Labradors and their fascination with food

[WildRosie]

This has been discussed on here before but one thing I don't understand is why Labradors in particular have this apparent compulsion to eat. All dogs, whatever their breed, size, age and so on have to eat to survive but Labradors take this to the next level. I'm not sure they are a unique breed in this respect - our show Cocker spaniels many years ago had a tendency to podginess. Thankfully they all lived to a good age regardless.

Are Labradors naturally cunning dogs with an innate ability to snaffle nosh when backs are turned ? Or do their big brown eyes overcome their owners every time ?

Well you actually need to supervise young dogs!

Oh god I am so broody reading this!

@BroomHandledMouser look at his little face! How can you stay mad at him?

@JollyAndBright unfortunately those two in the picture are both dead now. The yellow boy was the best dog ever - so naughty but so much fun!

We currently have another yellow boy who is very slim. He’s definitely not working lines, he was an assistance dog. People often ask if he’s crossed with something because he’s slim! The vets rave over his weight.

Get yourself a scraggy jack russel. Mine is so ridiculously picky and actively hostile towards some food. Anything spicey or minty she growls and bares teeth at.

i think i may be a labrador

A few years our local paper reported on a Lab who was walked early every morning down the side of a golf course. He became unwell quite suddenly and had surgery to remove 17 golf balls from his stomach.

A funny story, but there's definitely something odd about an animal who isn't able to distinguish real food from inedible objects. They have had a feature bred into them which is just as dangerous to their survival as some of the extreme breeds have, like short noses or long backs.

I always wonder if there was an apocalypse, for how long would we seen packs of wild Dachshunds or Bulldogs hunting and scavenging? I reckon we would see the collies, the Huskies and the scruffy mongrels survive far more successfully.

I have collies. They eat to live, not live to eat. Smart dogs.

We had a stumpy, stocky black Lab who ate a wall.

We also went through 4 vacuums one year thanks to his prodigious ability to shed hair.

I miss him every day.

We have doodles (lab and goldie crosses). Our labradoodle is food obsessed; he’s getting old, blind & deaf but can hear a biscuit packet opening across the house.

The double (goldie/lab) doodle isn’t bothered by food; I can scoff crisps to my heart’s content and he’ll not raise an eyebrow, but the lab cross? Crumbs don’t even hit the floor.

And those sad, sad eyes. At 45kgs, him sighing on my lap for a snack is heartbreaking (and heavy).

He is allowed to snack though, he has inoperable mast cell tumours (slow growing, been playing whack a mole with his cancers for 3 years). Without a regular stash of treats he’d drop too much weight, and by gosh does he play on the ‘I have cancer, give me snacks’ face. The toad lol.

On the upside, since the older dood is so food obsessed, training was a breeze. He does all the tricks; singing along to Paint It Back is a specialty. The younger dood can sit, wait, do high five and sings along to Under The Sea. But down? Roll over? Recall? No.

I think his ears are painted on.

This is the laser-focussed stare I get when eating, because I'm also a terrible person and she's starving. She's never been fed from the plate or table but hope springs eternal.
She's very good though at home, she's never eaten anything that's not dog food,and would never dream of eating food left on the side or anything. Outside though, she's a monster. The park near us is hoovered daily.. she also eats all the grapes she can reach on a friends vine, she's fine despite everything saying grapes are poisonous to dogs.

Also to pp about labs being morons or really smart, working dogs. They're often both! Ours was a guide dog in training and just failed because she's too frightened of other dogs, so is superbly well trained, knows hundreds of commands and will take you to the door, the stairs etc when told. But she'll also go under a bench in the park (looking for food) and then panic that she can't now get back to you because the bench is an insurmountable hurdle...

Many lab owners are to blame for their dogs health. Labradors should be slim - if they are not then their owners are feeding them too much and/or not exercising them enough.

We have had 3 black labs. All have been slim, active and extremely healthy. It saddens me to see roly poly Labradors. I think many see the breed as an 'easy' family pet, without taking on the full responsibility of dog ownership.

