we are thinking about adding a new 3 month old boxer into the mix.
    My lab is a female and the boxer is a male. Will they get along at this age?

    Please help me with your answer
    Eggs
    labman's Avatar
    labman Posts: 10,580, Reputation: 551
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    #2

    Jul 20, 2007, 09:26 AM
    Young Labs, which I know best, and other puppies tend to very bad about
    Biting. You see a litter of them, and all the ones that are awake are biting
    Another one or themselves. I am not even sure they realize that when they are
    Alone, if they quit biting, they would quit being bitten. At 3 to 4 months
    They are getting their adult teeth, and it seems they spend every waking
    Moment biting or chewing. One thing you can do at that stage is to knot and wet a piece of cloth. Then freeze it. The cooling will soothe the gums. Only let the puppy have it when you are there to watch it. I maintain a Lab's favorite chew toy is another
    Lab. They will be about as happy with any other dog young enough to enjoy puppy biting games. You may have to step in if the older dog is too rough at first. They quickly catch on to how much the younger one can take. Male/female usually is the best combination and fewest problems as long as they are fixed.

    The pet stores are full of toys that many dogs will quickly chew up into
    Pieces they could choke on or cause intestinal blockages. If you are not
    There to watch, stick to sturdy stuff such as Nylabones and Kongs. Keep a
    Close eye on chew toys and quickly discard anything that is coming apart in
    Pieces. Rawhide is especially bad because it swells after being swallowed.
    These problems are the worst with, but not limited to, large, aggressive
    Chewers such as Labs.

    See the sticky at https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/dogs/i...tml#post251802
    bushg's Avatar
    bushg Posts: 3,433, Reputation: 596
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    #3

    Jul 20, 2007, 11:33 AM
    I see no reason why they would not get along. I say go for it. I hope that your dogs will be spayed/neutered. When you first introduce them, I have heard that it should be done on neutral territory. On the sidewalk, at the park, take her to visit him before you bring him home. But their first meeting will not determine their relationship, at least it did not with my dogs. I have a male and female dog that are about a year apart in age and they get along just fine. However , I just brought my new dog home and kept him by my side for a week or so. At first she did not seem to like him, but we enforced, be nice rule with her. Within 2 weeks they were best friends. Good luck, I hope this helps.
    RubyPitbull's Avatar
    RubyPitbull Posts: 3,575, Reputation: 648
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    #4

    Jul 20, 2007, 04:40 PM
    If you have socialized your lab with other dogs, small and large, there shouldn't be a problem over the long run. Male/female mix in the household works well. But, be prepared for your lab to be pushing for your attention. You have to keep in mind that she is used to being the only dog. She may accept him readily or she may very well view the puppy as a challenge to her pack rank. Every dog's initial reaction to a new dog being introduced is different. Some get depressed, may refuse to interact with the new member of the household, and may refuse to eat. Some get aggressive. But, if you are comfortable with your knowledge in handling dogs, with the fact that they are both young, your lab should make the adjustment relatively quickly. Just remember to feed her first, before you feed the boxer. The higher ranked dog always eats first and it usually creates all sorts of problems if this is not done. You may want to consider feeding them separately so there isn't any confusion.

    Do not leave them alone unsupervised until you are comfortable that the lab has accepted the boxer completely or the boxer is at least large enough to stand up for himself. Start the boxer with crate training immediately. This will provide him with a safe place to relax in. Later on as the boxer grows into adulthood, the two of them may get into scuffles over their rank in the household. Don't interfere, they will work it out between themselves.

    As bushg suggested, please spay and neuter both dogs. There are a number of reasons you should do this. The main reasons being, it will help curb any aggressive tendencies either one might exhibit, you won't have to deal with the crazy hormone changes in both dogs as the female comes into heat, the mess of menses that you have to clean up, the tendency for males to mark their territory all over the house, and of course, avoiding the possibility of creating mixed breed puppies. There is a lot of knowledge that a person needs to gain before seriously considering breeding a dog, dealing with pregnancy problems, and dealing with newborns. Recently, we have been reading about quite a number of puppies contracting parvo virus and dying from it. It is a virus that is NOT breed specific and can affect any litter. It is absolutely heartbreaking for anyone to go through. There is also the fact that there are over 10,000,000 animals that are euthanized every year in U.S. shelters for lack of homes. Of the dogs that are put down, a number of them are of mixed breed heritage.
    kt1205's Avatar
    kt1205 Posts: 125, Reputation: 4
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    #5

    Jul 22, 2007, 11:24 PM
    I have 2 boxers. And they usually seem more aggressive around other dogs when they're older but when they are puppies they seem to be okay with other dogs of course. As for the lab I'm not sure. But they should get along once the lab gets used to the boxer. Just try to be careful until they get used to each other. We had a male boxer and got a female boxer and they were fighting a lot so we got the male fixed and now they don't fight.

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