#silver labrador

[tarablackwolf]

Hi! Could I get a Silver Labrador moodboard plz?

Sorry that it took me so long but I was very busy lately :)

[darkwood-sleddog]

Hey darkwood! The pictures of your pups absolutely brighten my day thank you <3

I also have a question that was brought up due to the puppy question and a lab post I remember seeing, what are peoples deal about silver labradors? I see some people saying how silver labs have more skin problems than average or more behavioral problems and how it’s not a “true lab” but a crossover with weims but I’ve also read how silver has shown up in labs since like 1940s or something and I just wanted to hear your opinion about it. Thanks for all your time and I hope you give yourself a break when needed!

Thanks for the question! I’m not a Labrador person, although I love the breed, but this is a complex question.

Let’s get one thing out of the way. In no dog does color directly correlate with the dog’s behaviors and temperament. Anybody saying this is correlating two unrelated things in an anecdotal way. Some lines have certain colors pop up in them more often and those lines are more often than not bred for work or field (terminology depends on the breed itself) as work/field breeders tend to not see color and marking faults with as much severity as conformation specific breeders. These dogs will naturally be more high energy and driven for work than their show bred contemporaries and thus more prone to “bad” behaviors due to lack of exercise and stimulation. But a dog is not born with behavioral problems.

Labradors as a breed have a lot of myth about the different temperaments and working drives between colors, even the standard ones, so it doesn’t surprise me to see silver being attributed it’s own temperament type. Again, color in no way genetically makes a difference in temperament, but show breeders and working breeders have their own pedigree preferences and thus dogs within that pedigree will be prone to producing certain levels of drive and energy and IN ADDITION, but not directly related, the dogs in that line may be genetically prone to be a certain color. Like I could say that black & tan (breed term black and white) malamutes like Slash have a higher energy and more driven to work temperament than a gray and white dog (like most show dogs), but that doesn’t make it true. It just means that a majority of black & tan dogs came from working breeders with a focus on breeding dogs with working drive.

There is a pretty interesting article on the history and preconceived stereotypes of Labrador colors HERE.

Dilute coat colors can also make the dog prone to skin issues. It’s called Color Dilution Alopecia.

In response to your question about silver labradors the answer is...probably both. There is no way to tell what the truth is even with genetic tests because breed tests like Embark don’t go back far enough (only a few generations). On one hand you will have Labrador people that absolutely insist that all silver labradors are crosses and then on the other hand you have people insisting that they are pure. There is no way to tell the truth for certain because DNA testing is not conclusive to this issue and AKC papers can be falsified either knowingly or not.

The answer is complex because it is genetically likely that purebred silver labs can exist (the dilute gene exists in related breeds such as the Newfoundland). See the Labrador genetics page HERE for more. But it is just as likely that less than responsible breeders saw the response to silver labradors and added weim into their gene pools to access those genetics more easily or there was an accidental breeding way back in the day and the genes cropped back up when two dogs carrying the gene were bred together. There’s an interesting article about the history of silver labradors HERE.

Labradors do come in a variety of known mis marks however like Black & Tan that crop up in service lines more often than other lines:

To me, I think of silver labradors a lot like “Giant Malamutes” in that is is very likely these dogs are not purebred as they are being produced by irresponsible breeders however there is no way to tell. Like silver labradors, they trace their lineage back to a very small handful of breeders and like silver labradors, giant malamute people often insist that THEIR dogs are the original, most pure (to distract from the issues that cast doubts on their dog’s pedigrees etc. Like silver labradors I have never seen a giant Malamute breeder impress me and it’s because they are focusing on ONE aspect of the dog (its color for labradors, or size for malamutes) not the whole.

[redsunatdawn]

Reference Sheet commission for AstonTheLab on FA/Twitter!!!

FA Post: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/28947462/

[canuckleheadcowgirl]

it’s already started. Lucky is already learning his name and knows ‘good boy’ and ‘come here’. Grayson is still learning, but he gets ‘good boy’. Oh. And the family is revolting because both pups want to live on my feet when they’re not playing, and pick me for snuggles given the choice. 

