Rascal Flats Labs

Chesters' Parents

Buck and Heartz Montana Red (USA)   Sire

Keepsake Ruby X11 (USA)   Dam

"Scrimshaw Placido Flamingo. " Another dog, while not particularly famous himself, passed his influence on into the red bitch lines of both Kelleygreen and Keepsake, was the fox red Scrimshaw Placido Flamingo. Tenor was bred by Barbara Barfield of Scrimshaw Labradors, sired by Ch Scrimshaw Duckless Fairbanks and the grandson of the very famous Ch Lindall Mastercraft. Tenor inherited the fox red shade from both sides of his pedigree, his grandfather, English Field Champion Venture of Brattonsplash and while his mom was a dark yellow, she had the red shade as well behind her. Tenor passed the fox red "C" allele on to his offspring. When bred to Kelleygreen's Lady in Red, they produced Keepsake's I Love Lucy, dam of the only AKC fox red champion, Keepsake's Cajun. Not only did he give his shade to his descendants but also his wonderful laid back temperament. This big red dog was everything a Labrador should be, a true gentleman in every sense of the word. Chester's great great grandpa

Roxy's Parents

Abby's Parents

Firehouselabs Brick Firehouse (USA) Sire

Keepsake Issabella Rose (USA) Dam

Boradors Moose By CH Keepsake Cajun x Decoy's Dondi of Borador   Abby's Grandpa

CH Keepsake Cajun By  Kelleygreen Kardinal x Keepsake's I Love Lucy Sally Bell's Keepsake Cajun overcoming all those odds and becoming only the second true fox red AKC Show Champion, what a stunning boy! A Labrador given his quality of any other color/shade would have finished quickly but even for Sally, it took her a while to gain acceptance of her red dog. Abby's Great Grandpa

Keepsake's I Love Lucy Has  been so important in our modern fox red Labradors. . In all the well known show bred Labradors of today, you will find her name, sometimes multiple times, in the pedigree if you look far back enough.   Abby's Great Great Gandma

Color Facts 

In a  litter of fox reds you will always get a variation of shade from medium to dark., even on breeding fox red to fox red, much the same as the variation of color on yellows or chocolates. On all fox red puppies, as they get older, the color will darken, usually up to the age of about 2-3 years. When you look at a new puppy ,you are looking at the undercoat, not the guard hairs, it is the guard hairs that determine the variation of the body coat, medium to dark. This undercoat will appear to be the color of a brown paper bag. The  head and ears should  appear to be red, medium to dark, also the pigment should be a peach color, not a bright pink like the yellow. As soon as they are born, they appear fairly dark, within a couple of weeks they lighten up as their undercoat develops. The red will appear as the guards hairs start to grow. All fox red's are registered as yellow.

Interest in the darker shades of gold and fox red were re-established by English breeders in the 1980s, and two dogs were instrumental in this change: Balrion King Frost  who consistently sired "very dark yellow" offspring and is credited as having "the biggest influence in the re-development of the fox red shade", and his great-grandson,  the famous Wynfaul Tabasco , described as "the father of the modern fox red Labrador",other dogs, such as Red Alert and Scrimshaw Placido Flamingo, are also credited with greatly passing on the genes into more than one renowned bloodline.

Temperament

Labradors are a well-balanced, friendly and versatile breed, adaptable to a wide range of functions as well as making very good pets. Labradors have a reputation as a very mellow breed and an excellent family dog including a good reputation with children of all ages and other animals. Females may be slightly more independent than males. Labradors mature at around three years of age; before this time they can have a a lot of puppyish energy,  leash-training early on is suggested to prevent pulling when full-grown. Labs often enjoy retrieving a ball endlessly and other forms of activities. Almost every Lab loves playing in water or swimming.

They instinctively enjoy holding objects and even hands or arms in their mouths, which they can do with great gentleness a Labrador can carry an egg in its mouth without breaking it. They are also known to have a very soft feel to the mouth, as a result of being bred to retrieve game such as waterfowl. They are prone to chewing objects ,though they can be trained out of this behaviour.

