Labrador Retriever Guide

Health, nutrition, training and genetics: articles written by people who breed Labradors every day, to help you raise your puppy and your dog well.

Articles by topic

Here we gather what we explain every day to the families of our puppies: how to feed a Labrador, how to protect growing joints, what genetic tests tell us and how to raise a puppy. The articles are grouped by topic: choose a category or scroll through the latest ones below.

Our health articles are no substitute for a visit to the vet: if your dog has a problem, talk to your vet.

HEALTH ADVICE BEHAVIOUR TRAINING TEMPERAMENT STANDARD AND GENETICS NATURAL SUPPLEMENTS NEWS

Where to start if you’re expecting a puppy

Our Labrador puppies and what’s included
How booking a puppy works
The ENCI pedigree explained
The Bio Sensor programme for our puppies
Natural dog food
Labrador FAQ

Latest articles

All our articles, newest first.

Health Care Labrador

Where should a Labrador sleep? Indoors or outdoors, beds and your puppy’s first night

Thanks to its thick coat and water-resistant undercoat, the Labrador Retriever is a hardy dog that adapts well to life both indoors and outdoors. But where it sleeps isn’t just a question of temperature: for a dog so attached to its family,…

Labrador Behaviour

Travelling by Car with Your Labrador: Where to Put Them, the Law and Hot Weather

The Labrador makes a great travel companion. It isn’t one of those dogs that spends the whole journey fidgeting and wagging: if it has been well trained, within a few minutes of setting off it settles wherever you’ve taught it to and sleeps…

Labrador: Temperament and Traits

Labradors and Children: Why They’re the Ultimate Family Dog

A Labrador’s sociable nature means it loves playing with the "two-legged puppies" of the house, with a patience that amazes anyone seeing it for the first time. It’s no coincidence that in the United Kingdom and the United States the Labrador…

Cucciolo di Labrador nero con alimenti naturali durante la crescita

Labrador Behaviour

Bringing Your Puppy Home: First Car Journey Tips

The day you collect your Labrador puppy is exciting, but for your puppy it’s also the most demanding day of its life so far: it leaves its mother, its littermates and the place it knows, and makes its first car journey. With a little preparation…

Nomi per Labrador: quale nome dare al tuo cucciolo

Labrador Advice

Labrador Names: How to Name Your Puppy (and How Pedigree Names Work)

What should you call your Labrador? It’s one of the first questions anyone expecting a puppy asks, and often one of the most hotly debated in the family. But when your puppy comes from a breeder with a pedigree, it actually has two names:…

Health Care Labrador

Labrador Puppy Documents: Health Record, Microchip and Pedigree

When your puppy comes home, especially if you’ve never had a dog before, your life will change a little. But at the same time it will gain something special: the affection and complete devotion of a Labrador puppy is the greatest gift, and…

Cosa fare con il cucciolo il primo giorno a casa

Labrador Advice

Your Dog’s First Day at Home: The Walk That Changes Everything

You’re about to bring a dog home for the first time, or perhaps for the first time with real awareness. You’ve chosen your puppy, set up the bed, bought the bowls and the lead. But there’s one thing almost nobody has told you, and it could…

stress prenatale cagna gravidanza cuccioli

Health Care Labrador

Prenatal Stress in Dogs: How the Mother Shapes Puppy Behaviour

For a long time we thought of a dog’s behaviour as an almost entirely genetic matter: good genes, a balanced puppy; poor genes, a problem puppy. Things are more complicated, and more interesting too. What happens in the mother’s womb,…

Labrador standard and genetics

Show Line vs Working Line Labrador: Differences and How to Choose

Anyone who has seen a Labrador in a show ring and another one at a water retrieving trial already senses, instinctively, that something doesn’t add up: they are the same breed, yet they look almost like two different dogs. Behind that difference…

Health Care Labrador

Does Neutering Calm a Dog Down?