I TOLD THEM this would happen. 

[thedutchsighthound]

Some more pictures from Yesterday’s show

[cosmicfandomvegan]

Silver labs are ACTUALLY purebred

AKC-run genetic tests have found zero Weim blood. Silver Lab owners who conduct their own individual doggy DNA tests (Wisdom, Embark, etc.) come up overwhelmingly 100% Lab.

Any Weimaraner enthusiast could attest to the fact that the only thing silver Labs have in common with their breed is color:

Silver lab on left, Weimaraner right:

They don't share the same body shape. Weims are noticeably lankier than the stocky silver Labrador, and their ears appear much more houndish with narrower faces.

The people who spread these falsehoods behave as if dilutes are so uncommon. We have white GSDs now. Yes, those white shepherds are purebred. Off colors DO HAPPEN.

Here is a screenshot of an archived newspaper advertisement for a female, 18 months old "pedigree silver colour Labrador Retriever."

The ad is from January, 1904, in England's Western Gazette newspaper, putting the Lab's DOB at mid-1902, many decades earlier than the fictional origin story claims silver Labs were first seen.

The first known chocolate and first known yellow Labs were both within 10 years of this silver lab, and there is archive research ongoing which indicates there may have been silvers significantly earlier than this one.

Later, a 1960 dog show in England featured two silver labs:

So the next time someone tells you the first silver labs were in North America in the 1980s, ask them for evidence. Chances are they'll have nothing but mere assertions. These ads clearly prove that silver labs are not new. I'm so glad the AKC has recently recognized the color!

Read more for more deets on that.

The Good, The Bad, & the Reality of Labrador Retriever Club's (LRC's) Decision to Allow Silver Labs in AKC Registration

For the first time in the breed’s history, the words:

Labrador Retriever — Silver (574)*

now appear on the American Kennel Club’s official color list.

The Labrador Retriever Club (LRC), which has long resisted any acknowledgment of dilute-coated Labradors, recently supported the addition of this new color code.

The decision has left breeders across the country confused, divided, and asking the same questions:

Does this legitimize silver Labradors?

Is AKC changing its stance?

Is this a step toward acceptance—or a strategy for containment?

To answer that, breeders deserve a clear, honest, and thorough analysis—one grounded in fact, not rumor or social-media commentary.

THE GOOD: A WIN FOR HONESTY AND LEGITIMACY

The addition of the Silver (574)* code represents several undeniable wins for the breed's integrity and for dilute-coated Labradors.

1. Silver Labradors are finally labeled honestly.

For over 40 years, dilute-coated Labs were required by the AKC to be registered under their base coat:

dilute chocolate (silver) = “chocolate”

dilute black (charcoal) = “black”

dilute yellow (champagne)= “yellow”

Breeders weren’t being deceitful; they were following AKC rules. Now, the registration paperwork finally matches the dog standing in front of the breeder. This is a win for honesty, accuracy, and transparency.

2. The decision confirms AKC’s historical position.

A color code doesn’t create legitimacy. It reveals it.

The AKC has always registered dilute-coated Labradors because:

their parents were AKC-registered

AKC investigated the issue in the 1980s

and no conclusive evidence of impurity was ever found

If AKC had believed dilute Labs were crossbred, they would have purged them from the registry decades ago. But they didn’t.

The new 574* code simply reflects the position AKC has held since the beginning:

Silver Labradors are purebred Labradors.

The AKC governs purity; the LRC governs show-ring aesthetics. The registry is the final arbiter of purity.

3. Public perception finally matches registration reality.

Most families don’t read asterisks or understand club politics. They see only:

“AKC Labrador Retriever — Silver.”

To the general public, that’s legitimacy, full stop.

4. This aligns Labradors with AKC’s long-standing pattern.

This is not a radical shift. AKC has always registered purebred dogs whose colors the parent club disqualifies, including:

White German Shepherds

Parti Poodles

Alternate-color French Bulldogs

These dogs are purebred, registrable, and legitimate— just not conformation-eligible.