Although they will sometimes bark at noise,  when there is noise from unseen sources, Labs are not on the whole noisy or territorial, and are often very easygoing and trusting with strangers, and therefore are not usually suitable as guard dogs

Labradors have a well-known reputation for appetite,  eating digestible and non-food objects alike. They are persuasive and persistent in requesting food. For this reason, you must carefully control their food intake to avoid obesity and its associated health problems

The steady temperament of Labs and their ability to learn make them an ideal breed for search and rescue, detection, and therapy work. Their primary working role in the field continues to be that of a hunting retriever.

English Labs vs. American Labs

The terms "English' and "American" are generally used to describe the physical differences and appearances between one Labrador Retriever and another. They are all the same breed.

The English style Lab has a more compact, stocky body and a square head, that are generally seen in the show ring for conformation. The American style Labrador is usually longer legged and longer bodied with a more lean appearance, and longer nose, these are  most often seen working in the field as hunting retrievers. The English style Labrador is more laid back and the American style Lab is more high energy for long days in the field. Both styles are excellent retrievers and swimmers.
 

CNM- Info

Centronuclear Myopathy (CNM) in Labrador Retrievers is a hereditary myopathy characterized by skeletal muscle problems such as muscle weakness and exercise intolerance. It is also known as hereditary myopathy of the Labrador Retriever (HMLR).                                                      

The mutation, or change to the structure of the gene, probably occurred spontaneously in a single dog but once in the population has been inherited from generation to generation like any other gene. The disorder shows an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance: two copies of the defective gene (one inherited from each parent) have to be present for a dog to be affected by the disease. Individuals with one copy of the defective gene and one copy of the normal gene - called carriers - will not get the disease,  but can pass the defective gene onto their offspring. When two apparently healthy carriers are crossed, 25% (on average) of the offspring will be affected by the disease, 25% will be clear and the remaining 50% will themselves be carriers

The mutation responsible for this disease has been identified by a research group  in France. Using the information from their research, researchers have  developed a DNA test for the disease. This test not only diagnoses dogs affected with this disease but can also detect those dogs which are carrier or clear from the disease. Under most circumstances, there will be a much greater number of carriers than affected animals in a population. .

CLEAR:     the dog has 2 copies of the normal gene and will neither develop CNM, nor pass a copy of the CNM gene to any of its offspring.

CARRIER:  the dog has one copy of the normal gene and one copy of the mutant gene that causes CNM.  It will not develop CNM but will pass on the CNM gene to 50% (on average) of its offspring.

AFFECTED:     the dog has two copies of the CNM mutation and is affected with CNM.  It will develop CNM at some stage during its lifetime, assuming it lives to an appropriate age. Their muscles will weaken and seperate and they will lose control of their limbs, usually the hind end

Carriers can still be bred to clear dogs. On average, 50% of such a litter will be clear and 50% carriers; there can be no affecteds produced from such a mating. Pups which will be used for breeding can themselves be DNA tested to determine whether they are clear or carrier.

Thanks to  DNA testing( a simple cheek swab), breeders can now test their dogs before breeding or choosing a mate for breeding to make sure that this awful disease dissipates and all our labs live a long and healthy life.

EIC Info

EIC is an autosomal recessive syndrome. To be affected, a dog must have received the mutated version of the EIC gene from both parents.

A syndrome of exercise intolerance and exercise induced collapse (EIC) is being observed with increasing frequency in young adult Labrador retrievers. It has also been observed in Chesapeake Bay retrievers and curly-coated retrievers. Affected dogs have been found in field-trial, hunt test, conformation, pet, and service lines. Black, yellow, and chocolate Labradors of both sexes are affected, with the distribution of colors and sexes closely reflecting the typical distribution in the population. Signs first become apparent in young dogs, usually between 5 months and 3 years of age (averaging 14 months). In dogs used for field trials, this usually coincides with the age at which they enter heavy training. Littermates and other related dogs are commonly affected, but depending on their temperament and lifestyle, they may or may not manifest signs. Affected dogs exhibiting signs of collapse are usually described as being extremely fit, muscular, prime athletic specimens of their breed with an excitable temperament and lots of drive.

