Description

The?Labrador Retriever, also known as simply?Labrador?or?Lab, is one of several kinds of retrievers, a type of gun dog.?They are even-tempered and well-behaved around young children and the elderly. Labradors are athletic, playful, and the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Australia, Canada, New Zealand,?the United Kingdom,?and the United States (since 1991).
A favourite?assistance dog?breed in these and other countries, Labradors are frequently trained to aid people who are blind and people with autism, act as therapy dogs, and perform screening and detection work for law enforcement and other official agencies.?They are prized as sporting and?waterfowl hunting?dogs.?A few kennels breeding these grew up in England; at the same time a combination of?sheep?protection policy (Newfoundland) and?rabies quarantine?(England) led to their?gradual demise?in their country of origin.
The first and second?Earls of Malmesbury, who bred for duck shooting on his estate,?and the 5th and 6th?Dukes of Buccleuch, and youngest son Lord George William Montagu-Douglas-Scott,?were instrumental in developing and establishing the modern Labrador breed in 19th century England. The dogs Avon (?Buccleuch Avon?) and Ned given by Malmesbury to assist the Duke of Buccleuch?s breeding program in the 1880s are considered the ancestors of modern Labradors.