There was a sad moment in the final episode of Downton Abbey this weekend when Lord Grantham’s faithful pale yellow lab passed away.
The dog, called Isis (it was named after an Egyptian god a long time before Islamic State started making the news), was a beautiful pale yellow lab and had been Lord Grantham’s companion at many shoots over the years and episodes of the show.
While the news Isis had died saddened most viewers it got some dog enthusiasts thinking about what dog might replace her.
That’s because his lordship’s dog wasn’t typical of gundogs at the time the show is set, and people who believe the show should be as authentic as possible want to see a traditional dog introduced.
The first recorded yellow lab was born in 1902, which would have made Isis a very rare dog – especially because “yellow” labs in the early 20th century were more of a fox red colour than the Andrex puppy colour we expect nowadays.
If Julian Fellowes and his team had cast a dog in the role based on the breeds used in the early 20th century it would likely have been a flatcoat retriever. It wasn’t until after World War II that the Labrador became the most popular choice as a gundog.
But if the new dog is a Labrador it’ll be easy to understand why as labs are intelligent, bold, gentle and adorable dogs.
Here at The Valley we love labs and love it when we see them with their owners visiting our Cornwall cottages dog friendly.