Doberman and Labrador both are very loyal dog breeds and they serve their master with heart. On one hand, Labradors are very friendly and intelligent. The first trait of this dog is its cool-headedness; they don’t often show any aggression to strangers. For this reason, they are perfect for camping and hunting. On the other hand, Doberman is much more ferocious and aggressive. This dog breed is famous for its aggressiveness, which makes them perfect for guarding. Dog breeders like the traits of both breeds. They created a new breed called Doberdor by a controlled mix breeding program between Labrador Retrievers and Doberman Pinschers dog.
The lineage of Doberman Labrador Retriever Mix Breed
Even though there is no recorded origin story of Doberdor or Doberman Labrador Retriever mix-breed dogs, but the lineage of this breed is very interesting and rich. Doberman Pinschers originated in Germany, in the year 1880. Renowned dog breeder Karl Friedrich Louis Dobermann gets the credit for first breeding this dog. The dog got its name from the first breeder. On the other hand, Labrador retriever originated in England. This dog dates back to 1830. Previously it was famous as a water dog. The dog used to be the best companion of fishermen of Labrador bay. In the middle of the 20th century, some American Kennel owners decided to create a mixed breed from both of these dogs. Now, this breed of dogs is popularly known as Doberdor.
Physical Features
Physical the Doberman Labrador retriever mix-breed dogs or Doberdor looks more like a Doberman Pinschers than a Labrador retriever. Its coat has lots of similarities with Doberman Pinschers. Most of these dogs have unique rust markings on their chest, neck, muzzle, paws, tail, and above the eyes. This dog breed is available in five different colours including black, blue, fawn, red, and brown. The coat of these dogs is thick and smooth.
During their adulthood, most of these dogs get 25 to 28 inches in height. At this time they can weigh around 60-100 pounds. Most of these dogs are born with brown eyes, but their nose can be black and brown. The ears of these dogs are folded down and make a pendant shape. Another feature of these dogs is short and broad muzzle and thick and strong tail. Just like Labrador Retrievers, they contain a water-resistant coat. Therefore, these dogs can remain comfortable in the water and hunt their pray anywhere.
Personality Traits
Doberdor is a muscular and well-built dog. Therefore, they are very energetic and love to play all day long. But just like their ancestor Doberman Pinschers, these dogs can be very stubborn. The dog any loyal to his master and familiar faces. For unknown strangers, they can be very aggressive. These dogs are also very intelligent. They can easily distinguish the difference between friends and foes. For this reason, many people adopt them as guard dogs. They also can become a hunter if trained properly by the master. However, due to their stubbornness, they take a little bit more time to train than other dogs.
General Health
Many people think Doberdor is a hypo-allergic dog because it is a mixed breed between Doberman and Labrador Retrievers. However, this myth is completely false. Just like Labrador Retrievers and Doberman Pinschers this dog also sheds naturally. Even though most Doberman Labrador retriever mix-breed dogs encounter fewer health problems, but they are not immune to all disease. Here are some common health problems a Doberdor may face in life.
- Elbow Dysplasia
It is a common problem in mix-breed dogs. In this disease, the development of the elbow joint occurs in a disproportional way. As a result, the dog can face cartilage damage in later years. This type of problem may create arthritis problems in old Doberdor. To prevent this type of issue in the future, the owner must include a healthy amount of calcium in the dog’s diet.
- Wobbler’s Syndrome
It is a neurologic disorder that can make the dog wobbly or even paralyze sometime. Most of the time, it affects the Doberdor in the spine and neck regions. This disease is also known as cervical vertebra malformation or CVM. It causes the dog lots of pain and suffering. Surgery is the only available treatment option for this disease.
- Dilated Cardiomyopathy
It is a heart-related disease. A Doberdor do less physical activity often suffers from this disease. With this disease, the heart gets enlarged over time and pump blood inefficiently to the veins. In the later year, the dog can suffer from cardiac arrest and die due to this reason. The chances of this disease increase with obesity. Therefore, the owner needs to keep the dog active at all times.
- Chronic Active Hepatitis
This disease generally attacks the dog’s liver and diminish the dog’s metabolism rate. In this disease, the dog suddenly loses its appetite and starts vomiting continually. The dog rapidly loses weight and show lethargy behaviour. A high caloric protein-rich diet can trigger off this disease. In this case, the dog needs an easily digestible meal and medicinal treatment. Any Doberdor suffering from this disease needs immediate medical checkups.
- Hypothyroidism
Hormone level deficiency is the prime reason behind this syndrome. With this disease, the dog suddenly gain lots of weight and acts lethargically. Most Doberdors suffer from this syndrome in their middle ages. It is a lifelong disease. The treatment of this disease is regular medication. With this disease, the dog needs to take regular hormone medicine for the rest of his life.
Grooming Needs
Even though, Doberman Labrador retriever mix-breed dogs are not a softy. Therefore, they don’t need high maintenance. However, they still need some regular care and grooming. Regular grooming ensures their health and keeps them looking good. Here are some common grooming steps the owner required to follow to keep the dog healthy.
- Brush
Unlike a Labrador, the Doberdor sheds very minimally. With this breed, the owner doesn’t have to worry about hair all over the place. However, once in a week brushing is a must for these dogs. Regular brushing keeps away the fleas from the coat and maintains a healthy coat. Always use a fine comb for brushing Doberdor.
- Bath
Bath the dog every two weeks. It ensures the dog’s hygiene and keeps common fleas out of his coat. Any shampoo that works on Doberman or Labrador applies to this dog. In the winter season, reduce the frequency of bath. Otherwise, the dog can catch a cold easily. Even though its coat is water-resistant, but after bathing it dries off the dog quickly.
