What’s that in the water:
Is it a lab? Is it a setter?
No, It’s a Flat-Coated Retriever!

Flatcoats are relatively rare in most parts of the United States but their gorgeous sleek lines and engaging personalities often invite compliments and questions from people who see them on the street, on hiking trails and even at dog shows.

Originally any shape or color dog that would fetch game was labeled a retriever. During the nineteenth century sportsmen started to mate specific dogs to improve hunting performance and included collie and sheepdog bloodlines for intelligence. Two main types of hunting dogs emerged in the United Kingdom; setters and spaniels. Originally known as ‘wavy-coated retrievers’, flat-coated retrievers appeared mid-century and were thought to include Welsh black setters, Scottish gordon setters, land spaniels and pointers in their family tree. In order to improve their swimming ability they were crossed with a smaller water dog from Newfoundland called a St. John’s dog (that also gave rise to labrador retrievers) to produce what Petch* describes as a smaller, slimmer version of today’s newfoundlands. Many of these early flatcoat progenitors were tan or brindle indicative of their ancestry but black was soon considered the only acceptable color.

Sewallis Shirley, the founder and first President of the UK Kennel Club, was attracted to the new breed and obtained puppies from dogs called Old Bounce and Young Bounce from D. Hull, a Redditch gamekeeper. Charles Ely, author of the 1920 book ‘The History of Retrievers’ suggests all flatcoats are descended from this set of dogs. Shirley is credited with stabilizing the breed, eliminating the setter-like wavy coat and long leg feathering to produce a slightly heavier version of today’s flatcoats. Shirley kennels produced many champion flatcoats most notably Zelstone and his son Moonstone who according the 1930 Hutchinson’s ‘Encyclopaedia of Dogs’ were in the family trees of every champion flatcoat of the day.

From the late nineteenth century through the First World War flat-coated retrievers were the most popular gun dog in the United Kingdom. The first liver flatcoat (named ‘Rust’) was recorded in 1900. One can imagine that their sweet disposition, intelligence and ability to hunt upland game as well as waterfowl made flatcoats most welcome in manor homes as well as by gamekeepers. It has even been suggested by some armchair authorities that it would have been more historically correct if Julian Fellowes had provided the very traditional Lord Crawley with a flat-coated retriever instead of a trendy yellow lab in the BBC series Downton Abbey. It has also been suggested that the black color and biddable temperament made flatcoats a favorite among poachers taking birds from estates at night.

Tastes and fashion change and by 1930 labrador and golden retrievers had both moved ahead of flatcoats in UK popularity. By the end of the Second World War flatcoats nearly became extinct in part due to the number of gamekeepers called up for service in the armed forces. The enthusiasts who maintained the breed produced today’s slightly lighter dogs and helped cement the dual purpose tradition of flatcoats in contrast to other breeds where show and field lines have diverged significantly.

Flat-coated retrievers were first imported into the US in 1960. While they are still not common, and are rarely recognized on the street, flatcoats have enjoyed a steady growth in popularity all over the country as demonstrated by the large number of breeders and participants at the National Specialty Show. While Canada had many flatcoats in the early part of the twentieth century their numbers and popularity waned until British imports helped restart interest in the 1970’s. There are also active kennels and growing numbers of enthusiasts in Europe including Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, The Netherlands and Germany. Many of these bloodlines are highly regarded in the UK, Canada and the US. Not surprisingly flatcoats have followed UK migration patterns and established themselves in Australia and New Zealand as well.

*Much of this summary is taken from the classic flatcoat reference “The Complete Flat Coated Retriever” by Paddy Petch, Boydell Press 1988