New Lab pup question

[thousandcasts]

I just got a male black lab pup, my question is if having him "fixed" will have any negative effect on his retrieving instincts and things like that. Will he be harder to train? Also, does having him fixed reduce the tendency to wander that labs are famous for...that would be my only reason for doing it. Does it matter or is he going to wander no matter what?

[orion]

It wont make any difference in his hunting ability, and will probably make him easier to train. As far as wandering goes, I am not sure what you mean about a labs tendency to wander. Labs in my experience only want to wander if there is a female in season. For his safety and your peace of mind he shouldnt be allowed free rein to wander whereever he wants. Either a fenced yard, cable or an invisible fence is in order. You wont have any trouble teaching him the boundries of the invivsible fence, he is a lab and will learn fast. Definitely confine him somehow, because I dont want to read on here how your pup got hit by a car, or just "wandered off". Thats not fair to you or the dog. So, to answer your question, "yes", have him neutered.

[Jumpshootin']

Having him neutered won't affect anything at all trainingwise. It may even make it easier for training & working him around other dogs. I wish I would have neutered my last Lab. I hardly ever had him around other dogs, and when I did he'd either hump or fight. Depending on the sex of the other dog. When he was the only dog, he was very obedient. That was my fault for not socializing him properly.
I've never heard of Labs having a tendency to wander. It may be that some owners let Labs out of the house without restraints because they're the type of dog that usually can be trusted to stay around the house, but then they eventually start wandering. Male dogs when allowed will wander in search of females, and any hunting dog is going to wander in search of game. If it's allowed to.
Remember, a loose dog is a dead dog. They get hit by cars, killed by coyotes, killed by bigger dogs, etc.....Never let a dog wander.

[flydunker]

Normally my lab is in a fenced in back yard when she is alone. I quitre often wil take her in the front yard with me if I am working on the boat. She will not leave the yard for no reason unless I take her out. This is very easy to train. My neighbor across the road has a german short hair also a female they hunt together quite often. It is funny my lab will lay on the edge of the grass before the side walk and Anna (german short hair) will do the same and they stare at each other across the road. But neither one of them will make a move to leave the grass.

[thousandcasts]

Ok, let me clarify the wandering thing. I do have a fenced in yard and I do not allow my dogs to just roam free unless I'm there to supervise them or I am working with them. I had a lab about ten years ago that was pretty well trained with the exception of one thing. He'd put the 'ol nose to ground, and off he'd go. No matter how much yelling and chasing I did, he kept trying to wander off. Somedays were good, and somedays were bad as far as that goes. I've also heard that same thing from other lab owners...which is what I was refering to as the "wandering".

As far as just letting dogs out and not supervising them, I agree...that is just careless and certaintly not something that I do. So basically, the nuetering shouldn't have any negative effects on him?

[orion]

What you are refering to can be fixed very easily. First train your dog to come you call him. Do this in a controlled environment (like your yard). Then purchase an electric collar. Remember the dog must know the commands and know what he is supposed to do before you juice him with the collar (more politically correct to say "correct the dog" with the collar). When you call him and he knows he is supposed to come and does'nt, then you can employ "general electric". Use only enough stimuli to get the desired results. You should have no problem training your dog with this method. Like jumpshootin and I said, go ahead and neuter him. My hunting buddy has a neutered chocolate male and he does just as well as my intact male in the duck marsh. No ill effects, just dont over feed him.