Black Labrador: Understanding The Black Labrador Retriever

The Black Labrador retriever belongs to the most popular breed of dog in the United States. The breed is prized for its ability to be excellent companions to humans, due to their intelligence, high energy, and loving personality. A Black Labrador thrives on human attention and responds well to praise, making them easily trained and possessing a good temper. The dogs are very energetic and require a great deal of exercise, making them largely unsuitable for apartment living and small homes with non-existent yards.

The Appearance Of A Black Labrador Retriever

Black Labrador retrievers are large sized dogs, attaining a high of more than 2 feet and weighing around 80 pounds. They possess short smooth coats that shed moderately throughout the year and need to be brushed regularly to prevent the loose hair from accumulating in the coat. Black Labrador retrievers are excellent swimmers, possessing a short strong tail, like that of an otter, which acts like a rudder in the water and webbed toes for more effective swimming. This breed of dog is fully mature at about 3 years of age and can be considered a senior at around 7 years of age. The average lifespan of a Labrador retriever is about 11 years.

The Personality Of A Black Labrador Retriever

Black Labrador retrievers make excellent pets and wonderful companions to a wide range of individuals. The dogs are not territorial, very rarely show aggression, and are not destructive. The dogs are very secure emotionally and are very versatile, allowing them to be used for a wide range of functions. Because the dogs are so intelligent and easily trained, they are commonly used as guide dogs for the blind, assistants for the disabled, search and rescue guides, and tracking dogs for the police. Black Labrador retrievers are also an excellent choice of pet for families with young children as the dogs are very gentle with children and sometimes designate themselves as the protector of the child.

Training A Black Labrador Retriever

Black Labrador retrievers should be trained while still in the puppy stage to ensure that bad puppy behaviors do not become common problems. Labradors as a breed are fast, athletic, and inquisitive, all traits that are admirable but can get the dog into trouble in a domestic setting. Puppies have a great deal of energy and very little fear so they can easily get into mischief if not trained properly. Black Labrador pups also have a tendency to chew on anything that they can get their paws on, so to avoid the destruction of many household items, the puppy should be trained not to chew on household items as soon as possible.