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Flat-Coated Retriever History
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Retrieving dogs have served as invaluable aids to European and American fisherman for hundreds of years, and with the development and perfection of the firearm hunters too have found these dogs useful. The Flat-Coated Retriever is descended from the Retriever Proper, which is in turn a product of crossbreeding between Newfoundlands, setters, sheepdogs, spaniels, and various other water dogs. The ultimate purpose of these combinations was to create a dog that could spot, locate, swim and retrieve downed waterfowl with ease, and eventually these crosses led to the emergence of the Wavy-Coated Retriever, forerunner to the Flat-Coated Retriever, during the mid-19th century.
By 1900, dog fanciers had deemed the wavy coat to be insufficiently water repellent, and further breeding with straight-haired dogs produced the Flat-Coated Retriever as we know it today. The breed was recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1915 but did not fare well in the World Wars and was nearly extinct by the late 1940s. At this point Stanley O’Neill, a Flat-Coated Retriever expert, began efforts to revive the breed, and by the late 20th century the breed’s future was secure. Though there are many who appreciate the dog’s hunting skills, the Flat-Coated Retriever has never been wildly popular as a pet.
