Labrador Retriever Clubs and Organizations

National Labrador Retriever Club, Inc. (comments courtesy of labradorretriever.com)
The NLRC was founded in 1996 because The Labrador Retriever Club, Inc. adopted a new Labrador Retriever Breed Standard, effective March 31, 1994, which described the American derivative of the Labrador Retriever, not the Labrador Retriever as it was known everywhere else in the world except the United States. In general, Labrador Retrievers are now commonly referred to by a good portion of the general public in the United States as "English" or "American". The NLRC is not affiliated with the AKC or any regional area Labrador Retriever club in this country. It is an independent club with a sizeable national membership. It is fair to say that all the members of the NLRC and most all serious conformation breeders in the United States view The Kennel Club (United Kingdom) Breed Standard of the Labrador Retriever as the one to which they breed and their dogs conform. To view that standard, visit http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk. This is also the identical Breed Standard of the world canine organization Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) of which 82 countries are members. To view the FCI Breed Standard, visit http://www.fci.be/nomenclatures .

Not to belabor the point, but when the LRC, Inc., the parent club of the Labrador Retriever in the United States, presented the "new" standard to the Labrador conformation community for its approval, twenty-four (24) of the regional clubs voted "No" and seven (7) "Abstained". To put it more dramatically, none of the thirty-one (31) existing regional area clubs at the time in the United States voted "For" for the impending new standard. More than one hundred of the top conformation kennels in the US opposed the "new" standard in writing.

The Labrador Retriever Club, Inc.
To view the American Kennel Club, Inc. Labrador Retriever Breed Standard, visit this site or www.akc.org.

The Labrador Retriever Club of Greater Denver
Where we started out years ago. Our home club, where we returned in 1998 when we moved back "home" after eleven years....

The Greater Atlanta Labrador Retriever Club
Home pages for the fast growing Labrador community in Atlanta--we helped to start this club and are proud of their rapid growth!

LABMED
Important! This page is dedicated to a great cause--raising money to provide emergency care for injured or abandoned Labradors in need of critical veterinary assistance. Please take the time to visit it!


Breed Information and Health-Related Sites

Labrador Retriever Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Answers to many of your questions about Labrador Retrievers. This FAQ was written a number of years ago, and the authors have become less active in its upkeep. Still, it is a good source and worth a visit... or two!

Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA)
PennHIP
Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF)
Optigen
Four essential pages for understanding some of the health issues associated with Labradors. Find out what's fact and what's not....

American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA)
Another award winner with good all-round information. A fun site--be sure to visit their Pet Care Library...

Labrador Books and Periodicals

International Labrador Digest
A great periodical contribution -- by Labrador people, for Labrador people. Truly International--check it out!   Update: only the US and Canada versions are working at the time this is written (click on the appropriate flag at the top of the page). Also, some of the pages won't appear -- but most important ones are there.

Churchill, Janet I. The New Labrador Retriever. Howell Book House, 1995, 287 p.
ISBN 0-87605-206-5
Well organized and very informative work by a well-known American breeder (Spenrock).

Coode, Carole. The Labrador Retriever Today. Howell Book House, 1993, 192 p.
ISBN 0-87605-207-3
Packed with information, well thought out and presented by a renowned British breeder (Warringah).

Howe, Dorothy. The Labrador Retriever. T.F.H. Publication, Inc., Ltd., 1984, 352p.
Additional chapters by Anna Katherine Nicholas. ISBN 0-87666-487-7
Excellent coverage of the breed by the force behind the Rupert prefix. This work is more basic than others, and is a good addition for the beginner who is building his Labrador library.

Martin, Nancy. The Versatile Labrador Retriever. Doral Publishing, Inc. 1994, 320p.
Forward by Joan Read (Chidley). ISBN 0-9944875-31-9
If this book were on the Web, it would be an instant "Bookmark". A must-have by the respected breeder of Ayr Labradors. Comprehensive coverage of Labradors around the world.

Nicholas, Anna Katherine. The Book of the Labrador Retriever. T.F.H. Publication, Inc., Ltd., 1983, 478p.
ISBN 0-87666-748-5
A great coffee-table book, full of color and black-and-white pictures, it is worth the money if for no other reason. Fun to flip through with your dog's pedigree in hand.

Warwick, Helen. The New Complete Labrador Retriever, 3rd Edition. Howell Book House, Inc., 1986, 322p.
ISBN 0-87605-230-8
Wonderfully detailed history of the breed accompanied by a good overview of the raising and training of a Labrador. Another foundation book for your library.

Retriever Training Books....

Rutherford, Clarice and Neil, David H. How to Raise a Puppy You Can Live With - 4th Edition - Revised and Updated. Alpine Publications, Inc., 2005, 153p.
ISBN 1-57779-076-6
If you are planning on getting a puppy of any breed, you need to read this book (TWICE) before taking your puppy home. This book is required reading, so much so that we send a copy home with our puppy people at the time they give us their deposit.

Fowler, Ann and Walters, D. L. Charles Morgan on Retrievers.October House, Inc., 1974, 168p.
SBN 8079-0026-5
Rewardingly rich in insight, this is a testament to one of the all-time great field trial trainers, his methods and solutions to problems. Not for the neophyte trainer. We believe this book may be out of print (but we've got our copy!)

Medcalf, Bill. Retrieve: A New, Gentle Approach to Retriever Training. Taylor Publishing Company, 1987, 191p.
ISBN 0-9620226-0-8
Common sense, uncomplicated approach to gently training your Retriever. Written with humor and a message, it includes a special section with solutions to common problems that occur in training.

Rutherford, Clarice and Loveland, Cherylon. Retriever Puppy Training: The Right Start for Hunting. Alpine Publications, Inc., 1988, 110p.
ISBN 0-931866-38-3
The basics of selecting and training a retriever puppy from a strongly behaviorist viewpoint. Thorough, yet an easy read.

Spencer, James B. Retriever Training Tests. Arco Publishing, Inc., 1983, 165p.
ISBN 0-668-05681-9
Focuses on the dog's environment in a training test--wind, terrain, cover, placement, and sequence of falls. Includes 75 training test diagrams useful for training from Working Certificates to Field Trials.

Spencer, James B. Training Retrievers for the Marshes and Meadows. Denlinger Publishers, 1990, 255p.
ISBN 0-87714-140-1
Written with the amateur owner/trainer in mind, it covers everything from puppy selection to advanced marks and blinds. An excellent chapter on force-breaking using a gentle but sound approach.

General Stuff We're Interested In--Just Because....

Breast Cancer--Doctor's Guide to the Internet
Tons of links to critical information. Our outcome was good, but others haven't been as fortunate....our eternal thanks to Dr. David Brodeur (Doctor of Oncology) and Dr. Peter Burns (General Surgeon) who at our time of need were with Kaiser Permanente in Atlanta. God bless you both. Ten years free and counting....

The Dilbert Zone
And now for a little humor....Greg's (that actually happened at work today) all time favorite strip!

Oliphant
Political cartoonist extaordinaire. Depending on your politics, you may not always be thrilled. But if you're the kind of person who doesn't take yourself too seriously, and can laugh at yourself, this works!