Editing Labrador Retriever (section)

{{Short description|British breed of retriever gun dog}}
{{About|the breed of dog|the single by Japanese idol girl group AKB48|Labrador Retriever (song)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2020}}

{{Infobox dog breed
| name           = Labrador Retriever
| image          = Labrador on Quantock (2175262184).jpg
| image_alt      = side view of a yellow dog in a grassy field, facing left
| caption        = Adult male
| altname        = Labrador
| nickname       = Lab
| country        = United Kingdom
| stock          = [[St. John's water dog]]
| maleweight     = {{convert|65|–|80|lb|kg|abbr=on|disp=flip|0}}	
| femaleweight   = {{convert|55|–|70|lb|kg|abbr=on|disp=flip|0}}	
| maleheight     = {{convert|56|–|57|cm|in|abbr=on|round=0.5}}
| femaleheight   = {{convert|54|–|56|cm|in|abbr=on|round=0.5}}
| coat           = Short, dense, weather-resistant double coat
| colour        = Black, chocolate, or yellow (ranges from pale yellow to fox red)
| kc_name        = [[The Kennel Club]] (UK)
| kc_std         = https://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/breed-standards/gundog/retriever-labrador/
| kc2_name       = 
| kc2_std        = 
|fcistd          = http://www.fci.be/Nomenclature/Standards/122g08-en.pdf
|life_span       = 13.1 years<ref name=McMillan2024/>
}}

The '''Labrador Retriever''' or simply '''Labrador''' or '''Lab''' is a British [[list of dog breeds|breed]] of [[water dog]] [[retriever]] [[gun dog]]. It was developed in the United Kingdom from [[St. John's water dog]]s imported from the [[Newfoundland Colony|colony of Newfoundland]] (now a [[Newfoundland and Labrador|province of Canada]]), and was named after the [[Labrador]] region of that colony. It is among the most commonly kept dogs in several countries, particularly in the Western world.

Labradors are often friendly, energetic, and playful.<ref name="akc" /> It was bred as a sporting and hunting dog but is widely kept as a [[companion dog]]. Though content as a companion, these dogs are intelligent and require both physical and mental stimulation. It may also be trained as a [[guide dog|guide]] or [[assistance dog]], or for [[rescue dog|rescue]] or [[therapy dog|therapy]] work.<ref name="stats">{{cite web|url=http://www.akc.org/reg/dogreg_stats.cfm |title=AKC Dog Registration Statistics |publisher=Akc.org |date=4 April 2012 |access-date=9 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120511200854/http://www.akc.org/reg/dogreg_stats.cfm |archive-date=11 May 2012 }}</ref>

In the 1830s, the [[Alexander Home, 10th Earl of Home|10th Earl of Home]] and his nephews, the [[Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 5th Duke of Buccleuch|5th Duke of Buccleuch]] and [[Lord John Scott]],<ref name="Field">Article written for The Field, 30 May 1896, 'Labrador Dogs', by John S Kerss</ref> imported progenitors of the breed from Newfoundland to Europe for use as gun dogs. Another early advocate of these Newfoundland fishing dogs was the [[James Harris, 2nd Earl of Malmesbury|2nd Earl of Malmesbury]], who bred them for their expertise in [[Waterfowl hunting|waterfowling]].<ref name="Field" />

During the 1880s, the [[James Harris, 3rd Earl of Malmesbury|3rd Earl of Malmesbury]], the [[William Montagu Douglas Scott, 6th Duke of Buccleuch|6th Duke of Buccleuch]], and the [[Charles Douglas-Home, 12th Earl of Home|12th Earl of Home]] collaborated to develop and establish the Labrador Retriever breed. The dogs Buccleuch Avon and Buccleuch Ned, given by Malmesbury to Buccleuch, were mated with bitches carrying blood from those originally imported by the 5th Duke and the 10th Earl of Home. The offspring are the ancestors of all modern Labradors.<ref>{{cite book |author1=The Labrador Retriever Club, Inc. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XwkPAAAACAAJ |title=The Official Book of the Labrador Retriever |publisher=TFH Publications, Inc. |year=1995 |isbn=9780793801886 |editor1-last=Ziessow |editor1-first=Dr. Bernard W. |edition=1st |location=1 TFH Plaza, Third & Union Aves, Neptune, NJ 07753, USA |pages=24–25 |language=en |chapter=The Labrador Dog |ref=TOBOTL |access-date=2 September 2023}}</ref>