Log in or Sign up. The Labrador Forum. Joined: Oct 9, Messages: I'm not sure if I can post this and I'm sorry if I shouldn't be posting it. We are after a Labrador puppy. In my eyes she was priceless. Tammy Cooke , Oct 10, I would say "it depends" First and foremost, you want to ensure that the breeder is reputable and performs all the necessary health tests, such as hip and elbow scores, eye test, exercise-induced collapse, HPNK and others.
These tests don't come cheap, so will push the price up, but you can't afford not to have them done. The puppies at the lower end of that price range are likely people who have chosen to have a litter from their pet dog and may not even be aware that these health tests should be done on both parents.
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For example, I love my boy, Shadow, with all my heart, but I would never breed from him because he is too highly strung. If I compare my latest puppy's temperament with that of the older two, they are worlds apart - she is solid as a rock compared to the older anxious pair - and that comes down to responsible breeding.
The next thing to look at is what you want the dog for. The higher end of the price range will be from either very good show stock, or very good working stock, with Champions in their recent pedigree. There are lots of generalisations flung around when it comes to field vs show dogs, some of which are a bit of snobbery, others which have some basis in fact.
Dogs from show lines tend to have a broader skull and a shorter leg-to-body ratio about compared to dogs from field lines, which tend to be finer boned and longer legged. You will often hear that field line dogs don't make good pets because they're switched on all the time. I can tell you that's not necessarily true; my two older ones are from strong field lines and have been able to settle in the house perfectly well since they were puppies.
