Saturday, March 5, 2011

Labradors!

Hey everyone! today we will be learning about Labradors.


The Labrador Retriever (also Labrador, or Lab for short) is one of several kinds of retriever, a type of gun dog. A breed characteristic is webbed paws for swimming, useful for the breed's original purpose of retrieving fishing nets. This and their subsequent use as hunting companions, gave them the name retriever. The dogs of this breed are very loving, kind, loyal and compassionate to their master. The Labrador is the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Canada, the United Kingdom. and the United States (since 1991), and it is also one of the most popular breed of assistance dog in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States and many other countries, as well as being widely used by police and other official bodies for their detection and working abilities. Typically, Labradors are athletic and love to swim, play catch and retrieve games, and are good with young children.

*Labradors are all the same shape and size, but there are 3 colours of labradors. Black, Golden and Chocolate.

Friday, March 4, 2011

Cocker Spaniels!

Hello everybody, Im Kaila and I'm here with my Cocker spaniel pal, Bronson!
each day, we talk about dog breeds, their natures and their styles. lets start with cocker spaniels!


Cocker spaniel refers to two modern breeds of dogs of the spaniel dog type: the American Cocker Spaniel and the English Cocker Spaniel, both of which are commonly called simply Cocker Spaniel in their countries of origin. It was also used as a generic term prior to the 20th century for a small hunting Spaniel. Cocker spaniels were originally bred as hunting dogs in the United Kingdom, with the term "cocker" deriving from their use to hunt the Eurasian Woodcock. When the breed was brought to theUnited States it was bred to a different standard which enabled it to specialize in hunting the American Woodcock. Further physical changes were bred into the cocker in the United States during the early part of the 20th century due to the preferences of breeders.
Spaniels were first mentioned in the 14th century by Gaston III of Foix-Béarn in his work the Livre de Chasse. The "cocking" or "cocker spaniel" was first used to refer to a type of field or land spaniel in the 19th century. Prior to 1901, Cocker Spaniels were only separated from Field Spaniels and Springer Spaniels by weight. Two dogs are considered to be the foundation sires of both modern breeds, the English variety are descended from Ch. Obo, while the American breed descends from Obo's son, Ch.Obo II. In the United States, the English Cocker was recognized as separate from the native breed in 1946; in the UK, the American type was recognized as a separate breed in 1970. In addition, there is a second strain of English Cocker Spaniel, a working strain which is not bred to a standard but to working ability. Both breeds share similar coat colors and health issues with a few exceptions.
 
American Cocker Spaniel       English Cocker Spaniel

*American cocker spaniels have longer hair and a different face-shape.
*English cocker spaniels have shorter hair than an American and they have different face-shapes.