Hello to all, since I was the age 10 we always had labs in our family. We have had other bird dogs along the way but always had at least one lab around. Black yellows n a red. Recently we had two put the two oldest yellows down both within a month of each other. Cancer tumors to the male and heart failure to the female. They came from the same litter, more of the English Labrador look size n build male was always around the 80lbs n female around 65lbs. These were probably the best all around house pets retrievers n companions to our 4 year old daughter. They both lived life to the fullest right up till the last weeks. My daughter is taking it pretty hard. To some it up I am here inquiring about the silver lab. It appears to be a pretty controversial breed. I have always had the best health n obedient dogs with black n yellow but the reds we have had seem to be great for pointing n retrieving dogs but not so well for house pets. I know it's difficult to have the best of both worlds so I am looking mainly for my daughter for she loved the fact of the recent one loved running with her outside n slept at the foot of her bed. Downfall of the yellow is the amount if shedding. Tried all kinds of food n grooming n could never keep the shedding to a minimal. I know labs are known for it but have done some reading that the silver does not shed as much? The reds we have had seemed to shed less as well. The wife n daughter really like the color n look of a couple pictures I have shown them of silvers. So can anybody shed some information in regards to the following: Silver labs good health n companions? Is the shedding less from what a yellow will have? Are they good bird dogs for the occasional hunt? This dogs main purpose is companion n pet. Anything else to know about the breed? Any recommendation on silver breeders?
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Hello there! I have no experience of silver labs, but agree some look like lovely dogs. But just wanted to say welcome to this lovely forum from me and my boy Charlie.
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Hello and a warm welcome from me, two year old black Lab Sam and our little girl Millie Silver Labs certainly cause some controversy in certain quarters , many saying that its just a dilute of chocolate , we love all Labradors here . I`ve only ever had yellows and now my first black , and to be honest, all shed hair as badly as each other , I cant really see how a colour can make a difference , maybe you just dont see hair as badly with some ? Sorry I cant help re a breeder as I dont know enough about silvers , just take care that all the necessary health checks have been carried out on both parents and good luck
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Welcome from us too I'm sorry for the loss of your dogs, they sounded like they were great family members. We don't see much about silver labs in the UK other than the usual questions over parentage. I'm guessing you're based in the US? We're on our first dog and he's black from working lines. I guess you'd call him American but we actually have both types here in the UK, bench or show types and working types. What you call an English lab we would call a show lab. I too doubt there's much difference in the shedding stakes, Riley sheds all the time, I think some dogs do a big moult twice a year....it varies. Good luck with your hunt for your next dog, we'd love to see a picture when you find him or her
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site I have two black Labs, one hardly moults at all, the other one moults a lot. Not sure about Silver Labs, think I would steer clear of them.
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Some people say that silvers have weimaraner blood in them. If that is true it might have several effects 1. The weimaraner is a bird dog and has a pointing instinct. So you might, just might, get a pointing lab 2. The weimaraner probably sheds less than a Labrador, so you might, just might, get a dog that sheds less 3. Weimaraners are HPRs and not a specialised retriever, so you might, just might, get a dog with inferior retrieving instinct/trainability The permutations and possibilities are endless! On the other hand, you may get none of these effects, and have a dog that does not point, does not retrieve, and sheds like all the other labs I have known. You will also probably have to part with more money than you would for a bog standard black, yellow or chocolate lab, and put up with a lot of 'stick' from the silver Labrador 'haters' Either way, both Labs and Weims are gundog breeds and should in theory make a good pet/working companion. It is also possible, that the dilute coat gene does NOT come from weimaraners, that it is a spontaneous mutation in Labradors, and that you will have a Labrador through and through. It all depends whom you believe. There is more here It's a hot topic right now!
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Welcome to the forum! I agree that the key thing to look for would be health checks on the parents. That means things like hip and elbow scores, genetic testing for Exercuse Induced Collapse and eye checks for Progressive Retinal Atrophy. There may be other checks that are relevant in your country Also, go with a reputable breeder who is choosy about who gets their pups and who has bred from dogs that are not only healthy but have great temperaments. If you are going for a Silver you will have less choice as they are not as common. With black, yellow or chocolate you will have a lot more choice of breeder. I've had a black Lab who shed like a team of Huskies in Hawaii (that is, a lot!) and my current yellow who sheds much less. I think it depends on the dog, not the colour. Also, just want to say that I'm so sorry that you lost your dear dogs, and so close in time to each other too I'm sure they have left a huge gap.
