Okay, so I'm out this morning doing a little training with my dogs and a guy comes over and asks about introducing his Lab to water. The dog is five years-old and the guy has had him since he was a pup. 
I explain how I do it. The guy then tells me how his dog is an AKC registered "hunting dog." Okay, he's five years-old and his registered "hunting dog" hasn't seen anything more than a pool, according to the man himself. Then he explains that his dog is 140 pounds and the dog's head comes to the guy's waist, that he has a barrel chest and that's why he and his wife are looking to breed him! :shock: I immediately said that the dog was far too big to be bred and that being AKC registered didn't really mean anything. He fired back that he had spoken with an "AKC hunting dog judge" who told him that Labs are now split into two groups: "standard" Labs and "Mastiff" Labs which are the "real hunting dogs." I told him that, without trying to offend him, no such designation existed, that the "judge" was wrong, and that if his dog walked into a ring to be judged, he'd be D.Q.'d right away for being well outside the breed standard size since the height cannot exceed about 24" for a male. I also told him that a really large male in hunting tests and field trials would be around 80 pounds. I just encouraged him to get a complete pedigree and to go to the AKC site to read up on the breed a little before he made any decision. I have the sickening feeling there will be a newspaper ad very soon for large, "AKC registered hunting Labs."
I explain how I do it. The guy then tells me how his dog is an AKC registered "hunting dog." Okay, he's five years-old and his registered "hunting dog" hasn't seen anything more than a pool, according to the man himself. Then he explains that his dog is 140 pounds and the dog's head comes to the guy's waist, that he has a barrel chest and that's why he and his wife are looking to breed him! :shock: I immediately said that the dog was far too big to be bred and that being AKC registered didn't really mean anything. He fired back that he had spoken with an "AKC hunting dog judge" who told him that Labs are now split into two groups: "standard" Labs and "Mastiff" Labs which are the "real hunting dogs." I told him that, without trying to offend him, no such designation existed, that the "judge" was wrong, and that if his dog walked into a ring to be judged, he'd be D.Q.'d right away for being well outside the breed standard size since the height cannot exceed about 24" for a male. I also told him that a really large male in hunting tests and field trials would be around 80 pounds. I just encouraged him to get a complete pedigree and to go to the AKC site to read up on the breed a little before he made any decision. I have the sickening feeling there will be a newspaper ad very soon for large, "AKC registered hunting Labs."
