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St. John's and the Dukes

Some days, when I’m at work in one of our “big dog” yards, fully half of the dogs in my care are Labrador retrievers. They have been the most popular dog in North America for the last thirty years in a row. You know what they look like:



I think one of the reasons they’re so popular is that, although they are working dogs, they aren’t driven crazy by lack of work. Unlike border collies and Australian blue heelers, who are driven to rearrange the furniture for lack of cattle or sheep to herd. Unlike Jack Russell terriers, who reportedly will kill each other over a toy if left alone together. (My favorite Jack Russell at work has a special skill: he can run around the yard peeing in each water bucket so perfectly that not a drop gets on the floor).


Labrador retrievers come in three AKC recognized colors: black, chocolate, and yellow. We have a chocolate lab at work whose special skill is running around spilling all the water buckets in the yard. A black lab at work does a very controlled bucket spill: he carefully places his right front paw in the water bucket. Then, with his left paw, he knocks the bucket around until about half the contents are on the floor, which is exactly the amount he wants. He drops and rolls in the puddle, finishing with some Olympic spins on his belly. Every time.


Labrador retrievers are an old breed. In the late 1500s, settlers in Labrador and Newfoundland began breeding from a mix of random working dogs they’d brought from the British Isles and Portugal. Five great breeds emerged from this time. The Chesapeake Bay Retriever:



The Landseer (which are named for the painter, Sir Edwin Landseer who - we learned last week - created the myth of the Saint Bernards with the brandy casks):



The flat-coated retriever:



The Greater Newfoundland retriever, which are the maritime equivalents of the Saint Bernards - they brave horrifying conditions to bring struggling swimmers to safety:



And, most significantly for the purposes of today’s blog, the Lesser Newfoundland, also known as the St. John’s Dog, which is the acknowledged ancestor of the modern Labrador retriever.


The St. John’s Dog had a coat that repelled water and was short enough that it didn’t accumulate ice in the winter. Canadian fishermen used these dogs to pull ropes from boat to boat, to capture fish that had escaped their nets, and to help haul nets from the water.


These fishermen valued hard work, loyalty, and sweet temperament, which is what has been bred into these dogs for hundreds of years.


The modern Labrador breed began in the early 19th century, when a number of St. John’s Dogs were imported to Dorset, England for use by fishermen there. They were spotted by Dukes and Earls, who thought they might be great at hunting waterfowl - their traditional sport.


The Earl of Malmesbury was so impressed with the St. John’s Dogs that he converted all his breeding kennels solely to them, training them for duck hunting on his estate. He also donated some of his dogs to the 5th and 6th Dukes of Buccleuch for their now famous breeding program.


The Ducal House of the Scotts of Buccleuch traces its history back to the 1200s (or the 1000s, depending on who you ask). They claim Sir Walter Scott - acknowledged father of the historical novel and author of Ivanhoe and Rob Roy (yes, the namesake of the cocktail) - as one of their own.


In any case, the Dukes of Buccleuch, and their kennel based at Chapel Farm, had been breeding gun dogs for many scores of years. They have had many working dog champions, and have created their own fancy dog food.


So it was at Chapel Farm, and Drumlanrig Castle, that the St. John’s Dogs finally became the Labrador retrievers we know and love today.


The average Labrador retriever now lives about ten to twelve years, but the oldest on record (an English dog named Adjutant) lived to be 27 years and 98 days old.


A total of five Labrador retrievers have received the Dickin Medal (the canine equivalent of the Victoria Cross) most recently, a lab named Sasha, who was awarded the medal in May of 2014 for “outstanding gallantry and devotion to duty while assigned to 2nd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment, in Afghanistan 2008.”


Labradors have such a refined sense of smell that they can detect a drop in blood sugar in humans. Many of them now become therapy dogs that warn their humans of an impending diabetic episode.


What I love about labs is their goofy smiles and loving natures. Which is probably what a lot of people like. They are great family dogs. I'm hoping that Kat and I can get a dog this coming summer, and I'm hoping it will be a lab mix of some sort.


Meanwhile, in the world of soap making, we continue to offer holiday options:



This bar's aroma is Frosted Fir. It smells wonderful. Please check out our website for your Secret Santa gifts, or for stocking stuffers: SerenaSoaps.com

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