All these threads got me thinking… why have I never looked to the wisdom of COTH for this before. DH and I adopted a yellow Lab about 5 years ago from our (then-local) shelter. She looks to be more of a field-type, lighter build, leggy, and does not have the blocky head. She is what I have heard described as a “dudley”- yellow coat with amber eyes and brown skin. Her tail has a very very slight curl. All this would lead me to think she is a mutt, (which is totally fine with me) but, she has an ear tattoo. It is 4 numbers and in green ink. Someone, somewhere along the line cared enough about her to tattoo her. Could this be a breeder’s mark? Any one have any ideas?
[QUOTE=EmJ628;7322858]
Her tail has a very very slight curl.[/QUOTE]
My grandfather’s chocolate lab had a pug tail – curled right up like a corkscrew unless she had it tucked between her legs. She was from AKC lab parents, so I’m assuming verified as an actual lab of little to no mixed breeding. I think it was just genetic mutation in her case.
I don’t have anything to add about the tattoo, but just thought I’d toss in the observation about Hershey.
Is the tattoo all numbers or is one a letter?
It could be a breeder’s mark. I know of at least one breeder in my area who tattoos the dogs he doesn’t intend to sell. The tattoo is in the ear, and instead of using numbers, he uses his initials.
Generally, dudley is used to describe a flesh-colored nose in any breed. It may perhaps have another meaning within the Labrador community.
[QUOTE=Flurry84;7324076]
Generally, dudley is used to describe a flesh-colored nose in any breed. It may perhaps have another meaning within the Labrador community.[/QUOTE]
Agree, Dudley refers to having a light colored nose vs. a black/dark nose which is
preferred in the show ring. But otherwise fine.
Be curious to hear if you ever find out about the tattoo. Wonder if they are used in any lab animals. 
Some shelters tattoo their dogs. My last dog had an ear tattoo from the shelter - I think they were using them to indicate that the dog had been spayed/neutered.
I know a small animal vet who does lots of spay/neuters for shelters. She tattoos something on the belly once they’re done so that the dog doesn’t accidentally get fixed again. Not sure if this is the same sort of thing or not.
My old Golden had a tattoo. We had it done by a pet ID service, similar to today’s microchips. That was 15 years ago and I’ve never seen or heard about tattooing a dog since then.
My old ACD/GSD shelter dog has a tattoo inside her thigh. Supposedly it would help trace her back to the rescue in the event she got lost.
I got her chipped just in case 
My boy has a belly tattoo (belly/groin) from his breeder and when he went in to get neutered my vet asked me if I would like to tattoo his ear as they stay more easily readable or something like that. I imagine she does lots of ear tattoos on dogs that do not have any when they come in, so they have some form of identification. She also offers to chip if people want to instead. (BTW I left my boy with just his belly tattoo)
Our mutt dog that we got from a friend got an ear tattoo from the vet (different vet than we currently use) during neutering.
Our doberman (got from a breeder) I don’t believe has any tattoos nor is he chipped. He was my brother’s dog initially and the breeder took him as a puppy for neutering/ear cropping with the vet they use.
My late Basenji ex-show dog had her full AKC number tattooed on the inside of her thigh. She was born in 1995, so that was before microchips were widely used. It was a long combo of letters and number, so I am not sure what a 4 digit number would be. Have you tried contacting the national or local breed association for Labs? They might know.
A friend of mine had two Doxie’s that were tatoo’d in their ears. They were both rescue dogs from a puppy mill. It was the way the owner of the mill ID’d his breeding dogs.
Here’s 2 different websites that seem to want to help people reunite with their dogs. Maybe they have some helpful info.
http://www.nationaldogregistry.com/tattoo.html
http://www.tattoo-a-pet.com/TattooVsChip.htm
It was mentioned in this OT thread that Guide Dogs for the Blind tattoo their puppies with green tattoos in their ears. I’m sure they keep tabs on the dogs that are rehomed because they don’t graduate the program, but maybe one slipped through the cracks or was lost? Anyway, it might be worthwhile to check with them.
[QUOTE=UlysMom;7336706]
It was mentioned in this OT thread that Guide Dogs for the Blind tattoo their puppies with green tattoos in their ears. I’m sure they keep tabs on the dogs that are rehomed because they don’t graduate the program, but maybe one slipped through the cracks or was lost? Anyway, it might be worthwhile to check with them.
