Golden Retrievers

[Nileska]

My XOH ,,who today is a well respected and sought after obedience judge for all classes, started out with two Siberians. The first one went through class twice Then finished his CD degree, and went to Canada for another CD. The second one began OB training at 2 months and finished her CD at 6mo 3 wks. Still the youngest Siberian ever to accomplish this, she also had herCDX and UD within one year.

Nowthen, since Sibes like to put their own twist on their performance the scores are not allways reliably high. The youngster just missed qualifying for a DOG WORLD award [3 consecutive scores of 196 or better]. she got 196 on the first two and 195 on the last one. The XOH was after high scores to compete for OTCH so she switched to Goldens who were happy to do it right every time.

The first Golden was a real sweetie and was easily trained,he quickly earned his CD... Before he began training for CDX which requires some jumping he had his hip Xrays done, He had displasia and was retired from further competition...He went to live with our vet and became HIS family dog.

We accquired another Golden and he went on to finish his CD,CDX and UD then entered OTCH competition. I have allways adored Goldens and may someday own one again....About this time last year I was in a nurseing home recovering from some major surgery. The house Golden named Max would come to see me every day all on his own,kind of made my day.

Richard

[princelover]

Goldens are beautiful and if I were a bit younger and much more active, I would definately consider having one. I do envy Golden owners who have put in the work to train them to be the fine, beautiful animal that they are.
Even taking into account the movie, Marley and Me, I didn't care for the movie from the standpoint that the dog received so little or no training and was such a poor example of the breed. (like I said it was a movie and the dog was probably well trained but it dispicted him in a bad light.)

[**ChopChop!**]

Well my uncle had a Golden, & it never wanted to be separated, always wanted to be in the family, like a member. But that was a plus for us

[Oliver & Henry's Mum]

Even taking into account the movie, Marley and Me, I didn't care for the movie from the standpoint that the dog received so little or no training and was such a poor example of the breed. (like I said it was a movie and the dog was probably well trained but it dispicted him in a bad light.)

Sher, Marley was a Yellow Lab, not a Golden Retriever! That dog was most certainly not a reflection on the breed as Goldens are loving, intelligent and willing learners. Labs, on the other hand (and I've had both, at the same time ) are more headstrong and need a job. They too make great working dogs.

Goldens are so popular because if they are well bred, they make excellent family pets. They also are able to be highly trained if need be. While some people quote "more dog bites" by Goldens than any other breeds, that is a rather false statistic as Goldens are more predominant than other breeds. Furthermore, Goldens are not likely to cause egregious bodily harm, unlike some other breeds that can't help but cause serious bodily harm by virtue of their structure.

It's easy to tell a Golden Retriever from a Yellow Lab as Goldens have, in their adulthood, a more feathered coat, while Labs have a shorter coat, and certainly no tail feathers, inter alia.

[princelover]

Thanks, Deb, for bringing this to my attention. I never really knew what the differences were but are both beautiful breeds.
As for the stubborness, this is not confined to the Labs or the Goldens. I have an extremely stubborn Cocker Spaniel. He is very well trained and knows all of his commands. He has been through training classes since I had thought of using him in visiting Hospice and Senior homes in the area. But he has an attitude! If he is in the mood, he is the most obedient boy you could hope for. He was even very instrumental in teaching our younger dog the basic commands and seems to thrive on training sessions but when he gets a stubborn streak on, he is most uncooperative. I have seen some improvement as he is aging and I hope that in time, he grows out of it completely.

I, too, will be watching for any suggestions from our experts.

[UChoudhari]

Hi, i am about to get a golden retriever pup in a few weeks.
Me and my wife work full time but can come home from work during lunch to look after our pup.

We have spoken to a few breeders and after a grilling "interview", they were satisfied that we would make good parents for the golden pup.

I absolutely adore them!!

the reason for this post is that i would greatly appreciate advice as this is the first time we are getting a golden.
we live in a flat, with access to plenty of green spaces. we both love the outdoors and going on long walks.

i intend to take some puppy training classes in the first few weeks to get started.
But any tips on how to prepare for the puppy would be very very helpful.

Thanks v much

[Deerie me]

Read through the forums, especially the topics on potty training and nipping/biting. There is ahuge amount of information on this site and anything you can't find, just ask, as and when it arises.

Good luck.

