A True Ace

My boyfriend and I welcomed Ace into our home last month—he is a fantastic, well behaved yellow lab! He was born on 12/26/08. He is definitely one of the most laid-back and calmest labs I have ever met. We have many dogs that live in my building and some of them, especially the smaller ones, will bark and act aggressive towards him. He doesn’t cower but doesn’t return their negative energy either. Everyone he meets from the vet, obedience school trainer to doggy daycare workers loves him. This is Ace pretty much 99.9% of the time. On some occasions however, he acts withdrawn and prefers under the bed or in his crate over us for extended periods of time. He didn’t finish his meal this morning either. This rarely happens but thought it was worth mentioning. We both work 8 hour days and didn’t feel that it was right to keep him alone for that long. The dog-sitter we use is a friend of the family. She has three dogs and a cat and is great with animals. They have a pool and a nice backyard so the dogs are kept well entertained. We do this 4 days a week. The 5th day he goes to a more formal daycare,which is a larger group of dogs at a facility. He is with us 24/7 on the weekends. My question to you is why is he so calm? I am definitely not complaining, but sometimes it worries me that he is so calm and at times, seemingly withdrawn. I tend to be overanalyze and every time something off happens (i.e. he doesn’t finish a meal or goes under the bed) I get nervous. Marisa E.

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PUPPY LOVE

Your dog is pooped out, he’s tired. He gets a lot of activity all week and finally, by the time he sees you he really just wants to chill and relax. If he goes to his little sacred space, which is might be his crate or away from you, don’t be insulted or worried. This just means he is going to get some private time. The other thing you have to keep in mind is that this dog is very bright. He knows when he is being cajoled into things he may not be ready to do, like eat. So if he is not hungry, don’t force him. Unless you see a dramatic change, like he is not eating at all in a 3-day period, then that would be something to report to your vet. Remember, he is a puppy and they tend to sleep alot; he is going t o change his eating habits as he grows into his body. Double check the food you are giving him with the vet and check into supplements. Above all, just keep loving Ace because you have a really wonderful, sweet and loyal companion!