Labradors as a breed are mild-mannered and sweet. These easy-to-train dogs make great companions.
When it comes to mixing breeds of dogs, black labs are a popular choice to mix with a variety of hounds, including the coonhound.
Hounds, while very intelligent, have a habit of pretending that they don’t hear your commands. While Labradors are intelligent and obedient dogs that are always happy to impress.
When black labs are combined with coonhounds, some of that stubborn behavior starts to disappear.
What Does a Black Lab Coonhound Mix Look Like?
A black lab coonhound mix looks like a more muscular hound, with a deeper barreled chest. Black labs have short folded-over ears, whereas coonhounds have the typical long floppy ears. Black labs also have a bulkier build than coonhounds do. This extends from their face, right down to their tail.
Why Lab and Hound Mixes Are So Popular
This hybrid breed of mixing labs with hounds is a common popular practice. This is done for several reasons.
As both dogs are bred for hunting, they have similar body structures. Where they differ is in their personality as well as the appearance of their body.
The hybrid breed of a black lab and a coonhound adds extra strength as well as allows for a dog that is far less stubborn than a coonhound on its own.
So now that we’ve looked at why they are such a popular mix, what do black lab coonhound mixes look like?
What the Ears on a Black Lab and Coonhound Mix Look Like
When you think of hound dogs, long floppy ears come to mind, which is true when it comes to coonhounds.
When they are mixed with black labs, however, their ears are more defined and shorter. A black lab coonhound mix has more of a prominent ear fold.
What the Face Structure of a Black Lab and Coonhound Mix Look Like
Like their ears, hounds are very well known for the droopy skin on their face, muzzle, and neck area. Coonhounds have very prominent jowls and folds of skin around their neck.
Labs, on the other hand, do not have these features.
When bred together, a black lab coonhound mix still retains some of the excess skin, but not to the same level that a pure bread coonhound would have.
How the Body Shape of a Black Lab Coonhound Mix Highlights Both Breeds
If you put a black lab and a coonhound side-by-side, there are clear differences in the way that their bodies are built.
Black labs are a broader set and have a more bulky build. Coonhounds, on the other hand, are designed to be sleek and fast.
Their muscle mass can be seen more in their haunches and legs.
When it comes to a black lab coonhound, they have a muscular build that falls in between both breeds of dog. They are long-legged and have strong leg muscles.
Their chest is unique and resembles a more hound-like build. They have very broad shoulders that go into a deep chest.
This combined with the black lab coonhound’s powerful back legs makes them very efficient and powerful dogs when used in sport, agility, and hunting.
While they may not look like large dogs, never underestimate the power of a black lab coonhound mix. Their body shape makes them very powerful dogs.
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What Colors Are Black Lab Coonhound Mixes
The colors of a black lab coonhound mix can vary significantly due to the number of breeds of coonhound. There are black and tan, redbone, English, Bluetick, and the tricolored tree walker coonhound.
Each of these breeds of coonhounds has a distinctive coloring, making them a unique group of dogs.
Black lab coonhound mixes are typically predominantly black with either one or more mixes of red, white, brown, or tan colorings.
Typically, you can see these colors around their muzzle, head, ears, chest, and paws. Though it is not uncommon to see a black lab coonhound mixed with solid black.
Frequently Asked Questions About Black Lab and Coonhound Mixes
Is there a name for black lab and coonhound mixes?
Black labs are a common choice when mixing with many different types of hound breeds. Therefore, as a whole, they are referred to as hound labs. This title can extend to many different types of hound labs as any hybrid of the two breeds falls under this category.
Does having shorter ears put black lab coonhound mixes at greater risk of ear infections?
Black lab coonhound mixes do require regular ear cleaning to prevent infections. This is something you should not ignore due to their floppy ears, because they tend to accumulate bacteria in environmental settings. Black lab coonhound mixes can develop frequent ear infections.
Why do black lab coonhound mixes have jowls?
Jowls are for hounds to be protected and efficient. The extra skin from the jowls covers the mouth more than a typical dog breed. This means when they are on the scent of something they have a greater line of protection from bacteria. Their jowls also retain scent, making them efficient at tracking.
In Conclusion
Black lab coonhound mixes are a beautiful breed. They combine the power and bulk of a black lab while incorporating the slender grace of the coonhound.
What makes them a unique hybrid breed, is that, with so many variants of coonhounds, their coloring can be vastly different.
A black lab and coonhound mix takes both breeds’ best physical traits.