Many people may have heard about "rare" silver Labradors. So what are they and are they really a Labrador?
The "silver" Labrador is the result of a foreign gene, the dilute "d" allele at the D locus. This gene most likely came from a cross with the Weimaraner breed. It's a simple recessive gene and is easily passed from parents to offspring much like the "e" allele at the E locus that allows for yellow Labradors. No where in the history of the breed has there ever been documentation of a dilute gene within the general population of Labrador Retrievers. Since the "d" allele is a simple recessive, if it had been in the breed since its inception, it would have been seen with the same frequency as the yellow and chocolate Labradors, which were well documented. It is not. It wasn't seen until the 1980s, long after the stud books for the Labrador Retriever closed. It originally appeared in just one breeder's kennel. His rhetoric about where it came from and how breeders would cull them was outrageous, but sadly many believed it. He cashed in on his "rare" silver Labrador, but not understanding genetics, he was clueless about what gene and what mode of inheritance it carried and therefore inbred his cross to maintain the gene and allow for its expression as often as possible. His dogs, much like many of the dilute dogs still today, heavily resemble the Weimaraner.
Among many numerous false claims by dilute breeders, they try to use an example of how dilutes were described by famed UK Breeder/Author Mary Roslin Williams in her book, Reaching For The Stars. She describes a litter of puppies that she saw in which there were mousy grey puppies. “There is another color which I had heard of but never seen and that was a rumor of a bluish or silver Labrador in the old days, with a dark stripe or stripes down the back. Funnily enough a litter of these turned up recently from a perfectly reputable breeding and in the hands of a good breeder who knew that no misalliance had taken place. The breeder took some colored photos of the litter in which the puppies were silver, marked all over with dark stripes just like a tabby cat. We were all stunned and fascinated and many were the guesses as to what they would turn out to be, but several of us guessed right and they gradually turned black although they had been a true light silver. However even in black Labradors there is black and black and I haven’t seen these puppies when adult to know what shade of black they became, whether a dull lead as I would expect or a true black.*
* Afterwards I saw one of this litter at a show and it was true black with a really good undercoat.”
The photo below is to which litter she speaks of. I have heard of a few other litters such as this, but it was attributed to a nutritional deficiency and not the dilute gene.
Among many numerous false claims by dilute breeders, they try to use an example of how dilutes were described by famed UK Breeder/Author Mary Roslin Williams in her book, Reaching For The Stars. She describes a litter of puppies that she saw in which there were mousy grey puppies. “There is another color which I had heard of but never seen and that was a rumor of a bluish or silver Labrador in the old days, with a dark stripe or stripes down the back. Funnily enough a litter of these turned up recently from a perfectly reputable breeding and in the hands of a good breeder who knew that no misalliance had taken place. The breeder took some colored photos of the litter in which the puppies were silver, marked all over with dark stripes just like a tabby cat. We were all stunned and fascinated and many were the guesses as to what they would turn out to be, but several of us guessed right and they gradually turned black although they had been a true light silver. However even in black Labradors there is black and black and I haven’t seen these puppies when adult to know what shade of black they became, whether a dull lead as I would expect or a true black.*
* Afterwards I saw one of this litter at a show and it was true black with a really good undercoat.”
The photo below is to which litter she speaks of. I have heard of a few other litters such as this, but it was attributed to a nutritional deficiency and not the dilute gene.
