I'm doing a little research before selecting a choc pup. The father of the litter I'm looking at is silver and I wondered if the only difference between the silver and choc is the color dilution gene or does the silver have any known personality trait or condition like alopecia that might come out in the choc pup. I'm thinking the diff is strictly the color and that the wonderful Lab personality will trump the color. Thx.
Ah, a loaded question indeed. You know as soon as you mention silvers, there's going to be a lot of controversy. I'm undecided on the "are they really Labs" debate because, I have to admit, I've not done enough research to be swayed one way or the other. To be honest, I don't really care that much! So, assuming they are full Labs and not Weim crosses (which I'd have nothing against, but we're talking temperament here, and I have limited knowledge of Weims except they're awful droolers!), your best bet is simply to look at the qualities of the parents and decide if they marry with what you're after. I think most silvers look rather houndy, but then, so do my two adult dogs. I really dislike silvers' eyes, sorry, as they're so pale and look very hard to me. But that's personal preference. If the dam has dark eyes, there's a chance that the pups will have good eyes, too. On the other hand, you don't know how dark or pale the sire's eyes would be without the dilution. But it depends if you're picky like me I think you need to be careful of sweeping generalisations like "the wonderful Lab personality" because, I can tell you for free, my two adults don't have that stereotypical happy-go-lucky personality. Again, look at the parents and see how they are. I know the parents of my two very well and they're delightful dogs, but somehow their puppies (at least three of the eight) turned out rather jittery. In hindsight, I knew the dam was scared of certain things, like storms and mice(!), so maybe that should have set off alarm bells. Still, I didn't end up with W&S through using my head - you live and learn This article from The Labrador Site does mention alopecia as a potential issue with silvers, but if you know you're going to have an undiluted choccy, then it shouldn't be a problem.
If the breeder is studding a silver male then some here (U.S. and Canada) would consider that to be a disreputable breeder. Besides researching colour make sure all health checks have been done on the parents.
Maybe I jumped the gun mentioning the 'wonderful' Lab personality. I based that on my being 5 for 5 with raising Labs with that trait. I'll look at the 6wk pups today and ask questions, too. The breeder won't release the pups before 8wks and come with the 2yr guarantee against the hip and elbow genetic defects so that impresses me with him. Everything associated with his hobby breeding facilities being so well kept make it easier to want to do business with him but the silver factor is really distracting. I wouldn't be breeding the new pup; just be a buddy for my 7yr old choc...
Parents not tested for eyes, heart, CNM and EIC? Some of those ARE genetic and there's a gene test. There is no gene test for hip or elbow displasia; not yet, and maybe they are not genetic at all, we don't know yet.
It's pretty much accepted that both elbow and hip dysplasia have genetic causes. Not being able to identify the gene does not mean there is not a genetic cause.
Yes, parents have been tested for the eyes, CNM, PRA, and TVD and documents are provided. Very healthy parents and pups.
They sounds lovely! Great that all the relevant checks have been undertaken Try not to be distracted by colour, as the the one thing you have mentioned is loving the labrador temperament. My understanding of the silver labrador is limited though, I thought this gene was inserted though using the weimaraner? I would be interrogating the breeder around the personalty, nature, training of their dogs. Are they laid back generally? What is the evidence for this? Good with children, noises....traffic. Any written testimonials from previous customers? Giving you some clues as to how they have settled onto their new homes. How are the pups being raised and socialised? In a kennel or home environment. Pups raised in the hustle and bustle of a home get such and advantage over pups raised in kennels. When we picked up our latest pup Bramble, she was in the centre of a huge kitchen, lots of noise, children racing about, other dogs mooching around, cats and an old grumpy lab called Ralph. Although she is a sensitive dog, she is quite bombproof in a lot of respects, and I sure her early socialisation helped.
Thx for the tips. The silver stud is a big boy, a bit stand offish but very loyal and comfortable around his master and the choc mother is around 80lbs and an absolute sweetheart. The parents also have 3 other adult Labs to socialize with in a huge run. I was planning on asking breeder for contact info of previous customers. Still have a few weeks...
80lbs? That's 36kgs - for a bitch? How tall is she? Unless pretty tall, I'd be concerned that a bitch at that weight was far too bulky to be at all athletic. For sure, if she is tall she very well may be fine, but worth just a check on that....
Since both of my 'Americans' are 78lbs, I thought 80 for an 'American' female was large but she is tall and loves retreiving. Wife and I picked one out Sat with a personality and size that will be compatible with Tag (7yrs); we shall see. He's (up til last Jan) always had a companion and I have a great feeling about the little guy being a fine addition...
You really can't go by size of a young puppy to determine their adult size, in my opinion that is. My Axel was the smallest of the litter so we picked him thinking he would best be matched for our 6 pound Pomeranian. Axel is 15 months now and grew to be the biggest of the litter at 92 pounds, and he's just starting to fill out. My friend picked the biggest of the litter and he ended up being one of the smallest. Of course we absolutely love Axel, mini horse and all, he was the perfect addition to our family. So regardless you'll end up with your future best friend!
Yeah, the end result is out of our hands; just have to pray for the health of our new buddy and hope he's the size we guessed at...
We had the same experience. Cooper was probably the runt of the litter, but at 22 months she is 85# and about 10# heavier than her mom and 5# heavier than her dad. She is so tall that she would probably DSQ even in the US Lab Breed Standard.
Personally, I don't recognise silver as true to type. It's a diluted gene and I feel the same with Dobes also being silver or fawn. I wouldn't choose a pup from silver parentage as I'm all for keeping breeds true. That's just my personal opinion and don't force it on anyone
