According to a recent poll of 44,000 voters, British people prefer Labrador retrievers to almost every other dog. YouGov, an online poll site, gave voters 356 different dog breeds to choose from based on positive and negative perceptions. With final scores ranging from 69 to -30, the Labrador was voted the favorite at 69.
The win wasn’t suprising. Labs were originally bred in England by members of the aristocracy, remaining popular there while spreading out over the world. In his book Gun Dog Breeds, Charles Fergus wrote that Labs were first trained to be upland retrievers, fetching grouse and pheasants for their owners. When the dogs and their masters traveled to Newfoundland and Labrador, they even retrieved fish that tried to escape from long lines brought out of the North Atlantic.
Likewise, most of the other top vote-getters were working dogs, if not gundogs. Labrador and golden retrievers ranked first and third, respectively, with collies in ninth and red setters fourth. Sheepdogs and Alaskan huskies were also among the Top Ten.
On the low end of the spectrum, poodles were ranked the eighth least-favorite breed, scoring a -10. While they can be used as retrievers, they didn’t sit well with British voters. Froufrou breeds like the Maltese and Pekingese were deemed undesirable by the British as well.
While many of the favorites were medium-sized dogs, the 44,000 voters did not care for the similarly sized pit bulls or boxers.
The Top Ten Favorites were:
1. Labrador Retriever
2. Border Collie
3. Golden Retriever
4. Red Setter
5. English Shepherd
6. Old English Sheepdog
7. Alaskan Husky
8. St. Bernard
9. Collie
10. Welsh Sheepdog
The Ten Least Favorites were:
1. Chinese Crested
2. Bullboxer Pit
3. Chihuahua
4. Pit Bull
5. Pekingese
6. Miniature Bull Terrier
7. Miniature Xoloitzcuintl
8. Poodle
9. Maltese
10. Bullboxer Staff
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