I would like to clarify the terms Labrador, Golden and Retriever. There is not such thing as Golden Labrador or retriever as a breed. A Labrador is a Labrador Retriever. A Golden is a Golden Retriever. Labradors and Goldens are both retrievers. A retriever is a dog that retrieves game to its master. All retrievers belong to the sporting group, but not all the dogs in the sporting group are retrievers. There are also spaniels, setters, and other breeds. What all of them have in common is that they were created to help their owners in the live supporting skill of bird hunting in the past.
Once said this, we can go and talk a little about what took me to write this article, the "different Labrador Types".
Today, dog types has to do more with looks and body structure, than with actual bloodlines, and do not think that this is an “issue” exclusive to the Labrador Retriever. Most breeds in the sporting and hound groups have different types. Why does this happens? It happens because the reason why they are bred has changed through the years. Now that we do not depend on hunting to get food, most people see dogs more as our friends and life partners and not as working partners, and therefore, they care more about acquiring healthy well tempered and easy going companions that will look like the standard says a Labrador should look. Now you know that they were not created to warm up your couch, they were first bred to work, to hunt and to retrieve! Hunting is a sport, as well as the sport of pure breed dogs. Show breeders, want to breed a dog that looks, moves and behaves as close as the standard of the breed calls, and I include myself in this group. Field breeders want to breed a dog that can hunt and retrieve as fast and efficient as possible. This is ultimately what caused the breeders to split and produce the 2 main types of Labradors, Field and Show.
Over the years I’ve heard of many Labrador types: Field, water, show or bench, American, British or English, etc. It can sure keep going and going. The show type Labrador is usually called British type Labrador. The field Labrador is often called American Labrador.
The correct terms to me (and this is my opinion only) are Show, also called Bench, Labradors and Field Labradors. I find hard to classify the Labradors as American and British. In my mind is easier to set them up as field and show, and then split the show type in British and American.
There are American field Labs and British field Labs, but those terms refer more to the blood line of the dogs than to the actual type or “looks” of the dogs.
Lets talk a little about each of the different types, and remember this is just my humble opinion.

 
I wrote this article to educate the commonly mislead Labrador puppy future buyer researcher.

Laura