Labrador Retriever. Easygoing
Photo: Omri Livne
Pinscher ousted from top of list
Photo: Avigail Uzi
Labrador most popular dog in Israel
Over 18,000 Labrador Retrievers live in Holy Land today, more than any other dog breed
The Labrador Retriever topped the list of most loved dog breeds in Israel
in 2008, according to figures released by the Agriculture Ministry's Veterinary Services last week.
Thanks to its easygoing temperament, the Labrador is considered a family-oriented animal, and is also used as a guide dog for the blind. Its sensitive nose is often used by the police to locate bombs and drugs.
The "smiling" and patient Labrador was followed at the top of the list by the noisy and jumpy Pinscher, which was awarded the respectable title of Israel's most popular dog breed in 2007.
Animals and Society
Neta-li Feuerstein, Joseph Terkel
While many people are deterred by notion of raising dog and cat together, study shows that both species tend to be friendly towards one another, learn to understand each other's body language when sharing the same home
According to the data, more than 18,000 pedigree Labradors were recoded in Israel last year, compared to less than 17,000 Pinschers.
The third spot on the list of Israel's most popular dogs was granted to the German Shepherd with some 12,000 dogs, followed by the Golden Retriever with a similar number of dogs living in the Holy Land.
The Pekingese, which was one of the stars of last year's list, was included on the 2008 list as well with 10,440 dogs.
