How long do labs grow

By any means, a Labrador cannot be considered fully grown before 18 months of age. There is a certain classification of Labrador growth stages through which they go through while transforming themselves into an adult full grown Lab.

This is a baby stage and it is important for the little puppy to stay with its mother during this stage. This stage lasts until the puppy reaches 8 weeks of age. The puppy goes through various phases such as opening its eyes, responding to sounds and light, trying to stand and stumble, interacting with the owners and learn important things related to social development. This stage lasts until your puppy reaches 6 months of age. It is during this stage your pup tries to explore everything around it.

It uses its mouth to test and identify its surrounding environment. During this stage, you may observe your puppy chewing everything it finds. This chewing habit is developed out of curiosity to identify its surroundings and also due to its teething. Hence the puppy tries to find relief by this habit of chewing. It is good to provide your puppy with some Safe Chew toys to provide relief to your pup during this stage.

During this stage consider your puppy as a high spirited teenager. This stage starts when your Labrador puppy reaches 6 months of age. This is the stage during which your dog starts attaining its sexual maturity, even though they are emotionally and mentally immature.

Some dogs might take more time, another 3 or 4 months to become sexually active. A female dog can have their first season during this period and you start observing sexual behaviour in male and female dogs during this stage. According to the American Kennel Club , a fully grown Lab can range from A male Labrador grows up to a height of Whereas a female Labrador reaches a height of In terms of weight, a Lab should weigh between 55 to 80 pounds.

Any Labrador retriever which reaches these standards of height and weight is considered a full grown Labrador. Some other questions that i hear randomly from people are, when do black Labs stop growing? A new puppy cannot regulate its own temperature and will need the mom to keep them warm. The mother Lab will also stimulate them to eliminate and eat their waste to keep her nesting area clean. Around their transitional age , puppies will begin to respond to the world around them.

Most Lab puppies will have their eyes opened at 2 weeks of age , and their ears will begin to open around this time too. At the 4 week mark, your puppy will start recognizing routines and people. This period can be called the awakening of senses , as they are growing to be more conscious and inquisitive. Try to spend some time with each puppy daily, so they get used to being handled. They should not be removed from their litter for more than 10 minutes at a time as this could cause them to miss out on important life lessons.

Mama dogs will teach her pups some discipline and dogs that are taken from their mom before this age often suffers from behavioral issues. Their second socialization period starts at this point.

You should handle them often and can begin basic training. Treat your puppy gently , with no harsh discipline. Your 8 week old Lab puppy will be able to start sleeping through the night and have better control over their bowel movements. Potty training can be introduced at this age, but you should avoid bringing them to crowded places.

You should keep your new puppy away from other dogs until they complete their vaccinations to prevent them from contracting infectious diseases like distemper or parvovirus. At this age, puppies should be fed 4 small meals a day. Knowing how much to feed them is key , you should check out our best dog food for Labs guide to learn more.

The juvenile stage starts at the same time as the ranking period. Your puppy will begin to test you in order to figure out what their position is in the family. Puppies at this age might ignore commands they are familiar with. Some dogs might start nipping. To combat this, direct them to chew appropriate toys instead.

Be patient with them and keep reinforcing positive behavior because they will grow out of it soon enough. At 4 months old, your Lab might reach new levels of rebelliousness. They are still establishing their role in the pack and might assert their dominance over little children or pets. Most of the growing they do in the second year will be related to weight distribution and filling out rather than getting much taller. Generally speaking, Labradors will continue to grow up until around 18 months old.

Aside from practicality, there are other reasons you should be conscious of how much growing your dog has to do. Many trainers who teach activities such as agility will not work with dogs under 18 months old for this reason.

Their eyes stay closed for the first 14 days. During the third week of life, dogs usually start to begin lapping water. At around 12 weeks old, it would be wise to consider putting your Labrador on a training program and continue with socialization. This is the best period for dogs to learn key life skills , from this age up until around 5 months old. Dogs who are in the adolescent stage will have more energy, a poor attention span, more likely to show signs of aggression, and will be less obedient.

Just like adolescent humans, adolescent dogs are going through many physical changes. There hormones are all over the place which affects their mood and behavior. We all know about the moody teenager. For example, when you just got your little labrador home at 12 weeks old, it was pretty cute when she jumped up you.

The average female black Lab grows to a height of between 21 and 24 inches from the floor at the withers, or shoulders, although even a purebred dog can be bigger or smaller. Males reach a height of 22 to 25 inches. By the age of 6 months, most dogs reach approximately 75 percent of their full adult height, so your 7-month-old black Lab should be between 15 and 18 inches tall. A healthy adult black Lab female weighs 55 to 70 pounds and a male 65 to 80 pounds.

By the age of 6 months, black Lab puppies reach approximately two-thirds of their adult weight, so a dog of 7 months should be in this range or slightly heavier.