Affected dogs can tolerate mild to moderate exercise, but 5 to 20 minutes of strenuous exercise with extreme excitement induces weakness and then collapse. Severely affected dogs may collapse whenever they are exercised to this extent; other dogs only exhibit collapse sporadically. The factors important in inducing an episode can vary among dogs. The first thing noted is usually a rocking or forced gait. The rear limbs then become weak and unable to support weight. Many affected dogs continue to run while dragging their back legs. Some of the dogs appear to be incoordinated, especially in the rear limbs, with a wide-based, long, loose stride rather than the short, stiff strides typically associated with muscle weakness. In some dogs, the rear limb collapse progresses to forelimb weakness and occasionally to a total inability to move. Some dogs appear to have a loss of balance and may fall over, particularly as they recover from complete collapse. Most collapsed dogs are totally conscious and alert, still trying to run
and retrieve, but affected dogs can appear stunned or disoriented during the episode. It is common for the signs to worsen for three to five minutes even after exercise has been terminated. Most dogs recover quickly and are normal within 5 to 25 minutes with no residual weakness or stiffness. Dogs are not in pain during the collapse or after recovery. Affected dogs are not stiff or sore or limping upon recovery.

A few affected dogs have died during exercise or while resting immediately after an episode of EIC, so an affected dog's exercise should always be stopped at the first hint of in-coordination or wobbliness.

Factors contributing to collapse in dogs with EIC
Ambient temperature
The ambient temperature does not seem to be a critical factor contributing to collapse, but if the temperature is much warmer or the humidity is much higher than the dog is accustomed to, collapse may be more likely. Affected dogs are less likely to collapse while swimming than when being exercised on land. There are severely affected dogs, however, who have exhibited collapse while breaking ice retrieving waterfowl in frigid temperatures, and some dogs have drowned when experiencing EIC-related collapse in the water.
Excitement
Dogs that exhibit signs of EIC are most likely to have intense, excitable personalities, and it is very apparent that their level of excitement plays a role in inducing the collapse. There are some severely affected dogs who require very little exercise to induce the collapse. Dogs with EIC are most likely to collapse when engaging in activities that they find very exciting or stressful. This can include retrieving of live birds, participation in field trials, training drills with electric collar pressure, and quartering for upland game.
Type of exercise
Routine exercise like jogging, hiking, swimming, most waterfowl hunting, and even agility or fly ball training may not induce an episode in dogs with EIC. Activities with continuous, intense exercise, particularly if accompanied by a high level of excitement or anxiety, most commonly cause collapse. Activities commonly implicated include grouse or pheasant hunting, repetitive "happy retrieves," retrieving drills or repetition of diffi cult marks or blinds where the dog is being repeatedly corrected or is anticipating electric collar correction, and running alongside an ATV.

Clear
A dog that has two copies of the normal version of the EIC gene. Clear dogs will pass on the normal version of the gene to all of their offspring.

Carrier
A dog that has one copy of the normal EIC gene and one copy of the mutated EIC gene. The dog will not get the disease, but on average, carrier dogs will pass on the mutated copy of the EIC gene to half of their offspring. By mating a carrier dog to a clear dog, you will, on average, produce litters that are 50 percent clear and 50 percent carriers, with no affected.

Affected
A dog that has two copies of the mutated EIC gene. These dogs are susceptible to collapse episodes under their “trigger” conditions. An affected dog will pass on the mutated EIC gene to all of its offspring. By mating an affected dog to a clear dog, you will produce a litter that is made up of 100 percent carrier offspring ― no clears, but also no affected. Under no circumstances should you breed an affected to an affected.
 

Thanks to researchers, a DNA test (check swab) can detect the presence of the gene, enabling responsible breeding practices to eliminate this disease over time.

When purchasing a pup, please be sure to ask if the dogs have been tested  for CNM and EIC and get a copy of the  results for verification.