Oops , I posted to the wrong thread for mysterious dogs. Thank you for catching that and linking it on the correct thread!
Here’s the post I meant to have on this thread:
All our guide dog puppies had a green tattoo in one ear. You could contact the different organizations and ask if it’s a pup they bred. I know that Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc. keeps track of the dogs for a lifetime, as in if I couldn’t keep my career change dog, Nebby, then I could return her to them and they would find her an appropriate home…not that I would ever give her up.
Anyhow, perhaps you have a career change from a service organization. Sometimes life doesn’t go as planned even with a guarantee from GDB to place a dog if needed. Perhaps this dog just ended up in a shelter instead. Typically these dogs are well-socialized and have a variety of commands that they know. Let me know if I can help with anything for you.
[QUOTE=Sanely Eccentric;7337239]
Here’s the post I meant to have on this thread:
All our guide dog puppies had a green tattoo in one ear. You could contact the different organizations and ask if it’s a pup they bred. I know that Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc. keeps track of the dogs for a lifetime, as in if I couldn’t keep my career change dog, Nebby, then I could return her to them and they would find her an appropriate home…not that I would ever give her up.
Anyhow, perhaps you have a career change from a service organization. Sometimes life doesn’t go as planned even with a guarantee from GDB to place a dog if needed. Perhaps this dog just ended up in a shelter instead. Typically these dogs are well-socialized and have a variety of commands that they know. Let me know if I can help with anything for you.[/QUOTE]
This is really interesting! I will look into it. She was about a year old when we got her and very well socialized. I would not say she knew a lot of commands but maybe she failed out :). She always has been a very fast learner and loved the therapy dog class we took recently. Thanks for all the feed back everyone and happy new year!
[QUOTE=EmJ628;7345127]
This is really interesting! I will look into it. She was about a year old when we got her and very well socialized. I would not say she knew a lot of commands but maybe she failed out :). She always has been a very fast learner and loved the therapy dog class we took recently. Thanks for all the feed back everyone and happy new year![/QUOTE]
You might test out a few commands that are not in the standard dog obedience training for most dogs:
“let’s go” - used with puppies instead of heel, which they learn at GDB campus
“wait” - used typically at doorways, though any time to pause and check in with handler
“kennel” - used to direct pup into crate, under a table at a restaurant, hop into the car, or basically into a small space
(note that GDB pups/dogs ride in the floor of the car, not the seat, so your dog might show that preference)
“do your business” - command to relieve on leash while you’re standing still
I’m curious to know what you find out so please do let us know. 
P.S. We don’t see them as failing if they don’t make the 50% that become working guides, simply a career change to something more fitting to their strengths.
[QUOTE=Natalie A;7346144]
I’m familiar with CCI, not GDB, dogs but think the likelihood of one of these dogs falling through the cracks is highly unlikely. They keep track of all released dogs for genetic and health purposes. Plus the support network is HUGE, there would always be someone to take the dog if there was an issue. For whatever it’s worth, CCI’s tattoo is currently 5 numbers.[/QUOTE]
I agree that there is a great support system with service organizations, but I remember that during the recession many people lost their jobs and homes, were in financial distress, and had to give up their pets to shelters. It’s possible that a Career Change dog got placed in a shelter unbeknownst to the service organization.
I know that when we have had a Career Change as a family pet and they passed away for a health reason we did report it to GDB, but we took that initiative, particularly because of the possible genetic knowledge for their breeding department. When we accepted a Career Change dog we agreed that if we couldn’t keep a Career Change then we would need to return the dog to GDB, but I always thought it would be up to us. I wonder if someone didn’t live near one of the GDB campuses and was in financial stress might opt for a shelter or perhaps placed a dog with someone who later put the dog in a shelter. There are many possibilities.
If it were me with a sweet lab of unknown origins but with an ear tattoo, I’d be checking with service dog organizations to see if this was a possibility. Also, I wouldn’t limit myself to the one area of the country I got the shelter dog in for a couple of reasons; one, society is fairly mobile these days, and two, because some service dog organizations across the country and even around the world do puppy trades in hopes of diversifying their breeding program.
P.S. I have nice memories of youth raisers with CCI puppies competing with our GDB kids and puppies at the WA State Fair in 4-H in the 90’s. Puppies in training are adorable no matter what color coat they wear and the kids were always amazing with how well they managed their pups