Anyone who has taken a puppy to the vet in the last thirty years has heard more or less the same thing: "have him neutered, he’ll calm down". It has become almost automatic, repeated so often that it seems like an established fact. A scientific…

Health Care Labrador

Growth on a Natural Diet: Why Slower Is Healthier

Every now and then a worried message arrives: "My puppy is smaller than one from a friend’s litter. Am I doing something wrong?". In most cases the answer is no. Your puppy is simply growing at the right speed, while the other one is growing…

Crisi epilettiche nel cane scatenate dal cibo (STE): cosa sono e come gestirle

Labrador Behaviour

Seizures Triggered by Eating in Dogs (STE): Signs and What to Do

Some dogs hit a crisis at exactly the same moment every time: while they wait for their bowl. They hear the rustle of the bag, see the kibble cupboard open, get worked up, and at some point something switches off. Their gaze becomes fixed,…

Labrador standard and genetics

Labrador Colours: Black, Yellow and Chocolate Genetics Explained

What colours do Labradors come in? The Labrador Retriever is a dog breed with very old roots that go back to Newfoundland (a Canadian island in the Atlantic Ocean). It belongs to the Retriever family, which was first developed and bred in the…

Labrador News

ENCI: From 1 April 2026, Your Labrador’s Health Records Enter the Studbook

ENCI has activated a new feature in the online Studbook: every owner can now voluntarily upload their dog's health records, creating a history that anyone can consult. An important step forward for transparency in Labrador Retriever breeding. The…

Epilessia e intestino nel cane: cosa c'entra il microbioma con le crisi convulsive

Health Care Labrador

Epilepsy and the gut in dogs: microbiome and epileptic seizures

If your dog suffers from epilepsy, you have probably already heard about antiepileptic medications, neurological check-ups, and the occasional anxious moment in the vet's waiting room.

Labrador standard and genetics

Labradoodle: what it really is and why it is not a recognised breed

In recent years, the Labradoodle has become one of the most sought-after and heavily marketed dogs, often presented as the ideal family companion: beautiful, intelligent, affectionate, and even "hypoallergenic." But behind this glossy image lies a reality that many people ignore or underestimate.

Asse intestino-cervello nel cane: come il cibo influenza la mente e la salute

Health Care Labrador

Looking for a Labrador puppy?

We breed black, yellow, fox red and chocolate Labradors with ENCI pedigrees in Modigliana (FC), Italy. Puppies go home after 90 days, and a visit to the kennel is required before booking.

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Labrador Retriever Guide

Articles by topic

Where to start if you’re expecting a puppy

Latest articles

Where should a Labrador sleep? Indoors or outdoors, beds and your puppy’s first night

Travelling by Car with Your Labrador: Where to Put Them, the Law and Hot Weather

Labradors and Children: Why They’re the Ultimate Family Dog

Bringing Your Puppy Home: First Car Journey Tips

Labrador Names: How to Name Your Puppy (and How Pedigree Names Work)

Labrador Puppy Documents: Health Record, Microchip and Pedigree

Your Dog’s First Day at Home: The Walk That Changes Everything

Prenatal Stress in Dogs: How the Mother Shapes Puppy Behaviour

Show Line vs Working Line Labrador: Differences and How to Choose

Does Neutering Calm a Dog Down?

Growth on a Natural Diet: Why Slower Is Healthier

Seizures Triggered by Eating in Dogs (STE): Signs and What to Do

Labrador Colours: Black, Yellow and Chocolate Genetics Explained

ENCI: From 1 April 2026, Your Labrador’s Health Records Enter the Studbook

Epilepsy and the gut in dogs: microbiome and epileptic seizures

Labradoodle: what it really is and why it is not a recognised breed

The gut-brain axis in dogs: how food influences mind and health

Wilson’s disease in dogs: origins, symptoms and genetic test

Prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics in dogs: differences and health benefits

Glenk-Vital for joints and infections

Naturkraft Pro-1: the king of gut and blood oxygenation supplements

Naturkraft Pro-5 for intestinal flora and digestive process

Joint Vital: the best supplement for joints and cartilage

The importance of the gut microbiome in dog health

Naturkraft Pro-2: growth supplement (skeleton and lactation)

Aufbau Vital Plus: puppy joint supplement

The difference between extruded kibble and cold-pressed food

Looking for a Labrador puppy?