The Real Labrador Retriever

My mission started with posting photos that people submitted of their hunting dogs, and it became a very successful endeavor on social media (and still is to this day). But I never took the time to educate my followers on why I thought this was important, or what I trying to achieve. I am not sure even I knew, but I was very sure that most people did not know why or how the Labrador came to be. So this is as good a time as any to learn about the history of this hard-working breed. 

The Labrador breed dates back to at least the 1830s, when St. John's water dogs bred by European settlers in Newfoundland, were first introduced to Britain from ships trading between Canada and Poole in Dorset. These dogs were bred with British hunting dogs to create the modern Labrador Retriever. Its early benefactors included the Earl of Malmesbury, the Duke of Buccleuch, the Earl of Home, and Sir John Scott. 

The St. John's breed were called "water dogs" because of their love for water and their coat, which was water-resistant. St. John's water dogs were medium-sized, strong, and stocky – more closely resembling modern English Labradors than American Labradors. They had characteristic white patches on the chest, chin, feet, and muzzle. This coloration occasionally appears in modern Labs as a small white chest patch – known as a "medallion" – or as a few stray white hairs on the feet. 

The dog pictured right is one of the earliest, and best photos I could find on the web (source unknown) of the original St. John's Water Dog. The modern field Labrador, or hunting Labrador, still maintains its original, prominent features: strong muscular body, floppy ears, narrow, long, angular face, and a long, slightly curled tail.

The photograph to the left is of The Earl of Home's dog "Nell", 1871, described both as a Labrador and a St. John's water dog. By 1870, the name Labrador Retriever had become accepted in England. The chocolate Labrador emerged in the late 1800s (then known as liver), with liver-colored pups documented at the Buccleuch kennels in 1892; the first yellow Labrador on record was born in 1899; the Kennel Club recognized Ben of Hyde, kennels of Major C.J. Radclyffe. The first AKC registration was in 1917.

So what happened to The St. John's Water Dog? Sadly, the breed went extinct in its homeland due to two main factors. Firstly, In an attempt to encourage sheep raising, heavy restrictions, and taxes were placed on dog ownership during the 19th century. Secondly, the UK, the leading country of import, was experiencing a rabies epidemic in 1885. Due to this, the UK government imposed a strict, long-term quarantine on all imported animals, especially dogs, to eradicate the disease. This led to a sharp decline in demand for the breed, greatly stunting breeding efforts. Ultimately, the breed went extinct in the 1980s. 

The last two known St. John's Water Dogs were photographed in the early 1980s (in old age), having survived in a "very remote area,  but both were male, bringing the era of the St. John's water dog to an end.

What does this all mean for the Labrador of today? Due to selective breeding, there are significant differences between field/trial-bred and show-bred lines of Labradors. In the United States, the former are sometimes mistakenly referred to as "American" and the latter as "English", when in fact, both field and show types are bred in both countries, and all Labrador Retrievers are descended from British lines. 

Yes, your fluffy couch Labs, big muscled American Labs, boxy show Labs, and sleek, compact British Labs are all just LABRADORS! Even though they look very different, they are all the same breed and share a British heritage that directly comes from the St. John's Water Dog.  

Back to the beginning! In 2012 I took a look around the internet and noticed that the Labrador Retriever bred from field lines had the least amount of mainstream representation on social media. Maybe it was partly due to the hunting aspect of a Labrador's drive, or maybe owners of these Big Motor Labs didn't post their dogs much or weren't all that interested in Facebook in 2012. I was all too happy kickstarting the spotlight on the sporting and working Lab 11 years ago. 

Whatever the case, the bad-to-the-bone field lines, both American and British, are now pictured everywhere on social media, and I for one am glad that the breed's true representation - the working Labrador descended from the industrious St. John's Water Dog  - is in the spotlight. 

(references available. Photos of Max and Yogi by Orville MacEachron Photography)