In a 1998 AKC Gazette article, an authority on the Labrador Retriever, Dr. Bernard Ziessow, provided the answer to a question which heretofore had been asked rhetorically, possibly because six lines of the AKC breed standard are devoted to this one appendage: Why all this attention to the tail? Don’t some breeds get by without any tail at all?

Ziessow wrote, “Since the Labrador is a swimming breed, a water dog, its tail is more than a mere appendage; it serves as a rudder. It is constantly moving back and forth as the dog swims and aids the dog in turning. Short or thin tails just wouldn’t do the job.” 

The description is not unlike that of an otter’s, and it’s not by chance that the Otter’s tail is, in fact, used to describe the Labrador’s. That tail has a purpose: Useful when swimming by helping steer into the right direction, the tail provides balance on land, while the lack of a curl is useful in a breed that may have to crawl through thick cover and avoid any chance of snagging on bramble or branches.

And you thought that tail just existed to show how happy a Lab is to see you!

“Shore Runner” by Molly A Poole
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