I always thought it meant guard hair was very long and under coat short. I was just told by some one else it meant long single coat??? No under coat??? Thanks.

An open coat does not wrap properly like a lab's should..includes guard hairs and undercoat. A single coat is guard hairs with no undercoat.

An open coat looks like an Arctic breed such as an Akita - fluffy and sticking out, though in Labs it's not always so extreme. But a sure way to tell is by getting them wet - if they don't shed water and just suck it up like a sponge - that's a sure sign of an open coat!

Some of the very wavy, longer coats are very loose and open as well. A Labrador coat should be short, dense and tight.

Some of the very heavy coated Labradors do have correct double coats and are not open in any way- they repel water and are extremely tight & hard. Please don't generalize and remember that the coat is just one part of the whole dog, not the whole dog. Out standard even states that a slight wave is permissible. Sure, slight is open to interpretation, just as is moderate and so on. I've seen short coated dogs that had no undercoat as well so it works both ways.

Short is short though - there is not a lot to interpret in that - some of the coats are getting far too long and I have no issue with a heavy coat if it is short and tight. There is no point in having a lot of undercoat if the topcoat is loose and open though. If a coat is short, there is still usually a slight wave but you most likely will never see coat curling off the back - it will still be a fairly clean look.

I have seen several puppies lately (out of certain stud dogs) that look more like Great Pyranees or Golden puppies in coat. Yes, they have a lot of coat, unfortunately it is not correct coat for this breed, so having a lot of it does not help.

I would not be to quick to judge a puppy coat. I have had plenty that looked wooly as babies especially winter babies...but when they shed the puppy coat, the adult coat was correct and tight...and not long!

Now if the parents have a longer coat...that is entirely another matter.

I have a stud dog that has a very short, close lying, tight coat. He has a a slight wave and his coat wraps him. It is a completely different look than some with longer coat. He looks like less dog but I know he is not...he just does not have hair creating an illusion.

Think of a healthy duck - the top feathers lay flat over the down to keep it waterproof. A labrador coat should do the same thing. If the guard hairs stick out, that's open. You should not be able to see the undercoat without touching the dog.

Now I've got an old gal here that's always had a "wooly" type coat. Soft and sheds a ton all the time. But, it sheds water like all the other dogs in the house. She dries just as fast as the rest. One good shake and pretty much dry.

She has guard hairs, just seems to have an excessive undercoat.

Just curious...has your old gal been spayed? My old girl's coat changed when I spayed her at 8 years old.

Short is what length?

A boxer has a very short coat. That is not what a Labrador is mean to have.

What length do you call a short coat in a Labrador? 1/2 " 1 " 2" ? Short can be taken many ways. I wish they gave a detailed explanation of short coat. Dense is dense, tight is tight but exactly what is short? We each can interpret short differently.

Her coat has always been like that - I was hoping it would change when she blew her puppy coat, but was still like that at 3 years when she was spayed.

I think photos would help but i guess hands on would be even better. I have a pup that has long guard hairs but good under coat as well. Not sure if this is open. Also when do they have their true adult coat. He is 6 1/2 mos old? Thanks for all the input. I know what hard and double coat are still not sure about true open coat.

It doesn't say very short like you equated with a boxer coat. If people would care to study the breed, it's history, etc., one would know.

It's a shame that we are getting more an more incorrect coats today. Breeder judges are awarding it. Until the pendulum swing backs correctly(remember the rott heads? You rarely see those today), please breed what is correct!

The breeder who stated water runs off. OH yes and at any stage of coat too.

An open coat stands away from the body. It doesn't wrap. Over long guard hairs are also incorrect. Lot of feathering goes on with type of incorrect coat. A correctly coated labrador when dead out will still wrap.

Look at the underneath of the tail. You can clearly see the wrapping going on as well as the 'part'.