Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Silver Labrador Breeders Are Breeding A New Hybrid Color Variation

By Chandra Zane


Lovers of Labs have a new color to choose from in puppies. In addition to the standard colors: of black, yellow and chocolate, there is a new silvery color. Visibly it is more like a chocolate with a silvery overlay. Silver Labrador breeders are breeding silver labs and charcoal lab puppies for sale.

The LRC accepts both the yellow and chocolate standard to include different shades. The AKC accepts the silver color as part of the chocolate standard. This is a rational decision since such a color is not unusual in the brown family. For instance, Chesapeake Bay Retrievers also have a silvered brown as one of the shades included in the brown standard. These dogs also have a breed line dating from the 19th century, the same period in which labs were first developed in Great Britain.

Origins of the breed can be traced to the Canadian island of Newfoundland and the St. Johns water dog. The ancestors of the St. Johns bloodline are not known for certain. But it is thought that this breed developed from some mixture of English, Portuguese and Irish working dog breeds.

These dogs came to the U. S. By way of Great Britain. In Great Britain, this breed was first documented under the name in 1839. Their lineage can be traced to early breeding by British lords, primarily the Earls of Malmesbury and the Dukes of Buccleuch.

Black was the first documented shade. It was also the sole accepted shade. A yellow strain had turned up in its Canadian founding breed, it was not an accepted variant in the early period. As a result, yellow variants in a littler were often eliminated. But as it kept turning up, since it is a recessive tone, there was eventual acceptance.

Like the yellow variant, chocolate labs appeared in early breeding and were often terminated. As this is also a recessive color, this hue would sporadically appear. Eventually, this tone was also accepted and registered by British and American Kennel Clubs.

Observers have pointed out that it is easily seen that the modern bloodlines of this breed are splitting and becoming diverse. There appears to be distinct difference between the field trial lines and the show lines. Hence, differences in color caused by genes which have produced the silver, should not be unexpected.

Silver Labrador breeders are hoping that the new shade will be accepted as another recognized color for this breed as this hue has a growing appeal. Under all the different shades the soulful nature of this canine remains true. There is a reason why it is the most popular of all registered breeds in America, Canada, United Kingdom and New Zealand.




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