At Sundance Retrievers we are so proud of our Labrador Retrievers. You’ve likely met a few labs over your life and know them as the friendly, short haired dogs who love the water. We thought we’d share a bit about Labrador Retrievers since we’re rather fond of them.
Their always increasing popularity makes our breeding standards even more important to ensure the quality of dog that Sundance has always created. When you get a dog from us, you’re getting a dog from top Irish, British, and American lines.
At Sundance Retrievers, we are focused on providing our clients with the highest quality Labrador Retrievers and promise that all of the dogs in our breeding program are:
* AKC DNA certified
* AKC registered
* OFA Eye Certified
* Have a OFA Score rated either good or excellent; and/or a PennHip of 50% and higher
* Tested for : Centronuclear Myopathy ( CNM), Degenerative Myelopathy (DM), Exercise-Induced Collapse (EIC),Hereditary Nasal Parakeratosis (HNPK), Progressive Retinal Atrophy ( PRA-PRCD), Progressive Rod- Cone Degeneration (PRCD), Retinal Dysplasia (DRD1), Oculoskeletal Dysplasia 1 ( OSD1) and Skeletal Dysplasia(SD2).
But what are Labrador Retrievers really like? Are they good family dogs? Are they smart? Do they make excellent companions? Yes, yes, and yes.
You can read more about Sundance Retrievers planned litters for 2024-2025.
A bit about Labrador Retrievers history
Why are they named that? It has to do with what they were first bred for and where they were thought to have been “discovered.”
The predecessor of the Labrador Retriever is a dog that was popular for helping the fishermen off the coast of Newfoundland in Canada. This dog became known as the St. John’s Dog. Eventually some of these dogs made their way to England, and it was the Earl of Malmesbury who decided they would be excellent duck hunting dogs. He established a breading program, and having a rather loose sense of Canadian geography, started calling them Labrador Dogs.
There’s much more to this, of course, and it can be rather convoluted, but you can read about it all here.
The Basics
On average, a Labrador Retriever will end up weighing between 55 and 80 pounds. They come in black, chocolate, and yellow, and though they can get to be an almost white color, those dogs are still categorized as “yellow.”
Their average lifespan runs between 11 and 13 years, which is good for a dog this size. They are a generally healthy breed. (And again, that has a lot to do with high breeding standards.)
Interesting facts about Labrador Retrievers
Besides being the top breed in the United States for 29 years running, Labrador Retrievers are known to be smart, friendly, loving, and brave dogs. And here’s some more:
- Because they are so friendly, they have one fault: they might make friends with your intruder. So don’t count on them as guard dogs! ((ha))
- They rank in the top ten for most intelligent breeds, which is what makes them the perfect pick for a service dog.
- They are born swimmers and have some anatomical features that help with that: a thick tail (called an “otter tail”), webbed feet, and waterproof coats. They love love love the water.
- They have a ton of energy and need a lot playtime — somewhere around 40 minutes a day on average. In fact, their main health issues, when they do have them, are obesity and diabetes, because they love to eat and need more exercise than some humans can provide. (So please make sure you can keep these dogs active enough before deciding to get one.)
- Their vast amount of energy and their intelligence from the time they are puppies is also why they very much need to be well trained.
- They are excellent with other dogs, other pets, and children.
We’re here to answer any other questions you might have about Labrador Retrievers, and we’d love to hear about your labs and their unique personalities!