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Welcome to the forum I can't offer any advice over what has already been suggested. I have a 6 month old red fox lab and on the whole she is very easy trainable, very placid, sheds but not a massive amount. She is very much a house dog and part of our family. I think all labs are gorgeous personally whatever the colour
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Welcome to the forum. I can't offer any advice on silver labs as we don't seem to have them in UK. My belief is that they are a lab cross weimeraner, however it is possible it could be a colour mutation that only occurs with a specific mix of genes - like the red fox. I have a red fox lab. She came from working gundog parents, but we don't work her. She is a brilliant house pet. She's probably a bit more neurotic than dogs bred for pet homes but she's massively intelligent and training has been so easy. She loves nothing more than curling up with me in bed (under the duvet) on a night time.
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site I work with silver labs frequently as a dog trainer. If you are in the US, I would avoid a silver lab. They do not come from reputable breeders. Every silver lab I've worked with has been much more high-strung than the well-bred yellows and chocolates I work with, and each one has come from a backyard breeder. In my limited experience, they are not a dog I would choose. I do suppose however that if the breeder has done proper health testing on the parents and grandparents, and preferably great-grandparents, I would consider it. I would want to see OFA hips/elbows on as much of the bloodline as possible, at least the parents and grandparents. There are probably other tests too (I am a doberman person so I don't know much about specific tests on labs.)
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Yes we are located in eastern Iowa of the US. Thanks for all the info it has been greatly appreciated. I have since done some research on my own as well and have came across a couple well known Silver breeders. I have talked to a couple different people that have purchased from there litters and both seem to be very pleased with there dogs. Here is the two breeders that I have looked into so far. http://www.silverandcharcoalkennels.com/ http://www.pinyanlabs.com/ Does anybody else have any experience with these breeders? It appears that the silver and charcoal kennels are more up on the registration and certification inspections on the dogs but its getting expensive after paying to ship etc.
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site [quote author=Penny+Me link=topic=4609.msg56547#msg56547 date=1393148763] She loves nothing more than curling up with me in bed (under the duvet) on a night time. [/quote] Stop it! That's not helping me to not crack! X
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Hi Remey, I have to be honest and say that the first of those links just looks rather like a puppy farm to me. They may be very nice folks and very nice dogs, but that is not quite the impression I get. The second, Pinyan, obviously work their dogs, but here's the thing. Unless I missed it, not a single description on either site mentions the dog's hip or elbow score. They offer a guarantee on the puppy's hips but why no scores on the descriptions? And that is just the beginning. What about eye tests? There are other health tests too that you should be looking for - EIC (Exercise induced collapse) is a problem in the USA so you should probably be looking for EIC clear parents, CNM clear, Optigen clear or eye certificates. None of this is mentioned. My advice to you is to join the RTF retriever training forum . Don't mention that you want a silver lab or they will eat you alive but they will tell you what health tests you need to check out in your area, and if you change your mind on colour, they'll maybe put you in touch with a reputable breeder Good luck with your search, and whatever you decide, let us know. We won't judge -
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Hi Remey. Welcome to the forum. It's nice to see a fellow eastern Iowan here! My wife and I were originally looking for a silver lab when we found our chocolate Scout. I won't be one to say don't get a silver but I have found that there is so much controversy surrounding them that you are likely to catch some flak from certain Labrador lovers. That being said, no matter what color you go with I hope you find a healthy, happy pup. Also, as Pippa said, you will find plenty of friendly people here as we/they won't judge.
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Welcome Remey.... As FNITGuy said - we were looking for a silver lab when we fell in love with our chocolate lab. I love the look of the silver labs and we were just wanting a family pet...so I didn't care about all the controversy surrounding silvers. Honestly, the dog would have been my pet and I didn't care what others said about the color. I did notice that you posted pinyan labs as a potential breeder. I just wanted you to know they have several complaints, my personal opinion is to steer clear of them. Here is just one link to a complaint: http://www.ripoffreport.com/r/Pinya...ppies-unhealthy-puppy-mill-Ankeny-Iowa-962329 Do diligent research is all I can say! Best of luck and no matter what kind of puppy you do end up choosing I'm sure you'll love it!
Re: Silver lab ?s Long time lab owner first timer to site Thank you for all the great welcomes and information. I will keep you guys posted along the way.
