What is a Pointing Lab?

A pointing lab is defined as a dog that will have the natural tendency to freeze upon locating the scent or sight of a live bird. Many breeds of dogs will engage in the predator stance when finding a live animal, and so will many labs. Pointing is a genetically carried behavior that ultimately does not mask itself as any vestigial behavior. Pointing cannot be taught. Dogs can be taught to stop upon locating a live bird, but as any red-blooded pointer owner can tell you, that is not a point.

There is current investigation regarding genetic markers for pointing. As of this writing, none have been clearly defined. Dog DNA is as yet too complicated to isolate genes for specific behaviors. In time this may change. For now, pointing appears to be carried genetically, and can be passed on when only one of the parents points. It might also not be passed on when both parents point. There are no definitive data regarding how pointing is carried and passed on. There are no available statistics regarding percentages in a litter , effects of depth of pointing in the background, etc. This is due in part to many dogs probably possessing the pointing characteristic with no one ever knoeing it, or many dogs pointing with owners wondering what their "flushing" Lab was doing.  Pointing Labs have been around for a long time and it is difficult to define when, where and how this natural pointing came into play, if it ever was a new thing.

Pointing Labs in the early stages might point many things. We have heard tales of grasshoppers, cats, muskrats, mice and pictures of birds being pointed. At first we wrote it off as the fancy of wishful owners. Time has shown it probably was mostly true. Witin our own living room, a Grand Master Pointing Retriever asleep on a pheasant-festooned rug awoke with a start, leaped to her feet and pointed a bird image woven into the rug. That was one that had to be seen to be believed. Like any canine that points, Labs might enact their pointing instinct on a variety of stange things. Good upbringing and training will direct that instinct toward live birds in the field.

Þessi kafli er úr bókinni The Pointing Labrador eftir Paul og Julie Knutson og er birtur með leyfi höfunda.

                                                                                                 Paul og Julie Knutson