Profile: Labrador Retrievers
with
Sue Willumsen
Are you thinking of making a Labrador Retriever a member of your home? Find out what it's like to own a lab as a pet, and find out what you can expect in its temperament, health, and activity levels.
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Transcript: Profile: Labrador Retrievers
Hi, I'm Sue Willumsen for About.com, and I've been breeding Labradors for about 30 years. The Labrador was actually bred to retrieve fishing nets in New Foundland, and as the fishermen found how versatile they were they developed them as hunting dogs. They then went to England where the breed developed further. And now they're over in the Unites States, but that didn't happen for a very long time.Origins of Labrador Retrievers
There's always a myth between American and English Labradors. They're really all from England, via England, but they are either a confirmation dog, which we have today that you've seen in the ring, or they're a performance dog, which you see out hunting or doing field trials. So they're a very, very versatile dog.Labrador Retriever Colors
They come in three colors:, black, yellow, and chocolate. Now the yellows have different shades so sometimes you think they're very light or very dark - they're all considered yellows. And to get the different colors, you actually have a little genetics. The only thing you can be sure of is if you breed two yellows, you'll always get yellow. If you breed black and yellow or a chocolate and black, you can often get all three colors in a litter.The most popular, or the most often that you seem to see, seem to be the black. But chocolate and yellow all are very acceptable. They all have very similar temperaments. It's more important to buy from a responsible breeder that's very careful about their temperaments and their health then just buying off of an unknown source.
Labrador Retriever Temperament
The temperament of the Labrador is very outgoing, easy going, very willing to learn, but they are a sporting dog, and because they're a sporting dog, they're very busy at times. They sometimes need a job; they need exercise. It's not the amount of exercise - it's sometimes the type of exercise. They love to sit on your couch, they love to eat, they train very well with food - not too much of course, because they have a tendency to love food a little too much and get a little too fat. But, they're a wonderful family pet and one of the best known dogs for your family.Labrador Health Issues
The Labrador does some health issues and concerns that you should be aware of when you're considering a Labrador as a family pet. The first thing is to make sure that the hips and elbows have been X-rayed and cleared by an orthopedic certified radiologist. If the animal's hops are not functional, the dog will not be a member as long as it possibly could be. The other health concern the Labrador has is, they have inherited eye problems. And again a responsible breeder will have their eyes checked every year by a veterinarian ophthalmologist.Children and Labradors
When you have young children around the Labrador temperament is such that you don't have to worry about any aggression. You always remember, you never get anything out of a dog that you put into it. So the more the dog is a member of your family, the better family member it is.Thanks for watching, for more information be sure to visit us at About.com.