How can you tell if your chocolate lab puppy is a purebreed?

Answer 1

If there is any deviation from the breed standard as defined by the kennel club in your country (e.g. AKC in the United States) in terms of height at the withers, body length, coloration, and in Labradors most importantly in terms of temperament, then the dog is not a purebred. Some telltale signs that a dog is a Lab mix or otherwise not a Lab:

* The head isn't flat enough or boxy enough.

* The dog is too tall for the breed standard--although there is an informal distinction in Lab breeding between English Labs (shorter, stockier) and American Labs (taller, leaner).

* A black dog has white spots on the feet, body, tail, or muzzle (technically a white spot on the chest is not a disqualification for a Lab, but is nonetheless suspect).

* The tail is not a strong, powerful, straight "otter tail" (any curve or curl means it is not a purebred).

* The feet are not webbed (Labs have webbed feet).

* The dog's temperament is anything other than gregarious, friendly, playful, exuberant, and very people-oriented.

* The skirt (the fur along the back of the thighs) isn't whispy enough.

* The coat is not shiny or does not have an oily, water-repellent outer coat and a soft, downy inner coat (two coats).

* The only permissible colors in a Lab are black, yellow, and chocolate. There is no such thing as a Lab or any other color.

* The nose is usually black (but can be pink), and the eyes are brown.

In addition, there is no way to prove whether a dog is purebred without a pedigree issued by a kennel club, which is possible only if the dam and sire were both registered purebreds as well.

Answer 2

Compare it to the American Kennel Clubs Labrador Retriever standard.

http://www.akc.org/breeds/labrador_retriever/

In the end, does it matter? Will you love the dog more if it is pure? I hope not. And don't you dare consider breeding it if you aren't sure its pure, and has certificates for hip, elbow, and eye health.

Answer 3

Usually if dogs are mixed they have a white tip on their tail or white on their paws. A purebred lab will not have these. A purebred is all black ( excepting the gray hairs they get form age). You can look online for the exact specifications of the breed so that you can find other inconsistencies.

There is only one way to know for certain. Buy from a reputable breeder with the parents on site, see their AKC or UKC papers and get your certified application to register your dog.

Answer 4

Search your dog's breed standard. Look to see how closely your dog's conformation matches this standard. Also look out for disqualifying factors that are often present in impure dogs. If your dog fits this standard then there is a good chance they are purebred, however, the papers that confirm this, in written form, are very hard if not impossible to get if you were not given them when you first purchased your dog.

Answer 5

There are several ways in which you can tell this. Firstly and most obviously, does your puppy look like a purebred Labrador? Compare your puppy to pictures of other pedigree Labrador puppies and see if they are similar. If you saw your puppies parents, did they both look like pedigree Labradors? A sure fire way to tell whether your puppy is purebred is if he is Kennel Club registered. If your puppy has been Kennel Club registered then you can be 100% sure that he is purebred because the Kennel Club will only ever register purebred Dogs. This would also mean that you could order his pedigree record showing your puppies ancestry and lineage, proving that he is purebred. If he has not been Kennel Club registered this does not necessarily mean that he isn't purebred, but it does mean that finding out whether he is pure is made much harder. Speak to his breeder and ask if she has kept any records of his breeding. If not, then you could always have a Dog DNA test done which will show which breeds are in his genetic makeup - though these are not always accurate and can be quite costly. Other than that, just enjoy your puppy for what he is and when he matures you should be able to tell just by looking at him whether he is purebred Labrador or not. And if he isn't, love him anyway!

Answer 6

By looking at pics of other labs and comparing them to your dog.

Answer 7

if it has webbed toes its more than likely a full blooded lab