looking at getting my frist lab never had much dealings with one i love the look of a british lab but looks arent everything what are some of the pros and cons between the british or american labs. most of the time it will be all blind retrives and i will more than likely have to have it trained by someone due to my job i dont have the time to do it myself. thanks for the input guys.

There is 4 basic types of labs.
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Some are better than others

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1358389578.492881.jpgA buddy of mine got this silver lab, I think it's gonna be my next choice

Most of the stuff i read about labs was that the black female was the easiest to deal with, dont know if thats true, only lab i ever had was black ones.

I have an English style yellow lab. She's in the picture by my username. She is a family pet. Great temper, very docile, awesome with kids. Does retrieving but never got past basics with her. Only con is that she sheds really bad 2-3 times a year

Not a pro by any means but played in the hunt test game for a while and while everyone has their favorites...black labs have the most amount of "champion" dogs...I know they have been around longer and there are more of them in existence but I will only own blacks, yellow would be my second, I have heard too many stories about about "hard headed" chocolates. As far as the "block headed labs" there are a lot of them that come from show bloodlines rather than hunting lines. I looked into silver labs for a bit before I bought my last black...they come from chocolate lines and from what I remember tend to have some health issues.

My .02 take it for what it's worth

Go to this forum and search British vs American labs. You will get more info than you can ever read.

http://www.retrievertraining.net/forums

Buck

Man! Can you imagine that meth lab retrieving birds though? Good lord!!! That sum'bitch'll pick up three birds before you can put three shells back in your gun and the best part is that sum bitch won't mouth the birds because he won't be hungry!!

Got my first hunting lab last feb she is a british red lab did not care what color I got. I just wanted the first litter to go home in feb for I could start training her. Her dad weighed 55lb and mom 50lbs I wanted a small dog with hunting pedigre she weighs 55lb. Very laid back until its time to hunt. Very easy to train 1st dog I have ever trained learns very quick and she was picking birds up at 9month old very pleased.

I went with a Brit and will never look back. Calm, freak noses, very loyal. Also, they are alot smaller. My 4 year old female is 35lbs, 2 year old male is 45lbs. Great in the boat

Thanks for the replys guys I really like the meth lab but might be a lil high strung for me haha. The more I look at my choices im leaning towards a black but the silver is a very close second. I guess temperament between the breeds is a concern of mine would like something laid back until I send it for a bird I'd like all hell to break loose then but still listen at the same time. I know every dog is different and it's just the luck of the draw but I like to learn as much as I can before jumping head first into something once again thanks for the links and comments.

The most important thing is to know the parents and make sure they have all of their health clearances (Hips, elbows, eyes, EIC, CNM). I would never take the owners word which is why I like to see some type of measurable achievements by the parents. Be it FC, AFC, MH, HRCH, etc.The Bristish labs tend to be smaller, but like American labs you cannot make generalizations. I've seen good and bad in both. Remember that silver is not a color that is recognized by any organization. They are diluted chocolates and considered chocolates by the AKC.

Buck

Where are you located?

My suggestion since you are most likely going to be using this dog for duck hunting is find an HRC (hunting retriever club) hunt test near you...now that hunting season is winding down they should be popping up everywhere. Go watch some of the tests and talk to some of the people running dogs, most are very friendly and informative. You may even find a dog you really like his/her abilities and temperament, that has an upcoming litter or even one on the ground.

Also, coming from someone who has trained a dog with no pedigree (who has her HRCH title and SR title) and another with a bloodline full of medals if a dog is bred for hunting/working...it makes things go a lot smoother.

I've never had a lab trained for hunting, but I've had a black lab female and a yellow lab male that were family pets. The yellow male was by far the best dog I've ever owned. I'd give anything to have another dog like him, and actually train it for hunting. He was extremely laid back/calm and could be taught virtually anything within a matter of minutes it seemed. The black female was more high strung/hyper and much more difficult to teach, though it wasn't impossible. I've been looking into getting a lab to train, and as of right now, yellows are #1 on my list with black labs being a close #2. Everything I've read about silver labs has steered me away from them all together. It seems that they have been bred with the focus being on their coat color and not abilities and/or health.

