Labradors - Cute As A Button

Labrador Retrievers are gun dogs, and are like big cuddly bears, even when they are small. Good-looking and placid. By registered ownership alone, Labradors are “the most popular dogs in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States (since 1991),” according to Wikipedia. Originally from Canada (Labrador, hence the name) they can be found all over the world.

The Labrador Retriever, also known as simply Labrador or Lab, is one of several kinds of retrievers, a type of gun dog. They are athletic, playful, and the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States (since 1991).

Did You Know?

Most of the early dogs, including into the mid-20th century, were yellow labs, and were almost a butterscotch colour, and they were often called Golden, until some pedantic people at the UK Kennel Club said that “Gold” was not a colour. After the mid 20th century, there was apparently a preference for lighter shades of yellow, and now most yellow Labs are like this.

Another popular color is the fox red, which came about in the 1980s. English breeders led the charge on this. One of the dogs was called Wynfaul Tabasco, often called “the father of the modern fox red,” and the only modern fox red Show Champion in the UK.

Their coat is mostly short, a good thing in very cold, very wet areas, so that they don’t freeze up. They are generally easy to train and they are obedient (mostly).

Science Magazine has a neat dog survey that includes a photo of a yellow lab.

Here is a step through a day in the life of some yellow labs.