The Dog That Started on a Fishing Boat
The Labrador retriever's earliest ancestor was not bred to sit in a living room. The St. John's Water Dog, a working breed from the island of Newfoundland in what is now Canada, spent its days hauling fish-laden nets from the North Atlantic alongside fishermen in the 1700s. It had a thick, water-resistant double coat, a broad otter-like tail it used as a rudder, and webbed feet built for cold water. It was a tool before it was a companion.
