There you were, walking innocently through the mall, when you decide to go into the pet shop. Actually, your children make the decision, clamoring to get a puppy.

Among the roly-poly puppies is an energetic little black and white dog. Unsure what it is, you look at the card in the window. "Black Labrador Retriever" it reads. Surprised, you ask a clerk about the puppy, and are assured that it is indeed a purebred black Labrador. Purebred? Can black and white Lab puppies be purebred? The price certainly is "purebred" price!

As luck would have it, your children want that very puppy. You hesitate, and finally ask for the puppy to be held until the next day. Back home, you decide to do a little research. You go online, and search the Internet for "black & white lab puppies info".

So Sorry

If the information you find is honest, you will learn that black Labradors do not come in black and white. Any dog billed as a white and black Labrador Retriever is of mixed blood. Unfortunately, disreputable breeders are working to convince the public that these mongrels are AKC registered dogs. Indeed, with a bit of dishonest paperwork, some may become registered as black Labradors, but their registration will not endure scrutiny.

Realizing that the puppy in the pet shop is far over-priced, since it is not purebred, you decide to look for a real black Labrador.

AKC Color Standard

The American Kennel Club (AKC) gives just 3 colors for Labrador Retrievers:

1. Black Labrador

2. Yellow Labrador

3. Chocolate Labrador

Any other color - or a combination of colors - disqualifies a dog for registration as a Labrador Retriever.

A black Labrador may have a small white spot on the chest and meet the standard, but even that is considered undesirable.

A black Labrador should be all black, from the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail. There should be no streaks, spots, or flecks of other colors. If the dog is older, and has a few white "age" hairs, that is fine. A young black Labrador, however, should be completely black.

The Color Genes

The black Labrador Retriever's color is determined primarily by 2 genes.

1. The first gene (B) decides how dense a black Labrador's coat pigment granules will be. When pigment granules are dense, the coat will be black. When pigment granules are sparse, the coat will be chocolate. If this were the only gene involved, there would be only chocolate and black Labradors.

2. The second gene (E) makes the difference. It determines whether any pigment is even produced. Regardless of the B gene, if a dog has the recessive E, there will be little color. It will be a yellow Labrador.

Variations in a number of other genes control subtler color details.

A black Labrador's nose matches its coat - black.

Blue, Charcoal, Grey, and Silver

Unscrupulous breeders have come up with new names to fit their puppies that do not meet the officially recognized standard, telling people that it is a new line of "purebred" black Labrador.

The most blatantly pushed of these four colors is silver. This is a very light color and, since it is sought by some who do not adhere to the standard, disreputable breeders describe unusually light colored yellow and chocolate labs as "silver" labs.

Sharon Wagner, molecular biologist and geneticist of wigwaglabradors.com wrote an analysis, which concluded "Silver breeders also blatantly lie. They have information on their websites that talk about DNA testing done by the AKC ... AKC never did any genetic mapping of silver Labradors nor do they have any plans to do so since they are a registering body only and the Labrador Club of America writes the standard for the breed."

Dogbreedadvice.com states in a Labrador FAQ: "'Silver' Labradors are purely a scam and are either crosses with Weimaraners or very light chocolates."

A black Labrador Retriever's color should never be any of these shades.

Are You My Father?

Imagine that you mate 2 black Labradors, and nine weeks later a litter of squirming little puppies arrives. Three are black Labradors, as expected, but 2 are chocolate Labs, and 4 are yellow Labs. Ahem! Will the real father please stand up!

You know the real father - no question - so how did this happen? It all goes back to genes. A Lab with one gene for dark and one for red-yellow pigment will appear to be black or chocolate, depending on other genes that control black or chocolate color. Each parent of a litter with some yellow puppies must have at least one gene for red-yellow pigment.

We know we mated 2 black Labradors, so each of them must have had one gene for dark pigment and one for red-yellow pigment. If both parents had been yellow Labs, neither could carry the gene for dark pigment. None of their puppies would have been chocolate or black Labradors.
Black Labrador Retriever color is important to many people, as are the short, dense, weather resistant coat; the "otter" tail; and the clean-cut head with broad back skull.

More important, though, is that your lovable Labrador be happy and healthy.