Hi,

well she is getting to be a bit of a handful at the moment, very disobedient and destructive...

I also dont know when she will be having her first season?  As I want to get her spayed after this..

Not just to calm her down but so she never gets caught..

What can I do to help her relax?  she seems to always be on edge, ie wants to play, fight, follow me, eat, at teh end of the day, she just gets on my lap and falls asleep, which doesnt suprise me, but she has sooo much energy!!!!

also what should i look out for re: her season?  she seems to be cleaning herself a lot more than usual down there ...

This is the adolescent stage; think of her as a teenager.  What are you feeding her? Diet or more often the additives in a diet can exacerbate and increase activity levels. 

I hate to tell you this but spaying does NOT calm bitches down or alter their activity level as you appear to imagine it would.  She will only get "caught" if you do not take the necessary precautions! 

To find out if your bitch is coming into season get into the habit of checking her daily using a clean WHITE pad of toilet tissue - just fold it and put it in the flat of your hand and place it gently against her vulva - if she's coming into season you'll see a pale coloured fluid, this will change in colour as the season progresses.

There are lots of questions i would like to ask if thats ok ? is she on her own  at all in the day? if so how long for? labradors are very people orientated they love your company and yes they mouth which can be painful and annoying but generally its because you have just appeared as they play hard then  sleep hard , and nine months is a baby. she must be coming up for a season at 9 months so maybe after this she may be calmer im glad you are going to spay her.
Trouble is with labs is they grow at a rate of knotts yet inside they are a baby puppy, picture  a yorkie pup they are small and slow maturing and people expect it but a lab well they are small for a nannno second it seems then hey presto big dog  but  a small baby  the mind so we need to bear this in mind and we need to be firm but kind into the bargain as a full grown lab will knock you off your feet.
I know its hard but this time you are having now will be well worth it when she is mature and a dream to own.

good luck

It's a shame for my lab pup amber, she's just turned 1 but is really chunky and tall, and when we're out and she acts like a baby people tut and pull their faces.A lot of people think Daisy who's 3 is younger than Amber.To be honest the adolescent silly stage went on until Poppy was 4, so a lot of patience is needed.They are soo funny though, i'd hate it if they were serious but i don't think there's any chance of that!!!  

Hi

Well I probablely can't give you any advice, but I can tell you that my lab girl, Luna is 1 year old on monday, april 5. and she still hasn't had her first season!

My girl is alone every day monday to friday, and probabely to long, but I make sure, that when I'm home, I'm with her constantly - even at night! She sleeps on her blanket on the floor next to my bed. I also have two cats, and she plays a lot with the kitten. I try to get her mentally tired before leaving - make her find her food on the lawn or give her her food in a buster cube, so she has to get it out instead of just eating it from a bowl, all this to make her use her nose and brain and make her mentally tired.

Thankfully one of my friends is going on maternity leave in the middle of may, and she will come and take Luna with her home, so Luna will be together with her best friend, Bella a GSD, 10 months old, everyday!

Jeanette

Many thanks all.

I think I really need to look at the mental stimulation she is getting...

makes me so sad thinking that she is bored or lonely, I do leave her weekdays but not for long and my mother looks in, she has a dog flap in the conservatory to go in and out as she pelases, but as someone said, they are people dogs...