The Origin of Labrador Retriever

Where does the most popular dog breed in the world - Labrador Retriever come from? The origin of Labrador Retriever is a now extincted dog breeds - St. John's water dog from Newfoundland, now is Newfoundland and Labrador of Canada.

St. John’s water dog (or St. John’s dog or Lesser Newfoundland) is believed to be the ancestor of Labrador Retriever. St. John’s water dog was brought from Newfoundland to to England in or around 1820 and quickly become popular due to their retrieving and scenting ability. They could retrieve anything within the water and on shore, so the dog was bred widely to serve the nobility in hunting and small game. In addition, St. John’s dogs also worked in fishing boat to help their owner retrieve the drag ends of fishing nets to the shore.

When the dogs was brought to England, they were described both as Labrador and St. John's dog, because they was known for "retrieving" in the Labrador Sea or simply Labrador to distinguish them from the larger Newfoundland breed.

However, a combination of the sheep protection policy in Newfoundland and rabies quarantine in the United Kingdom, led to the gradual demise of the St. John's water dog. Until the 1830s, the 10th Earl of Home and his nephews the 5th Duke of Buccleuch and Lord John Scott, had imported progenitors of the breed from Newfoundland to Europe for use as gundogs. Another early advocate of these Newfoundland dogs, or Labrador Retrievers as they later became known, was the 2nd Earl of Malmesbury who bred them for their expertise in waterfowling.

During the 1880s, the 3rd Earl of Malmesbury, the 6th Duke of Buccleuch and the 12th Earl of Home collaborated to develop and establish the modern Labrador breed.

By 1870, the name Labrador Retriever became common in England. Early description about Labradors is a thin, short-haired, black dog, yellow and chocolate puppies would occasionally appear but they are often culled, until finally gaining acceptance in the 20th century.

The first recognized Yellow Labrador was born in 1899, in fact it's a dark, almost butterscotch color. Over the 20th century, people prefer far lighter shades of yellow to cream, until today most yellow Labradors are of this shade. Fawn also has been a common color in the yellow Labradors variety. In the 1980s, darker shades of gold and fox red are interested in lead to the re-establishment of these shades in England.

Chocolate Labradors were also well established in the early 20th century as a distinct color.

Source: Dog Breeds Db