Curly Coated Retriever vs Labrador Retriever: What are the key distinctions between Labrador Retrievers and Curly Coated Retrievers? The favorite breed of America is Labradors. Curly Coated Retrievers have more significant grooming needs and maybe a little more strict or work-oriented. It would help if you thought about physical activity, disposition, and health when choosing.
Curly Coated Retriever vs Labrador Retriever : What’s the Difference?
It does not matter to you where your dog is from or what it was initially for. But, it affects the personality of your dog! These two breeds are about the same. So let’s learn more about them.
The History of the Curly Coated Retriever
The Curly-Coated Retriever is an ancient breed. It’s challenging to know when it first began. But some people have made guesses, and these guesses are:
- English Water Spaniel
- Retrieving Setter
- St John’s Water Dog
- Irish Water Spaniel
Some people think that Poodles may be one of the breeds in the Curly Coated Retriever. The first breed club for this dog was formed in 1896 in England. These dogs came to America after and were first AKC registered in 1924.
The History of Labrador
Labrador Retrievers are related to the Curly Coated Retriever. They were initially used in Newfoundland, Canada. English nobles brought these dogs back to England and made them into the Labrador breed that we know today.
Labradors are a dog from England, but they also make good family dogs. They became a breed in 1903 and were recognized as an official breed by the AKC in 1917. However, it was not until the 1930s that Labradors became popular in America.
Is there a difference between Labradors and Curly Coats? They appear to be the same. But what about their appearances?
The appearance of Curly Coated Retriever vs. Labrador
If you live in a small home, you may not want to acquire a large dog breed. So how do the Labrador and Curly Coated Retrievers compare?
Size
Labrador Retrievers are similar in size to Curly Coat Retrievers. Labrador Retrievers are usually taller, though. This means that they will weigh more–between 55 and 80 pounds when fully grown. On the other hand, curly Coated Retrievers are shorter, so they might only weigh 60-95 pounds when fully grown.
Females are usually smaller than males. This is true for both breeds of dogs. However, bigger dogs like the Labrador and Curly-Coated Retriever need to be trained because they might accidentally knock over a small child.
Face Shape and Features
Labrador Retrievers and Golden Retrievers are a bit different. Labs have broad heads, long legs, and otter tails. Curly Coated Retrievers are a bit more like them with slightly longer legs and straight seats. They both should have muscular, athletic bodies with floppy ears.
Coat Type
Labrador Retrievers and Curly Coated Retrievers both have beautiful coats. Labrador Retrievers have two layers of fur, but Curly-Coated Retrievers only have one layer. As a result, their hair is short on their faces, forelegs, and feet. Both breeds are water-resistant, though.
Coat Colors
Retrievers come in black and brown colors. Retrievers also come in yellow and black colors. Some Retrievers are lighter, including silver, champagne, and charcoal.
The Curly-Coated Retriever vs. Labrador Temperament
You should know how a dog behaves. It can be essential to know what kind of personality they have. There are two different types, and these are the same as those. Let’s see how those two dogs compare with each other.
The Labrador Retriever’s Personality
Labradors are friendly, social, and happy dogs. Lots of people love them! Labs are not aggressive when they have been properly socialized. But, labradors can also get scared if they have been left alone too long, which is terrible for them. But, this doesn’t mean that they don’t love their families!
This type of dog loves to explore the world with its mouth. They may chew on things they shouldn’t, but you should still love them.
Curly Coated Retriever Personality
Curly Coated Retrievers are like Labradors in that they are friendly, intelligent, and confident. But they may be less familiar to strangers than Labradors. If you want a more independent dog than Labs, Curly Coated Retrievers can be good for that.
Curly Coated Retrievers will explore the world with their mouths.
Energy Levels
These breeds like to work. They do best when they have a job to do. They are happy when they can run around all day and will love fetch games. It is essential to keep them well-exercised because boredom will lead to destructive traits like digging and barking.
Socialization
Both of these breeds are known for being friendly and loving. They want to be around their family, so you need to socialize them because they might be afraid or aggressive. The Curly-Coated Retriever is especially scared of strangers and needs more socialization than other breeds.
Which Is the More Trainable: a Curly Coated Retriever or a Labrador?
Both the Curly Coated Retriever and the Labrador Retriever make great gundogs. They are very trainable. The best training technique is called positive reward training, where you use food to get your dog to do what you want them to do.
