Ruddyduck

First off I'd like to say I'm not a big fan of "pointing" Labradors. There is little evidence if any there was any type of pointing dog in the Labrador's developement. It was always to be considered a flushing breed and to hesitate ala point was considered a balk and an undesireable trait. That being said I can see the want of a pointing Lab as no other dog has it 's personality,loyalty and ability to hunt.
I agree it is getting harder to find a Lab with a good nose ,but there are still some breeders that breed good hunting lines. My current dog tracks great and I've watched him lock in on birds at 45-50 feet and kick in the afterburners.I also agree it is harder to find a good specimen of the breed. A good mature male in it's prime (2-8) years should never be topping the scale above the 80lb mark. There is a standard that seems to have gone by the wayside in this age of bigger is better. It's sad that now a WELL bred dog that WAS SUPPOSED to weigh in at somewhere in the the range of 72-78 lbs or so is considered small.
It is getting extremely difficult IMHOto find a good Lab. Maybe I set my standards a bit to high ,but I'm now on my 4th Lab and the breeder I got my first 3 had passed on. He was in his early 70's when I got my 3rd and that one lived almost 14 years. It took me 2 years to find a breeder that bred for all the things I look for in a dog.
I know this post might offend a few and getsome's knickers in a bunch but it's only my opinion.