Silver Labradors now join that same category.

THE BAD: BLIND SPOTS, COMPROMISES & CONTAINMENT STRATEGY

While the 574* code is a win for honesty, the implementation is flawed and creates real issues.

If the LRC’s goal was truly to “track” the dilute gene (dd genotype), this is a failure, because:

1. Charcoal and Champagne are NOT tracked.

Charcoal (dilute black)

Champagne (dilute yellow)

have no color code.

They must still be registered as black and yellow.

This hides two-thirds of the dilute population.

2. Carriers (Dd) remain invisible.

Carriers spread the gene more than dilutes do — yet:

they look identical to standard Labs

they cannot be identified visually

they have no tracking code at all

3. Historical records are permanently muddied.

Forty years of dilute Labs were recorded under black, yellow, and chocolate. These records cannot be corrected.

4. Charcoal & Champagne breeders may keep using old codes.

Not out of deceit — but because AKC still allows registration by base color.

This means dilute statistics will always be incomplete. The registry remains partially blind.

THE REALITY: WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THE BREED’S FUTURE

The reality is this:

The AKC governs purity. The LRC governs conformation aesthetics.

And the registry, not the parent club, is the final authority on purity.

The 574* code has created two opposing narratives:

Narrative 1: The Containment Strategy

For preservationist breeders, the new code is a fence.

A way to:

map “where the dilutes are”

warn others away

track lines they already failed to stop

keep political pressure against their use

It is a tool of control and gatekeeping.

Narrative 2: The Legitimization Strategy

For dilute breeders, the new code is a pathway.

A quiet but formal acknowledgment that:

dilute Labs exist

AKC recognizes them

they are purebred

they deserve accurate labeling

and someday, they may deserve show-ring acceptance

This mirrors the path of the Merle Great Dane, which eventually became conformation-eligible after decades of resistance.

THE STRATEGIC ROADMAP: CAN DILUTES EVER BE SHOWN IN CONFORMATION?

Right now, 574* keeps dilutes out of the ring — by design.

But history says acceptance is possible.

The clearest example?

THE MODEL: MERLE GREAT DANES

For decades, Merle Great Danes were:

disqualified

controversial

considered “undesirable”

Yet they were essential in producing Harlequins.

Eventually, after:

performance titles

scientific evidence

breeder unity

and a membership vote

Merle Great Danes became fully show-eligible in January 2019.

This is the blueprint.

THE STRATEGY FOR DILUTE LABRADOR BREEDERS

STEP 1: Prove Function Through Performance Titles

Dilute breeders must:

compete in Hunt Tests

earn Obedience, Rally, Agility titles

document temperament

showcase sound structure and working drive

Every titled dilute Labrador erodes the critics’ argument.

STEP 2: Neutralize the Health Argument

The anti-dilute rhetoric often leans on false claims:

“Dilutes have CDA”

“Dilute is unhealthy”

“dd gene causes problems”

None of this is supported by breed-wide data.

Dilute breeders must:

use OFA

use CHIC

publish results widely

publicly track health data

Data > rumor.

STEP 3: Use the Registry to Your Advantage

The 574* code is a strategic weapon.

Encourage owners to use it.

More accurate registrations = more undeniable data.

STEP 4: Push for an LRC Membership Vote

When:

performance

health

popularity

and scientific legitimacy

become overwhelming, the membership itself may vote for change.

Once the vote happens?

AKC will follow.

This is exactly how it happened with Merle Great Danes.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The 574* code is not a threat.

It is a recognition.

It is a tool.

It is — whether critics admit it or not — a public acknowledgment that Silver Labradors exist within the AKC gene pool, and always have.

The silver Labrador has won its place in the American registry.

The political fight is no longer about purity — AKC already answered that.

The only remaining fight is about aesthetics and control, and that battle will eventually be won through:

performance

unity

science

and time

The breed has evolved.

And it is time for the parent club to catch up.

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Voting ended onJul 8, 2023

[loathingloserwebkinz]

Silver Labrador // Weimaraner