Both breeds of dogs want to please their owners, and they will be happy to learn. But both species can get bored quickly. So make sure that training sessions are short, engaging, and happen often. Training is essential since these dogs are large and can accidentally hurt children if not trained well.
Curly Coated Retriever vs. a Labrador: Exercise Requirements
Labradors and Curly Coated Retrievers need to get out and run around. They want to play games like fetch. If you wish to do this, make sure you practice your dog’s recall often – that way, they will come back!
Train your dog. It is an excellent way to exercise them. This type of dog likes to play and can do things like agility or obedience training. These dogs also like swimming! But, these dogs get bored quickly if they don’t get enough exercise. They need an active family.
Common Health Issues for Retrievers vs. Labradors
Every breed of dog has some health problems. That is the fault. Be sure to learn about these before getting a puppy. Choosing responsible breeders can help minimize these problems, but we will talk about this more later.
Labrador Retriever
The Labrador Retriever is a dog with a healthy body. But it is prone to some health problems. Some of them are:
- Hip and elbow dysplasia: when the joints in the arm and leg are not shaped right.
- A progressive retina disorder can lead to blindness.
- Cataracts are a clouding of the eye lens.
- Cranial Cruciate Ligament Disease: a problem with the knee.
- Gastric Dilatation Volvulus (Bloat): sometimes, the stomach twists.
- Obesity is when body weight is higher than what it should be.
Curly Coated Retrievers
Labs have some health problems that are also common for Curly Coated Retrievers. Here are some of them:
- Gastric Dilatation Volvulus is when the stomach twists, and it gets bigger. It needs surgery.
- Alopecia is when losing hair. If it has alopecia, it can happen during times of stress.
- Progressive Retinal Atrophy is the name for when don’t see well or can’t see at all.
Health Testing
Choosing a puppy from a reputable breeder can be helpful. First, they can screen doggy parents for health problems. In addition, they will select from parents that have good hip scores and who don’t have any diseases.
Ask the breeder for any certificates about the puppy’s health when you talk to them. You want to make sure that your dog will be as healthy as possible and won’t have any problems like gastric volvulus.
Lifespan Comparison Between Labrador and Curly Coated Retriever
When choosing between these two gundogs, you may want to think about their lifespan.
A study of purebred dogs in the US found that Curly-Coated Retrievers usually live for 10.25 years on average. On the other hand, Labrador retrievers can live up to 12.25 years on average with exercise and vet checkups.
Which Is Better: a Curly Coated Retriever or Labrador General Care?
Health is important for animals. It includes special care, grooming, and feeding. For example, you need to feed the animals. So let’s start by looking at how you provide these two energetic dogs.
Feeding
Both the Curly Coated Retriever breed and the Labrador Retriever are energetic dogs. So you need to feed them food that has a lot of energy. They may also want food with glucosamine and chondroitin in it, which is for joint problems. These might help Labradors who have joint pain.
Make sure you feed your puppy the right amount of food. Your vet can tell you how much to feed your dog. You should be able to feel, but not see, its ribs in a healthy dog.
Shedding and Grooming
Labradors have two coats. They are not very hairy during the winter, but they are hairier in the summer. This means that you might have to clean up your hair all year long. You can groom them to keep them under control or bathe them so they don’t get smelly fur after rolling around outside.
These dogs don’t have a double coat, which means they shed seasonally. However, they will not shed as much as a Labrador all year long. It would help if you brushed these dogs occasionally, or else the fur might become frizzy. However, it is enough to wash and dry them every so often for this breed of dog.
Curly Coated Retriever vs. Labrador Puppy Cost
Labrador puppies can cost anywhere from $800 to $1200. On the other hand, curly Coated Retrievers can cost anywhere from $1000 to $2500. This higher cost may be because Curly Coated Retrievers are less common than Labradors.
Avoid pet stores and puppy mills. These places raise animals just to make money. They sell puppies at a lower price than other places, but they are often not healthy and can cost more later in life.
Is the Curly-Coated Retriever or Labrador the Best Dog Breed?
Labradors and Curly-Coated Retrievers are both friendly, athletic, and hard-working. They take to training well. But Labs are more social and friendly towards strangers than Curlies. Labs come in more colors than Curlyies do. Both dogs need consistent socialization and training to be happy and friendly. You must pick a dog that fits your current situation. Pick a breed that will work for you!
If you have one of these dogs, tell us what they are like. We want to hear about your experience.