FLATCOATED RETRIEVER
The Flat Coated Retriever originated in England in the 19th century by crossing the common ancestor of all retrievers, the St. Johns dog, with setter and collie-like dogs. The influence of the then somewhat smaller, black Irish setters is still evident today. The founder of the Flat Coated Retriever breed is generally considered to be Mr. SE Shirley from Ettington. As the first secretary of the English Kennel Club, founded in 1873, he promoted the purebred of the individual Retriever breeds through pedigree books and established standards.
Around the two world wars there was a great boom in retrievers. Because they were worked with and exhibited at the same time, work facilities and appearance were equally important. After the Second World War, however, almost all Flat Coated Retrievers disappeared, there were only a few breeders who continued despite the difficult conditions and ensured that this breed still exists today. Only in the seventies and eighties a flat boom arose again in England, which was followed by many successful kennels.
The Flat Coated Retriever is an active, spirited, elegant dog with a friendly disposition. His sometimes exuberant temperament and playfulness can make great demands on the patience of his owner, especially in his youth. He is very people-oriented, fond of children and at the same time sensitive. Therefore, he needs close contact with his pack of people. Some flats remain clowns their entire lives, they are happy, playful comrades and never seem to grow up.
Fetching is the Flats great passion, so he is ideally suited for dummy work, but he is also a passionate hunting dog with a great will to find and a good nose. A Flat loves to swim and tirelessly retrieves from the water and on land. It can also be used in rescue dog work or as a search and detection dog. As an underemployed pure family dog, he will not be happy. He needs active, enterprising people. Alternatives to working on a family flat would be, in addition to long walks, various types of dog sports, such as agility, flyball or mass sports. He is very intelligent and likes to work independently. This could hinder him a little in dog sports where a lot of obedience and submission is desired.
With the Flat Coated Retriever there is no division into show and work lines.
-> Here you can find the FCI breed description of the Flat Coated Retriever
