My baby boy

[Mishkaboy10]

I just got Mishka the other day. Some older fellow, taking care of far to many dogs, was giving them to good homes. seein as how my husband and i have an empty yard and no kids, we took him. He is a loving 8 week old baby boy. spoiled by my husband and myself daily. He is a mis of colors right now. his under coat is blonde, and the tips range from red, to black to tan. He has kinda floppy ears and a fuzzy tail that kinda stands but doesnt curl. My question is:
Even though he is Half Chow half Lab, will his ears stand, and his tail curl with age?
He also is an only child now here in my house and I hear him wine at random, mostly playing alone or looking in my mirror. I hot him a chew toy and bones. puppy chow, a lead and leash and he is comming along quite swell, but my concern is that with No other sibling or play mate, he may grow dull. should I get him a play mate?? will he be okay alone??
I am a stay at home student and i give him as much attention as I possibly can (which is all day). He even wakes me up at 1, 3 and 5 like a baby. He uses his potty pad or tells me he NEEDS to go outside =) but I cant ALWAYS get up at 1,3 and 5 or play all day. Maybe im being over protective or worrysome, but I love him so much.
Any help on any topic is welcome thanks!!

[Victory]

Welcome! There are a lot of people on the site who will be welcoming and willing to give you advice. Let me be the first. First he's only 8 weeks old, so he's going to be very dependent on you for everything right now and the especially means bonding with you. At his age if he hasn't had his shots he should NOT be around other dogs. If you live in the US, this is especially true of his Parvo/distemper vacine, which he should begin to get pronto. Parvo is not a naturally occuring canine disease and puppies do not have any immunity to it, they also don't have a lot immunity to distemper, he also probably needs to be dewormed, (all puppies in the US have worms so it's not a big deal, they just need to be de-wormed) Once he has his first two sets of shots and is dewormed he'll be okay to be around other dogs and puppies.

You kind of sound like this is your first dog, (forgive me if I'm wrong) but puppy classes will be good for you and him, the first puppy classes for the little guys like him, (young I mean) are mostly for play and socialization, this is important, so that he learns to interact properly with other dogs, and people too. It is important for a chow, (or half chow) to be well socialized beginning as soon as possible. But that socialization should be with people you trust and who know how to be with little puppies. He should be picked up, handled, brushed, touched etc, but always gently, always firmly enough so he feels comfortable with being held, (he should feel secure when picked up, his body fully supported and his feet tucked up nicely) this will help a lot with visits to the vet.

The personality differences between a chow and a lab are so different that the mix can't really be predicted, it really depends on which breed he takes after the most, the best thing to do is to treat him like he's going to be mostly chow, firm, gently, patient, and respectfully, that way if his personality is more chow like he'll turn out good and if he's more lab like he'll turn out great!

There is another chow/lab mix on the site, his name is Jazz, his mom's site name is Tippsy's mom and you can see his pictures in her entries, he just turned two. He is black, one ear stands up, the other doesn't, his tongue is kind of spotted and his tail is a pretty half curved plume, (he's gorgeous really) He's also 85lbs and a lover according to his mom.

As far as your Mishka's color is concerned, he sounds like he'll be a cinnamon, took his coloring from the chow side I think, a lot of cinnamon chows, (light red ones) have multi-colored coats as chowlings and as adults, a blond undercoat is normal, though most have dark roots to the outer coats.

As for the whining, while plaining alone or looking in the mirror, chows don't bark a lot, but they are otherwise extremely vocal, they whine, snort, huff, puff, groan, and make all kinds of other sounds that are unique to chows, (people look at my two, like they are crazy all the time, because of all the sounds they make) This is a chow thing, you'll find yourself talking back to them, and then you'll be as nuts as all of us on this site. I would really recommend you NOT get him a companion until he is at least six months or even older, that way you will know what his personality is, (at 8 months it's pretty much like it's going to be as an adult) if he's more chow like, or more lab like, if he likes all dogs, or only girls, if he has tons of energy, or if he's a couch potatoe. You want to have a good firm relationship with him, before you introduce another pet into the house hold. Think of it as if you just brought home your first human child...you wouldn't go out and bring in another for a while would you, (except if it were twins or something) same thing here, give him a chance to grow a bit and you to adjust your life to having him, (and you will) then think about another one, MAYBE.

Hope all of this helps a bit and isn't too overwhelming. Again welcome to the site. We like pictures, lots of pictures especially of puppies. Let us know where you are located generally so we can assist you more in health care, and such.

[Mishkaboy10]

Thank Vicory. the information you gave is great! and dead on to my experience so far. Mishka is not my first, but she is my first Chow Puppy. I had another Chow named Bear, but he passed years ago. The way he went wasnt pleasent either. He grew a hate with his own tail. He chased it around untill he bit it off. even after he bit it so far down he was biting bone. after all the vet bills be still grew Gangreen. We loved him, but our only option was to euthenize. I have never owned a Dog since, in fear i will love him just to lose him.. So Mishka is my new protector. I have a few books, and the internet at my fingertips, but i only trust first hand experience from someone else. When i found this site I was pretty excited. I can talk to other Chow Chow Mommies and daddies, and find the best advice. Thanks again for your help. you answered all my questions. Good day - Mechele

[MickChick]

Oh Mishka is a doll baby! What a sweetheart - you've already gotten great advice, so I'll just say welcome!

[CoraP.]

Welcome to CC.org. Mishka is adorable! From what I can tell, he looks a lot like a chow.

[Judy Fox]

Welcome to the site. Mishka is beautiful and I am sure he will bring you much happiness.

[Mishkaboy10]

Thanks everyone. its great to be welcomed =)
So far Mishka is doing great! He is setteling in, even after leaving his pack behind. He is very active. very loving and very hammy! He loves to be the center of attention, he loves to sleep on my bed, and he LOVES my feet and putting his head on my shoulder. I am taking him for his Parvo and distemper tomorrow. I think i may have to wait on distemper for his age. He is 8 weeks old today. I took him to drop my husband off all this week because he cries if i step out the door. He found himself settled into the nook between my stick and the radios face plate. I found yesterday and today that he is a little too....big for me to shift with him lying in his nook... so he layed behind my neck. Is he GROWING?? He sure does eat a lot. I have him on pupp chow. but i think im gonna move to another food with less byproduct meals. Right now he is lying at my feet playing with an ice cube. ill post pics soon thanks again. - Mechele and Mishka

[gumbychow]

Hello Mishkaboy10
Welcome your little chow is very beautiful.
Here's advice on chow makes us completely sick ...
long live chows!
a +

[JasonandNat]

Awesome baby!! Fuzzy ball of cuteness.

[Auddymay]

What a cute baby! Search 'Maxwell' and you will see photos of what he could possibly look like, based on his coloring. I had a beloved Chowder who lived to be 14. She acted more lab, and looked like a rough coat retriever...only different. She can be seen in the link below my Lily's photo, or all over the older photo section. Or, your Mishka might be even more different.

[myboys]

Welcome! My boys are Chowlabs as well.....I treat them as Chows! One has a very curled plumed tail...the other not so much. They have chow ears and one is built exactly like a chow. They are now two years old. The ONLY trouble I had, when they were puppies, was which one was going to be "Alpha". The kind folks here steered me in the right direction. I hired someone to come to my house (for two hours) and she showed me exactly what I had to do! They couldn't both be the alpha dog. She watched them and knew immediately who was .....and who was the wannabee....lol
My household is filled with joy and laugher because of these two chowlabs. I wish I knew how to post pics, because I surely would. Mine are cream colored...their names are Butch and Sundance (boys from the same litter). Again....welcome!