 In the United States , the breed gained wider recognition following a 1928 American Kennel Gazette article , " Meet the Labrador Retriever " . Before this time , the AKC had only registered 23 Labradors in the country , in part because US and UK hunting styles had different requirements . Labradors acquired popularity as hunting dogs during the 1920s and especially after World War II , as they gained recognition as combining some of the best traits of the two favourite United States breeds as both game finders and water dogs . 