- Nail care
The Doberdor is quite a big dog and it put all of its body weight on its claw. Therefore, the long nails can put lots of pressure on its claws and cause heavy damage. The nails of this dog grow at a subsequent rate. The owner must check and clip its nails every month. Many veins and nerves remain around its claw. Therefore, always do this job with the patient.
- Eye and Ear care
The eyes and ear of Doberdor accumulate lots of gunk over time. If not cleaned timely, the gunk can become a breeding ground for bacteria and germs. Over a period these germs can cause infecting in the eyes and ears. Therefore, once in a week clean the dog’s eyes and ear with warm water and a cotton swab.
Nutritional Needs
The Doberdor is a large dog. Therefore, it burns lots of calories. To keep the dog healthy and fit the owner has to provide ample amounts of nutrient food to the dog. At the time of feeding, the owner needs to understand that overfeeding can be departmental to the dog’s health. Overfeeding only increases the chance of obesity, which attracts various other diseases. For this reason, feed the adult dog in proportion to its weight. Here are some essential nutritional requirements for Doberman Labrador retriever mix-breed dogs.
- Carbohydrates
Carbohydrate is an essential nutrient element for every Doberdor dogs. This nutrient element contains lots of caloric energy and dissolves in the body quickly. It provides essential energy to the dog. There are lots of carbohydrates available in foods like boiled rice, bread, biscuits, and potatoes. These food items quickly energize the dog with instant power.
- Protein
Protein-rich foods are the building blocks of muscles. It is an essential nutrient element at the development stage of the dog. Ample amounts of protein-based diet can help the dog get more body mass and grow faster. Most protein elements can be found in meat-based products including chicken, beef, pork, and turkey. However, too much protein-based diet can also attract various liver and digestive problems.
- Fat
Even though fat does make the dog obese, but Doberdor also needs some fat in its diet for healthy growth. Fatty acid like Omega D3 improves intelligence in the dog. The dog skin also produces lots of body oil to keep the coat water-resistant. In absence of a fat-enriched diet, the dog’s coat can become dry. Fish like salmon contains lots of in it. Therefore, regularly feeding the dog a fish keeps its coat healthy.
- Vitamins and Minerals
The proportional dosage of vitamins and minerals develops the immunity system in the dog. It also prevents many diseases in advance. Fruits and vegetables contain lots of vitamins and minerals. If possible in the dog’s diet include spinach, green beans, pumpkin, and pears. Most Doberdor also loves banana because it is enriched with potassium.
Feeding Guidelines for Doberman Labrador Retriever Mix Breed
The feeding guideline for Doberdor or Doberman Labrador Retriever mix-breed dogs varies on its weight and age. When the dog reaches its adulthood, it needs to consume around 1300 to 2000 calories every day. Until then at the developmental stage, the owner needs to moderate its diet exclusively.
The Doberdor puppy can depend on its mother’s breast milk until its 9 weeks old. On the 10th week, the owner can introduce some semi-solid food to the puppy. This semi-solid diet will continue for the next 3 to 4 weeks. From 11 to 12 weeks of age, the puppy can taste some easily digestible solid foods. Put the dog on a kibble diet when it turns 3 months old. This diet helps the puppy grow faster and reach its potential development rate. By the age of 6 months of age, the dog gets its full adult body weight.
Overfeeding and obesity is a common problem for these dogs. They love to remain active and eat a lot. If the owner feeds it more without any restriction, then the dog will become obese in no time. For this reason, the owner needs to resist himself a bit.
Training
As a dog breed, the Doberdor inherited its stubbornness from Doberman Pinschers dogs, but thanks to the Labrador retriever gene is also very intelligent. The owner of this dog needs to start training as soon as possible. If it is not started in an early stage, then the dog can show its stubbornness and act wild. Here are some training methods the owner needs to continue.
- Obedience training
The dog needs to know who his master is. Therefore, the owner has to introduce himself to the dog. Every day the owner must spend at least one hour time with the dog and if possible feed the dog when possible. It will develop the connection between the dog and its owner. In this training regimen, the dog must learn recall, sitting, heeling, and staying.
- Train Indoors and Without Distractions
Many people take them out in open for training. For other dogs, it might be all right, but for a Doberdor, it is not. Dog of this species are very curious and love to explore the world. As a result, these dogs get easily distracted when outside. At the time of basic training, they need to focus a lot. For this reason, it will be better for the dog, if the trainer starts basic training indoor.
- Positive Reinforcement
Due to their stubbornness, the Doberdor don’t always listen to their master. Many people find it offending and start punishing the dog. It does provide counteractive results. Instead of punishing, try to understand why the dog is acting this way. Positive reinforcement is the best way of training. Here the dog gets treats for every good job. It encourages the dog to perform better.
Exercise
Compared to other dogs, the metabolism rate of Doberman Labrador retriever mix-breed dogs is much higher. These dogs love to eat. They can quickly become obese if they don’t exercise regularly. Take the dog for a walk for one hour every day. Let it run for 25 minutes. The owner can also play fetch with the dog.
Conclusion
All Doberman Labrador retriever mix-breed dogs are very loyal to their masters. These animals are smart and enraged at the same time. Unlike other dogs, a Doberdor can ignore all risks and lay down his life for the master. Even though sometimes these dogs show some stubbornness but they act well when trained properly.
These dogs are large and very resilient to all environments. For this reason, many owners think that these dogs don’t need much grooming. However, this kind of attitude toward a dog is not right. Grooming is a way of taking care of the dog. The dog learns whom it can trust. It improves and develops a good relationship between the dog and his master.
Another big factor of these dogs is their metabolism rate. Even though they always act hungry, but it is not a good idea to overfeed these dogs. Over-feeding can increase the chances of obesity, which will attract many other diseases in long term.
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