Thread: Working line stud labrador sought

For the uninitiated keep in mind that going hunting does not make a dog "Working strain"... breeding does. If it's standard New Zealand bred with SH CH or lots of CH's in the titles then it is show bred... they still hunt and many of them make great hunting companions, but the real hunting dog enthusiasts who focus's on field performance will virtually always start with a Working Strain. There are some exceptions but few and you need to be extremely careful in believing at face value "Oh yes they are working strain"!

The difference is structural and mindset. You can't take a show lab, get it fit, lose the fat and say it's a working dog, it's built different, thinks different. It'll be healthier, look nicer, and be a lot better off for the work and fitness but at the genetic level more attributes will have been chosen to meet a show standard than will have been paid to working ability. The working strain are virtually always much easier to train.