Our vet said (about our lab) 'she's not too fat ' and then hurtfully tacked on 'for a lab'. But he gives her lots of treats when she visits so she still loves him. She's actually not as greedy as our Dalmatian. She's the greediest dog I've ever met. She'll steal the bran and pollard from chickens and even eat left over broccoli.

And I'm mostly posting so I can share dog photos. .

Mine is a greedy boy, but since he grew up, he doesn’t eat anything non food, except peacock shit.
He also doesn’t steal food as he’s been trained to wait and then eat when i say ”go on”.
Non of this stops him from begging with those beautiful eyes and sad face, he is always hopeful.
Love my choccy boy

@BroomHandledMouser he is beautiful, and the image of our guy.
Ours is a bin. Loves all foodstuffs except citrus and is partial to carrying about a sock when he can find one.
He is slender, from a working line, and I have been lectured on the street and in a pet shop about underfeeding my dog. The vet went mad, he is the correct weight, he is well exercised and even though he has a resting sad face he is super happy and loved so much😍.

I love these posts. All your dogs are beautiful!

I get fed up of the new fashion that working strains are better and more intelligent. They’re not. Working strains are probably more agile and they’re good at bringing things back, but often that’s it. My current dog was an epilepsy alert dog. He’s not shooting lines but he’s intelligent. My previous choc was incredibly intelligent and could work out how to open things. She’d have been a wonderful guide dog. (as long as they stayed away from water!)

@Honeyroar

I get fed up of the new fashion that working strains are better and more intelligent. They’re not. Working strains are probably more agile and they’re good at bringing things back, but often that’s it. My current dog was an epilepsy alert dog. He’s not shooting lines but he’s intelligent. My previous choc was incredibly intelligent and could work out how to open things. She’d have been a wonderful guide dog. (as long as they stayed away from water!)

Some Labradors get a ruff deal (apologies, it took me all day to think of that).

😄

My Lab can tell the time. But his clock is out most of the time, or he is just pushing his luck . God help me if he hasn't been fed by 6pm. He doesn't just bark but also cries. My other dog, who isn't a Lab just looks at him at times, and I'm sure she is saying, good lord, must you be so dramatic.

He is a bit of a whinger though. He cries a lot. Tried to take him up 3 steps when we went out for a walk, it was a small ramp on an obstacle course. On the top, he cried to get back down. 3 steps high. He yelps when he gets his yearly jabs, anyone would think he was getting a canular put in. And he cried when they put a thermometer up his poop shoot. So yes, he's very dramatic and he is scared of water. Love him to bits though but he is a proper drama queen. Just never ever forget his breakfast or dinner time though. Because, those eyes

This morning I came home after a night shift, with the initial welcoming home then they sat by their bowls. Little did they know I had already been told they been fed.

When I say tea time they go nuts, as they know they are getting fed.

The second worst thing about owning a Labrador is trying to explain to them that the clocks have gone back and it’s not dinner time for another hour. (obviously the worst thing is saying that last goodbye)

I see 2 black labs when we are out walking, one is very slim, one is getting fat. Different families. Our JRT is not very food motivated but for some very irritating reason will hang around the dinner table and sometimes put his paws on your leg. It infuriates me because no one has ever fed him from the table. I think he just hopes that the children will drop something.

@mychickensnameissmithy I was about to come on and post the same. My lab couldn’t care less about food. My Dalmatian? She’s the Hoover of my household.

Behold the stare.
I spent 3 hours in the emergency vet on Christmas Day with him for what turned out to be a rock he ate!!

[quote MangoSeason]They are missing the “I’m full” gene. Plus they have perfected the stare.

www.nytimes.com/2016/07/06/world/what-in-the-world/dog-labrador-retriever-obesity.html[/quote]
Me too😬

It’s not just Labradors. This was the look we used to get if eating absolutely anything. This creature could steal a 1.5kg resting roast and leave no sign in the time it took to go for a pee.