Black labrador retriever with DuckAccording to registration statistics recently released by the American Kennel Club® (AKC), the Labrador Retriever is the most popular purebred dog in America for the 21st straight year. More than twice as many Labs were registered than any other breed making it a likely leader for many years to come.

In a recent article, a licensed professional counselor for more than twenty-five years, explained how owning a Lab can help produce healthier, happier, more well adjusted children. Here is an excerpt from her article:

Dogs boost children’s confidence and self-esteem.

First and foremost to benefit children’s self-esteem is the experience of being loved unconditionally.  As your children get older and are capable of delivering commands to the dog, they will quickly learn to be strong and confident, or most dogs just won’t listen. Furthermore, telling a dog to sit, and then watching the dog do what he was told, provides children with tons of confidence.

Having a dog who will always listen, a non-judgmental companion, and a friend who is always excited to see him/her increases your child’s self-esteem, studies say. Dogs can also help improve your child’s reading skills, as little ones often associate a dog’s enthusiastic ear and wagging tail with positive encouragement. By giving children the confidence needed to consistently practice reading, they become better readers by virtue of the practice.  Dog-owning children have fewer sick days off school, and children who own them often have better self esteem.  Daily contact with animals and responsibility for their care offers the children a sense of self-worth that doesn’t merely happen because someone tells a child how wonderful he/she is.

Be sure to read the rest of her seven part article, Ten Reasons to Own a Dog.

At Twin Lakes Kennel, we have been breeding and training world class Labrador retrievers for more than thirty-five years. Our Labs can be found across the states from Hawaii to Maine, from Alaska to Florida. Our second-to-none Puppy Guarantee makes buying a pure-bred Labrador retriever one of the wisest decisions you will ever make.

But don’t take our word for it. Read the personal testimonials from prominent Lab owners from around the country. And visit our Puppy Page or call Woody or Judi for up-to-date puppy information at 910.462.3246.

Did you know…

  • Long before European settlers ventured into the Merrimack River Valley, the 14 tribes of the Algonquin Federation lived there. The first white men to penetrate the Merrimack’s wilderness came in 1652 and were scouts from the Massachusetts Bay Colony sent in search of the colony’s northern boundary. The hostility of the Native Americans toward the encroaching settlers flared into a series of “Indian wars.” The fighting was so constant and so fierce that Dunstable could count a citizenry of only 25 persons some 50 years after the town was founded.
  • Dunstable changed its name in 1837 to Nashua, the name of one of the tribes in the Algonquin Federation. The city briefly split in 1842 over the location of a new town hall, but the factions were reunited in 1853 when the city became chartered. The Civil War followed and the Nashua mills produced thousands of suits of cotton underwear for the Union Army soldiers.
  • The distance from Nashua to Washington DC is 402 miles. The distance to the New Hampshire state capital is 33 miles. (as the crow flies)

Source: City Data.com

Call Woody and Judi Thurman at (910) 462-3246 for more information.