What amazed me while speaking to the average outdoorsmen was not the fact that they were unaware of a spaniel or the Labrador Retrievers’ versatility, but rather that they were unaware that there was a difference between show and field gundogs.

The Labrador retriever, or Lab for short, is one of the most popular breeds of dog in the world. Its origins trace back to Newfoundland, Canada, where it was bred to be a working, retrieving, gun dog; skillfully trained by the hunter to find and retrieve the fallen game. The Lab is an excellent swimmer, with its water-resistant double-coat, its webbed feet, and its strong, powerful otter tail.