Quote:
Originally Posted by MK2750
The only way to be sure is to buy from proven field lines from a reputable breeder. If not, we would all just save a bunch of money and pick up a dog at the pound or Kijiji.
Another purest here, blacks out hunt yellows more often than not and both out hunt the mutants and half breeds 9 times out of 10.
There is a lot more to this than elitist snobs wanting to look down at another outdoorsman although that can be the case as well. The Labrador breed is being destroyed from two angles and some where in the middle is common sense.
Field trial breeders put the prize ahead of the breed as often as the British show crowd. Bigger, faster, stronger and hyper with excess energy will win you more trials and stout, pretty and soft will win you more shows. A true Labrador is both and neither.
If you look at established breeders, you will find a waiting list and a monopoly on true hunting dogs that often spans the country and many generations. Even if the breeder has not been around for a very long time the dogs he chooses will have a proven bloodline that has been around.They do not pick breeding stock to the extremes because they are cool, aggressive or display any traits out side of the breed standard.
IF we do choose to purchase animals that do not conform, we are encouraging the delusion of the breed. For example; if we all insisted on lighter colored dogs, breeders would continually choose the lightest yellows from the litters for stock. Eventually they would be mostly white (Polar Bear) and the true yellow genetics would be lost. On the other extreme, if we insisted on bigger and more aggressive dogs, breeders would choose them as breeding stock. We would risk loosing the fun loving good natured Labradors that we can bring in to play with our children after the hunt.
Quality hunting Labradors that conform to breed standard are getting harder to find and everyone that purchases a designer dog to better fit their particular situation is a part of the problem. Regardless of if it to point pheasants and run large or a pretty shade of color to look cool, both are equally to blame.
If you want a silver dog, buy a Weimaraner. If you want a pointer buy a German Short Hair. If you want a tough dog buy a Chessie, If you want a guard dog buy a Sheppard. If you want something in between, by all means roll the dice and buy a cross breed, BUT please don't register it or call it a Labrador.
Registering a dog is as simple as having two registered dogs, making a phone call and filling out some papers. No one comes by and verifies via DNA testing or other means. It is for the most part an honour system. The love of money truly is the root of all evil and as long as we are willing to pay big money for genetic misfits the ruination of breeds will continue.
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Truer words have never been spoken on this forum. Its up to the potential buyer to make an informed decision within regards to their purchase. I'm a lab guy when it comes down to it. I love them. Grew up with them. When it came time for me to purchase my first pup as a married father of two (After growing up with working labs) I had to swallow any sort of 'wish list' I had. One of my main criteria was a dog that would wholeheartedly protect my home while I'm working, when my wife and kids are home alone. I fooled myself into thinking there was a lab capable of more than posturing when someone came to the door, but 99 times out of 100 such is not so.....so inevitably I went with a Chessie and never looked back. Point I'm making is that 'looks' had to become the LAST item on my checklist for a potential gundog suitable to my needs. LITERALLY last, as no one can actually state any Chessie holds a candle to a lab in the looks department lol. BUT, I have one hell of a gundog that will defend my kids to the death if need be, and as MK said, I now own the toughest retriever breed on the planet. With that being said, I still yearn for a yellow working lab.
Ability should ALWAYS outweigh cosmetics. At the same time however, there is such a thing as too much 'ability', and I agree with MK that labs (Specifically American Field Lines) are the furthest thing from what a lab truly should be, which is a happy medium between what a conformation line typically is, and field lines.