[Todd]

hey guys. i was wondering if you could help me try and determine the breed of Lucky. I really don't know whether she's a pure labrador or a mix, nor do i really care (just curious). i have my guesses, but they are onlt guesses. i really do not know for sure what she is. i've never had testing done or anything like that. does she look too small to be a full lab? she has a very short coat too. what do you guys think?

[Yogi]

Todd, be reminded there is no links for new members until you have 75 posts. In addition, the link does not work. I recommend you just put the Lucky's pic on the post as an attachment.

[Todd]

ok guys. I finally got some photos uploaded. sorry about the wait.

[Yogi]

From the photos, looks to be all Lab....

[Todd]

Originally Posted by Yogi

From the photos, looks to be all Lab....

you don't think she's too small to be a lab? She two and a half. Also, very short coat and fairly thin tail.

[Yogi]

The one thing to remember in breeds is that size is not always a factor. Primarily it is due to genetics and putting the correct dam and sire together to ensure pups meet breed standards. Unfortunately many breeders fail to pay much mind to this. A European Lab really does not resemble the North American Lab. They are generally shorter and stockier in build but this does not mean that both are not Labs.
The other consideration is we only have photo's to work from. Based on the photo and general limitations in photos, could it be a mix yes but from what I can see in the photo's primarily the head, it appears to be all Lab.
This is why generally when people come here with 8 or 9 week old pups asking for breed information it simply is a guess as there really is no way to tell outside of a few breeds what it is or mix it is until it reaches early maturity. At that time you can see the adult coat develop, the general shape start to develop and the head and muzzle changes. These are key factors in determining breeds in a dog that as pups, it is simply left to guess.

[OrangeDog]

I think Lab/Pitbull... she is not 100% lab for sure and actually looks almost exactly like a pitbull lab that I had as a client, they could be litter sisters they look so much alike!

[Todd]

Originally Posted by Yogi

The one thing to remember in breeds is that size is not always a factor. Primarily it is due to genetics and putting the correct dam and sire together to ensure pups meet breed standards. Unfortunately many breeders fail to pay much mind to this. A European Lab really does not resemble the North American Lab. They are generally shorter and stockier in build but this does not mean that both are not Labs.
The other consideration is we only have photo's to work from. Based on the photo and general limitations in photos, could it be a mix yes but from what I can see in the photo's primarily the head, it appears to be all Lab.
This is why generally when people come here with 8 or 9 week old pups asking for breed information it simply is a guess as there really is no way to tell outside of a few breeds what it is or mix it is until it reaches early maturity. At that time you can see the adult coat develop, the general shape start to develop and the head and muzzle changes. These are key factors in determining breeds in a dog that as pups, it is simply left to guess.

do you think she's shorter than most labs or is the the same measurements just thinner? also, what about here coat? she has a very short coat. here stomach has so little hair you can see some of her skin. she doesn't have that otter tail either. she has white paws, chest, and face. people have told me she could have pit in her.

[OrangeDog]

her head, coat, rear assembly, color (the white feet,etc) and tail are all NOT lab. She is a beautiful dog... I would say she is mostly pit with some lab

[Yogi]

Her head shows no sign of Pit in her. Pits builds in general though shorter are generally much stockier than a Labs.
The problem really is that you can mixes in a litter and the pups very often will not look like each other when mature. By this I mean coat, size etc. It just depends on what comes out of the sire and dam and how much in each pup.
Taking all these into consideration, she may resemble a clients dog that is Lab/Pit mix but that does not necessarily mean that is what Lucky is. Other breeds resemble Pits as well as Labs and can account for the white and as well as thinner belly hair as well as thinner tail as well as shorter than standard.
It is not to say there could be Pit in her but using the common visual signs that we generally use ie: Head, Coat, Overall build and Muzzle, I just do not see Pit in this dog. Again though, this is based on photos and they can be misleading at best. I may see something different in person that would reveal Pit in her.
It comes down to a 3D thing....

[Todd]

Originally Posted by OrangeDog

her head, coat, rear assembly, color (the white feet,etc) and tail are all NOT lab. She is a beautiful dog... I would say she is mostly pit with some lab

thanks for the reply. we got her from a breeder and she was suppose to be "all lab". she was free though. maybe she had another father. there were 12 in her litter.

[OrangeDog]

she reminds me a lot of my foster pitbull. She is really pretty!

[Todd]

Originally Posted by Yogi

Her head shows no sign of Pit in her. Pits builds in general though shorter are generally much stockier than a Labs.
The problem really is that you can mixes in a litter and the pups very often will not look like each other when mature. By this I mean coat, size etc. It just depends on what comes out of the sire and dam and how much in each pup.
Taking all these into consideration, she may resemble a clients dog that is Lab/Pit mix but that does not necessarily mean that is what Lucky is. Other breeds resemble Pits as well as Labs and can account for the white and as well as thinner belly hair as well as thinner tail as well as shorter than standard.
It is not to say there could be Pit in her but using the common visual signs that we generally use ie: Head, Coat, Overall build and Muzzle, I just do not see Pit in this dog. Again though, this is based on photos and they can be misleading at best. I may see something different in person that would reveal Pit in her.
It comes down to a 3D thing....

from the photos provided, does she look to be shorter than standard?

Originally Posted by OrangeDog

she reminds me a lot of my foster pitbull. She is really pretty!

thank you! I really appreciate that!

[OrangeDog]

hard to tell size from the photo... how many inches is she to the withers? How much does she weigh?

[Todd]

Originally Posted by OrangeDog

hard to tell size from the photo... how many inches is she to the withers? How much does she weigh?

what is exactly are the withers? how could i measure her with measuring tape? she weighs 65 pounds. she is very muscular.

[OrangeDog]

Here are a couple photos showing correct "breed standard" structure. I have actually shown labs as well as had a foster pit and see many of them on the show circut.

Labrador Retriever


American PitBull Terrier


withers are the top of the shoulder blades... yes as long as she is standign square you can use a tape measure

[Yogi]

I did find these pics of Lab Pit mixes and the heads are closer views which to show show Pit in them. These are closer. If her head resembles these than I can see where there would be Pit in her. Also there is a video clip of a Black Lab Pit mix. Maybe comparing Lucky to it you may see if they resemble each other.






http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idw_p3zVRPg

[Todd]

thanks for the pics! for standard height, is it the height or length? from where to where do you generally measure?

[Yogi]

The pic Orangedog shows of the Lab is indicative to the European which is the shorter stockier version of what we have here.
Labrador Retriever Information and Pictures, Labs
show variations in the sizes.

[OrangeDog]

from the floor to the top of her shoulder blades