Another consideration is that since the initial cost of a puppy is tiny compared to what you will spend over the dogs lifetime, I would buy a puppy with the best pedigree you can afford. A a puppy from titled parents with multiple titled ancestors doesn't guarantee it will be a good dog, but it does increase the odds.

Buck

I own both an American and British lab. I wouldn't trade either one for anything. I will say my American who is a male is a lot high strung compared to my British. Both of them live in the house. My male has a lot more drive or energy compared to my female. But she is heck of a duck dog and I put a HRCH title on her. Both of them were great to train I've been blessed. I believe a lot issues has to do with lack of training. My male due to his high energy I was a lot harder on him and wouldn't let him gain an inch. He's 2 and 2nd season of hunting. He'll sit there all day hunting but say his name or back he's a machine. I personally believe a lot of dogs that act wild is due to poor obedience training and are allowed to get away with a lot of small stuff that turns into big deals in the field. Some cases dogs are just breed high strung. I would make sure to buy out of a hunting stock with possible titles. But I know hint test dogs I wouldnt hunt with and know just pure hunting dogs that would smoke hunt testPersonally I'd stay away from silver. I know hundreds of really awesome dogs of the main 3 colors black, yellow, and chocolate. Not saying they aren't not any nice silvers but I've never seen a silver at hunt test. They tend to be breed tight causing health issues. I'm no pro by any means but I think you'd be pleased with either breed.

i find a chocolate lab is hard to beat i find that there drive to hunt an energy level is higher than any other lab an the are a great compain also. Espically if you hunt in some bad marsh like i hunt you need a dog with that extra drive an energy to make it through the thick marsh grass an soft mud in the ponds

I've owned yellow and black labs. So no real difference in the two. The black lab I have now is outstanding. I got her through Miller Creek Kennels in Snook Texas. Terry Cadel is the trainer down there. He knows what he is doing. There are not cheap but provide a stellar animal.

Chesapeakes make a fine dog.

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Wouldn't trade my English Chocolate, best dog I'll ever have. His dad came from Gator Point in Mississippi, his mom from Smith Farm Labradors in MN.
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all three black yellow and chocolates are good dogs i have a chocolate lab she is a fast learner i dont believe any one color to be better than other people make stupid comments when regarding to one being better than the other just spend the money and choose a good bloodline and u will be happy but remember the lab will only be as smart as the trainer/owner usually if a dog fails it is the owners fault

I have an american and it is my second dog. The reason I went with him is they say he can

take the heat better down here. Love my yellow

P.S. I think I worked with you years ago at Merrick const.

If you go with a british lab, you dont have to worry about choosing a chocolate, because they dont come in that flavor. White (yellow), black, and fox (red) are the only flavors available. Fox labs make for a BEAUTIFUL dog. I've trained chessies, american, english, and british labs. Like i mentioned earlier, i'll never own another dog besides a brit. The temperament is soo much nicer in the blind and at home than most americans i've hunted with and around.

There are only three recognized colors for labs: black, yellow and chocolate. There are no other colors that are AKC recognized. Black labs have won more field trials/hunt test than the others and are also used more widely as bomb/drug sniffing dogs and seeing eye dogs. Why? Because they were the first color of labs the others were then bred for their color rather than their abilities.

I would stay away from these "new" designer colors (e.g. "fox red" and "silver") because again, they are primarily being bred for their coats not their intelligence, athleticism or hunting ability. Go with a pedigree that has many hunt/field trial titles in it as well as ones that have health screening (OFA, EIC, CNM, CERF). This means they come from a line that has proven intelligence, trainabilty, drive, athleticism etc. Remember, you are buying a probability!! Just like it's more probable that Michael Jordan and Cheryl Swoop's kid would be better at basketball than my kid, a lab from one of these lines has a higher probability (but not guarantee!) of being a great hunter/retriever than a lab from a show line.

I have a chocolate bitch and she retrieves like she is wired on rocket fuel, when she's around the house listens about as well as my 6 year old, but drives like a Corvette in the field! I don't go hunting without her. Wouldn't have it any other way.