Golden Retriever Breeders: Good And Bad

There is no doubting the fact that the Golden Retriever is one of the most popular, utilitarian, and family friendly dog breeds in the world. The inherent traits in the breed such as intelligence, faithfulness, eagerness to please, agility, and even temper make the Golden Retriever an excellent family pet and sporting dog. The Golden Retriever dates back to 19th century Scotland. Lord Tweedmouth bred the first Golden Retrievers from a variety of dog breeds including the Tweed Water Spaniel and the Irish Setter. Perhaps due to their Irish Setter ancestry, early Golden Retrievers were dark gold to copper in color. Today, a Golden Retriever breeder aims to breed puppies with cream to light gold coats. Copper and rust colored coats are banned from competition.

The American Kennel Club registered the Golden Retriever in 1925 and the breed has had an illustrious competition history since. A Golden Retriever won the very first obedience championship. Few Golden Retrievers are behavior school dropouts. The breed excels at following directions and learning new skills.
A Golden Retriever breeder will attempt to breed dogs with the best breed specific traits. A cream to light gold colored coat is preferred. Intelligence, trainability, an even temper, tracking and hunting skills, and overall health and beauty are the standard for this breed. Because the breed is prone to health problems like hip dysplasia, eye disease, cancer and obesity, breeders must have all dogs medically screened. Breeders do not mate dogs found to have medical or behavioral conditions. A Golden Retriever breeder will be able to educate potential buyers on the pros and cons of the breed to make sure buyers and Golden Retrievers match. They may also urge buyers to look into rescued Golden Retrievers. These are purebred Golden Retrievers that have been abandoned or neglected. They can be bought for a much lower price and often need loving homes even more than purebred puppies.

Unfortunately, the popularity of the Golden attracts unethical breeders who wish to make a profit with no regard for animal health and well-being. These backyard breeders sell unhealthy and uncertified Golden Retriever puppies to pet stores and/or unsuspecting buyers.

A Golden Retriever breeder you should avoid is any that sells puppies to pet stores. Reputable Golden Retriever breeders have a good reputation in their communities and do not need to have pet stores broker or sell puppies for them. Good breeders love their breed and will therefore not ship them away to be stocked on shelves like merchandise. A breeder that treats animals as objects is a bad breeder. A breeder that does not care where or with whom the puppies end up is a bad breeder. A Golden Retriever breeder that asks no questions of buyers to determine whether buyers and puppies are a good match is a bad breeder. It is important that buyers do their research before purchase so that they do not feed the cycle of bad breeders making a profit and churning out more puppies in their puppy mills. Good breeders ask buyers many questions. The goal of the good Golden Retriever breeder is to find puppies a good home.

A fan of medium to large dog breeds, Carol Matthews has researched many purebred breeders and has learned how to locate a reputable Golden Retriever breeder. Good Golden Retriever breeders cares for and treats puppies and parents as part of the family. If you are looking for a Golden Retriever information, this article offers sound advice.