http://www.pawnation.com/2013/08/13/meet-tiger-the-amazing-chimera-dog/#photo=1

Have you seen this? Silver & charcoal breeder

You have to read the actual Q&A Article - just putting a taste of what is there:

Why is there controversy in the dog community about silver Labs and other “dilute” Labs?

I think that money has fueled the controversy. Any time there is something new and different, people want it. The popularity of the dilute colors (silver, charcoal, champagne) has reduced sales for some breeders who do not breed the dilute colors.

RELATED: See more Labs from Silverland.



You also have your “purists” who believe that there are only three colors for Labs: black, chocolate and yellow. There are still people who believe that the only “true” color for a Lab is black.


Years ago, chocolate Labs did not enjoy the acceptance they do today. Many breeders fought against the acceptance of the chocolate Lab, just as some fight against the acceptance of the dilute colors today. The dilute colors have been around for a long time and just like the chocolate Lab, they are here to stay.

...and I have a bridge for sale...

The only one that has monetary gain from selling these colors are the dilute breeders themselves. I've been breeding for more than 30 years and have never "lost" a sale to dilute breeder. I promote my dogs based on history, show wins, working titles, health clearances and my extensive knowledge of the breed over the years. And while breeding for profit is not necessarily a bad thing, it's not something I've ever done and never felt any pressure by the popularity of having something "rare". If I wanted to breed long-haired Labradors, which has been documented in the breed as they were once classified and bred with other long-haired retrievers, I could make a bundle. But I don't profit off of mismarks and genetic disqualifications in the breed. They are simply sold as pets for no more or no less than their standard counterparts. I do sell my puppies for far more than the average dilute breeder sell theirs for so you do the math.




And yes, I've seen this same ol' rhetoric repeated over and over again on many dilute breeder websites. If it was such an acceptable and natural occurring phenomenon, why are they so defensive and why do they always have to try to justify the color. Name calling and pointing fingers at long time breeders who breed to preserve the qualities of the Labrador Retriever do nothing to prove their point. It only makes them look small and look like they have something to hide.

The chocolate (liver) color has been mentioned and documented by many different breeders/kennels as far back as the late 1800s. No one ever mentioned a true dilute Labrador until the 1980s. More than a 100 years later and well after the stud books closed. It appeared in the US first and was propagated by ONE prominent breeder who was nasty and derogatory towards any breeder that dare question him. He inbred his dogs, which originated from kennels who kept both Weimaraners and Labradors. At first he called it a mutation, but nothing was further from the truth as we now know it was a simple introduction of a reccessive dilute gene.

AKC and the LRC missed the boat on this one as they said the first silvers were just chocolates and registered them as such. In a way, yes, they are chocolate, but carry a foreign dilute gene that was most likely introduced by the Weimaraner. This why the first silvers looked like a Weim mix. Most still do to this day maintain certain characteristics of the Weim. If the AKC, upon insistence by the LRC, would have registered these dogs with an additional letter or designation to their registration numbers (like the white dobermans do) we would better be able to track which lines carry the dilute gene. Many of the dilute breeders have misled or even lied to some show breeders in order to breed to their stud dogs and have brought in show lines to try to improve their lines and get rid of that Weim look. And while it is their right to breed the color, I do not want my dogs/lines mixed into it.

And now, with more and more breeders buying into the lies of the dilute breeders and wanting to further this mess, they bring in the other two colors of Labs to the dilute mess. The influence of the dilute gene on black, is blue. That means black coats/pigment are turned a blue color. The same is for the yellow, their black pigment is turned blue. Strangest looking thing!

I think the opinion of the LRC regarding dilutes is spot on: "It is the opinion of the Labrador Retriever Club, Inc., the AKC parent club for the breed, that a silver Labrador is not a purebred Labrador retriever. The pet owning public is being duped into believing that animals with this dilute coat color are desirable, purebred and rare and, therefore, warrant special notoriety or a premium purchase price."

The world is full of idiots. The silver folks just prove it over and over again. Chimera? Just a plain old mismark. Idiots.

If I had an AOL account I would submit my comments after this article. Oh well.

I think the silver fad is fading. Word gets around. I feel sorry for some of the owners of silvers because people are now starting to pick on them for supporting these breeder crooks.

Not to mention they are dealing with skin issues, temperament issues. The honeymoon is soon over.

I have to congratulate the Labrador community because there is less and less people asking for dilute Labradors and more people asking why NOT Silvers or any of the dilute colors. The general public is getting educated and avoiding acquiring a puppy from non reputable breeders.
Kudos to all the Labradors Retriever clubs that are making this possible.

I agree, I hear and see less and less talk of silver. Those seaching for a good Lab know they come in three colors. BLACK, YELLOW and CHOCOLATE. They can see on web pages the silver don't look like a Lab. These breeders take advantages mixing the dogs and making some money doing it. Think they might as well get real.