[lemon]

I have a lovely, 5 month old Golden Retriever puppy named Lily. She is a great dog. She loves kids (my mother teaches kindergarten, and Lily quite often goes to visit the children there), she loves other dogs, and she even gets along well with my cat. However, she does have a few peculiarities. She is mostly really good on her lead, but as soon as we get on a street with more than a couple of cars driving by, she freaks out, starts pulling and whining and trying to turn back. She's also learnt where these roads are, and starts pulling when she realises that we're heading towards them, even though I vary the route. Is it possible that she will grow out of this behaviour, or should I be trying to train it out of her? One of the other odd things about Lily is that she almost never barks. She doesn't bark when people come to the door, rarely barks while playing and she never barks at other dogs unless they bark a lot at her first. She never barks when anyone comes home, and she never barks at the cat. The only times she does bark, it's at strange things such as traffic cones or plastic bags. I'm not saying that this is in any way a bad thing, and I certainly didn't choose a Golden because I wanted a watch dog, but I find it interesting, as every other dog I know barks a lot more than Lily does, and I wonder if it's a Golden trait? Any help or advice would be much appreciated

[Nileska]

Although Goldens share a lot of desireable traits each one is an Individual so you may experience some behaviours which require some extra training.
..Your pup ,who BTW is quite young yet, has a fear and flight reaction to the proximity of traffic, I feel that this will respond to training and desensitization.

.Do NOT buy into her fear of nearby traffic...Increase your pace to a trot,meanwhile makeing with a lot of happy talk [whee! isnt this fun! etc.] Note: do not run away from the object which is the problem,just ignore it...The dog reads your attitude.

I dont recall Goldens being a particulary barky breed...I think she is telling you "look mom I dont know what this is"...Take it all in sride and teach her,no big hairy deal..OK? Distraction schould work in both cases..use treats and woozies as needed.
Be careful to reward desired behavior only...Do not acknowledge or react to anything you do not want to reinforce.

If you think you have a problem...I once saw a Golden which was so vicious that he had to be muzzeled before he could be brought into his Vets office...Verry verry atypical !

Fortunately for you,Goldens,as a rule are quite trainable and live to serve.

....Richard
Note: any dog who has teeth can and will bite you given the right circumstances

[lemon]

Thanks for all your advice! Regarding her traffic issue, I have been persisting in taking her on busy streets, so I'm glad I've been doing the right thing! I haven't really been talking to her near the traffic though, so I'll take your advice and start using a happy voice Today, in the yard, she seemed to be barking at nothing at all...so I distracted her with her favourite toy, which worked well!

[jessymessywaffles24]

I have an eleven month golden retriever who is a very good dog and LOVES everyone and everything she meets. We only have one major problem with her and that is walking. Sometimes she waks very well, but other times she refuses to leave the yard. She will pull backwards ignoring that she is choking. And when she does start walking she keeps trying to pull you to the side. (btw we dont have sidewalks in our neighbourhood). She does have a harness that makes it easier to hold on when she pulls. I did teach her to heel, but she seems to have forgotten it. One last thing, if she does isucced in getting onto someones yard, she lies down and wont get up. Anyone have the same problem or any suggestions?

[Oliver & Henry's Mum]

Since most dogs love to go for walks, I find it rather odd that your dog, especially as a pup would prefer to stay in her own yard. Did something happen on one of your walks that frightened her?

You also mentioned that she is choking herself when pulling back from you. What type of a collar are you using?

Normally, we hear the exact opposite of the dilemma you are encountering. Usually the dog pulls so hard to move forward that the handler has a hard time holding on to the dog.

Have you taken her to any obedience classes or any classes at all?

You also mentioned that her dislike of going for a walk is only sometimes and other times she will heel and walk very well. Have you noticed a pattern with her unhappiness to walk, such as weather, time of day, or something else I've not mentioned?

I know there is a solution to be found, only I'm not sure what it is. I am more curious at this point as to why this is from time to time. Is she walked only by you, or are there other members of the household who participate in her training?

Despite having Goldens most of my life, this is a mystery to me and seemingly quite uncharacteristic for a Golden. I hope some of our other members are able to shed some light on this.

The only tangible suggestion I have at this point is to start keeping a journal of when this happens, with whom, the weather, and time of day and see if a pattern emerges.

Best of luck to you.

[sparkleandshine]

My fiance and I are about to get a golden retreiever. She is only a week and half old right now. We will be able to bring her home early June. We already have one dog, a 3 year old Westie. Does anyone have any advice for us on this breed?

You need to give them plenty of attention and play with them every chance you get and they will love you 4ever.

[Oliver & Henry's Mum]

Sparkleandshine - you quoted a post from 2010 and the OP (original poster) has not returned since.

While your effort to give "advice" is appreciated, the advice you gave is standard operating procedure for any pup. In future, please check the dates of the posts you wish to quote, and read the thread in its entirety prior to posting.

We also have listed at the top of each section suggestions for posting, or starting new threads. Please read anything related to what to do before posting listed at the top, with the icon of an "I" in a circle (meaning it is a permanent notice of Information).

I am only allowing your post to stand as an example to aid others, as well as yourself in how to effectively use and participate in the Forums. In our recent communication, you mentioned it would have been helpful to you to actually see to what I was referring.