They eyeball it and sometimes poorly! Ever notice how many dogs are labeled "Lab" or "Lab-mix"? They are famous for doing it when a dog is black or mostly black - however, there is usually nothing about the dog that looks like a lab. This is a full blooded Black Lab Notice the strong, compact body - the head shape, the thickness of the tail. If you compare it to many of what shelters call Labs, you wouldn't know it was the same breed of dog. Even when they say Lab mix, for the most part, you would be hard pressed to find ANY of those stand out markers for the breed. Shelters have to come up with something - just like vets offices do. Lot's of times they are waaaaay off.
Why can't they just call it like it is, and say it's a mutt?? Nothing wrong with being a mutt! :mrgreen:
I agree - however many of the computer software used in shelters (chameleon is the one SPCA Wake used when I worked there) will not allow you to enter an animal without a guesstimate of it's breed. You can add mix - to the breed you pick, but it makes you choose something. Also, lots of shelters choose Lab, because, well, because Labs are popular and typically thought of as a nice breed of dog for families. Oddly, all retrievers aren't created equal and personalities can tend to differ. Lots of people who work in shelters will tell you that Chesapeake Bay Retrievers, for one, can get a bit aggressive in shelters ---not all, but a good number.
I've noticed that too! There must be some "busy" labs and shepards out there. I've been looking on Craigslist, etc. and there are a lot of them!
I love mutts, got a house full of 'em! Best dogs I ever had, bar none! Their health tends to be more stable, ditto with temperament. . .it's like they get the best of each breed they are mixed with. People though, tend to like to be able to pick something in their mutt for it's label - nothing wrong with that. I never have the heart to tell someone that their "Lab Mix" is more likely a "Pointer Mix" because they seem so happy with their Lab title. Many a "Shepherd Mix" I've met is much more likely to be a Keeshound mix too. In many cases, people see the mask and coloring and just assume Shepherd.
Yes, which is really odd, as Chows are the least "pack' runners of all dog breeds. Chows are typically not friendly with other dogs, even if they are altered - especially with their same sex. Sure, you can find an exception, but not many. People see a spot of black on a tongue and think chow, when there are a good many breeds that can have black spots on their tongue, just like human freckles. My Aunt has what she calls a "Chow/Lab Mix" - I see nothing of either breed in the dog, except he's black and has a black spot on his tongue. My guess is he is a true 'Heinz 57' and his grandparents and their grandparents all had a whole bunch mixed in with them. He's a great dog, just not what you would picture a Chow Lab Mix to look like - however, the shelter called him that, so she swears it's gospel Cross-Breeds are much easier to pin down for the most part (cross meaning they are two breeds mixed, not two dozen)
If anybody runs across one that looks like Benji, just let me know. Doesn't matter what color. Still looking for one like the in-laws. Can't talk DH into the Greyhound......................yet!
I know my little girl when i would go see her at the spca was listed as a blue tick coon hound mix, She does have blue tick in her, but looking online she is thinner then a bluetick and i did not see any tri color blue tick. She also looks a bit thinner then a blue tick and not as big jowls as a blue tick. But i did stumble upon a 'treeing walker coon hound' and she looks alot like them and even fits the personality. She is probably still a mix but I love her very much. Mutts make the best dogs. They love their human very much. I would not get rid of her for all the gold in fort knox.
Yup, shelters just guess!! And most puppies get entered in as little guys before foster and they all look alike! Everything is lab mix, shep mix, terrier mix etc.... if they stay with the shelter long enough to start to look like something else they will change it in the computer! So if you adopt a dog and find a better breed description online, I would go with that!!
