Lab fur types

Question
QUESTION: We have just put a deposit on a black lab puppy. But I have a nagging worry.
Hope you can help. The mother is a 3 yr old choc lab (dad a black lab). When
we visited the puppies, the mum was v thin and small (even for a bitch). They
explained that these pups have really taken their toll on her, hence the weight
loss. But she also had chunky uneven fur down her back that made her look a
bit mangy. My concern is that our pup may inherit this patchy fur and be
small and straggly too. I know this may sound superficial. We have no worries
about the temprament as both mum and dad are lovely, calm dogs used as
therapy dogs. But we would like a smooth, even, short haired black lab.

ANSWER: I don't like the sound of that.  It could be allergies or something else she could pass on.  I see questions here every day from people with dogs having skin and coat problems.  I have very little help for them, because in the program I am a part of, I seldom see skin and coat problems.  The breeding stock is carefully selected to be free from such problems.  With one of the parents having a problem, I would look elsewhere.  

I wouldn't worry about the thinness.  It may be the breeder limiting the weight gain over the pregnancy to produce healthy, lean puppies.  While the little butterballs are cute, it isn't healthy.  

Finding a good breeder and purchasing a puppy that will make a good pet is very difficult.  Almost nobody is intentionally breeding dogs to be nice pets.  Most of your so called reputable breeders are breeding for show or something.  They may say the puppies they don't keep for their purpose make great pets, but the truth is that the parents were selected for other than health and temperament.  Often they keep the puppies in the kennel too long and they miss the important early socialization puppies need to live in the house with people.

Next are the disreputable breeders.  They breed any 2 registered dogs they can lay a hold of looking only at the money they can make selling them to pet stores.  Pet store puppies are easy to find, but difficult to socialize into nice pets, perhaps difficult to even keep alive.  You will not get what you pay for at a pet store.

One of the best sources for dogs with a predictable personality is the rescue
dogs.  These are dogs that lost their home, but were taken into a foster home
to be retrained as necessary and placed in the right home for them.  You may
find a rescue near you starting at http://www.akc.org/breeds/rescue.cfm  The rescues charge a fee to help cover their expenses, but is much less than the price of a puppy plus all its medical expenses the first year.  


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks again for your earlier answer. I have been informed by the breeder that
the reason that the puppies' mum's fur is uneven is that she is of the 'broken
coat' variety rather than the 'smooth coat'. I have never come across this
expression before and can't find reference to it on the internet / in books. Can
you shed any light? I am feeling very confused. Many thanks.

Answer
Can you get your deposit back?

Can you give me more of a description of the coat?  Are they patches of longer or shorter hair?  It is fairly common for a Lab's coat to be wavy back near the tail, and some will even show a little Golden like feathering on the legs.  I even remember one long haired one, but his coat was uniform in length.  

I have never heard of a ''Broken coated'' Lab.  I am out of the mainstream, but in a program that ignores breed standards.  They do insist on the dog being presentable to go out in public.  Many of my puppies would have been hopeless as show dogs, but fine dogs.  I never heard of them actually rejecting a dog because it was ugly.  

If you haven't found these sites in your search, you might browse them, http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/articles.html and http://www.lab-retriever.net/board/index.php

Regardles of why she looks like that, there is a good chance the pups will grow up to look like her.  If you don't like the way she looks, don't risk buying oneof her puppies.