This article is about the dog breed , for the province of Canada , see Newfoundland and Labrador . The modern Labrador 's ancestors originated on the island of Newfoundland , now part of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador , Canada . The founding breed of the Labrador was the St. John 's Water Dog , ( also a founding breed of the Newfoundland ) , a breed that emerged through ad-hoc breedings by early settlers of the island in the 16th century .