Thanks everyone for the compliments and tips!

Quote Originally Posted by lute
What a handsome boy! Great stacking job! I didn't know you were showing Buck in conformation! Good Luck!!!
I hadn't planned on it when I purchased him, otherwise I would have gone to a show/field breeder instead of a field only breeder. His mom is from show/field lines but dad is strictly field. When I first got him I took him to the obedience club I am a member of, and a lot of the people there show dogs and said that he looked like he had good conformation. When I talked to a Lab shower and breeder online and sent photos, she found faults that were important to the breed - coat and tail - and said that he might not do well in AKC, but that I could try UKC. This was when he was 7 weeks old. She said not to really look at him again until he was two, but I have trouble doing that I decided to just go for it, that it might be good experience for us whether or not we do well.

Quote Originally Posted by areias
And.... Are we getting a FIFTH labby of yours to dote on?!? Updates, please! There are no secrets in PT.
LOL. I'm on a waiting list to get a puppy in late December/early January or summer 2008, depending on when the breeder decides to breed the dog. It's not final yet and won't be until the puppies are born. We might decide against it because it may not be a good time for us. I will be a freshman in college though I am getting a few classes out of the way this summer to hopefully have a light load in the fall and only go to school Tuesday/Thursday or Monday/Wednesday/Friday so that I still have time to travel to dog shows and spend time with my dogs, plus keep my job. If it's not a good time, we'll be getting a puppy from the same breeder 2-3 years later, when she breeds that dog again (she doesn't breed very often at all).

In all honesty, I've been searching for a breeder that I like since before we got Buck. Buck was kind of an impulse because I had to get him before my parents changed their mind. I wanted to do it right for the next puppy and go with a breeder who does everything that I agree with. I found this breeder about a month ago and we've been talking ever since. She feeds raw, minimally vaccinates, shows her dogs in conformation and obedience and competes in hunt tests, and in general she is a great owner to her dogs. I had found one other breeder that fit this criteria but she lives in Canada and it's important to me to find a puppy with a temperment that I know will not challenge Mandy. This breeder lives in Central FL so it would be easy for me to go visit the puppies to determine that the one she has picked out for me as a show prospect will also fit into our home.