Golden Retriever

My 2nd dog unfortunately no longer with us was my faithful friend "Bertie" a loving big hearted Golden Retriever. Bertie died from Leukimia in 2000 but I think about him nearly every day. I am a Golden Retriever lover for life, so I thought I'd share my experiences with you of owning a Golden, the good bits and the bad bits. A can no longer have one because of the hair but if I could I would not hesitate to recommend.

History
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The Golden Retriever we know and love today was the result of one mans dedication to breed the perfect dog. Lord Tweedmouth was an English Peer whom had a vision of a pure yellow retriever dog who would retrieve birds during hunts. He started this vision is 1865 on a visit to the Earl of Chichester who was a dog breeder.

The Lord bought the only yellow coated puppy from a litter of black Retrievers and named him Nous. This was the start of the Golden Retriever breed.

The work of the Lord went on for a quarter of a centuary breeding Nous to create 4 yellow puppies which in turn were breed and in 1913 The Kennel Club registered Golden Retrievers as a distinct breed.

Golden Retrievers have been imported to countries all over the world where they have been admired and well loved.

Costs
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To buy a Golden Retriever puppy will cost you in the region of £300 - £500. We got Bertie from a rescue centre and paid only £25.00 for him. He had a few problems initially and was always very scared of the road. I don't know his history but I suspect it wasn't terribly good. Bertie was 2 months old when he came to live with us.

Once you have bought your Golden Retriever the costs continue. Obviously you have to have his injections done at the vets on a yearly basis (I think form memory this costs around £30.00).. Bear in mind if you don't keep up with your dog injections he will not be able to be put in Kennels at all when you go on holiday.

Goldens are also the most hairy dogs around and seems to moult (though I'm sure they don't) for the whole year. You will need to take your dog to the groomers on a regular basis - the cost of this is around £20 - 25 dependant on were you take the dog. We used to have Bertie groomed around every 3 months and this seemed to be ample.

Finally the other costs include bedding, flee powder and of course food. I think on average £4 - £7 should be enough again dependant on what you feed you dog. We always used to feed Bertie on Bakers dried food as he had a little bit of a dodgy tummy and tinned food did not seems to suit him. However he loved biscuits and crisps though we tried not to let him have these very often.

Feeding
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I have discussed the cost of feeding your dog above but it should be noted that Goldens are a very greedy breed. The never get a case of "eyes are bigger than their belly" and it strikes me that they will continue to eat if there is food around regardless of whether they are hungry or not. Please be aware of this and keep on your guard against excessive eating to ensure that your dog stays healthy.

We used to feed Bertie 1 good meal a day and then give him treats when he deserved them. This seemed to work out OK.

Exercise
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Being a big dog a Golden requires a fair amount of exercise and indeed must be exercised on a daily basis. You should expect to exercise your dog for in excess of an hour per day, most days you should aim towards 2 hours exercise.

Grooming
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I have already spoken about the costs of keeping a Golden Retriever groomed - you may though choose to groom your dog yourself. The dog should be brushed very regularly, we used to try and brush Bertie every other day as Goldens have a very thick undercoat which should not be allowed to matt - this can cause unnecessary suffering to the dog. You should also be aware of keeping the hair on the dogs legs and tail trimmed down very neatly, though you can allow the top coat to grow a bit. Be aware though that the dog sheds hair in shed loads.

My partner has very bad asthma and there was a marked improvement in this once we had lost Bertie. We didn't have any carpets in our house, only laminate flooring and this made it easier to keep on top of Berties hair. Because of my partners asthma we now have 2 Yorkshire terriers - see my review to come later this week for details of this, and it is purely and simply because of the hair shed by a Golden that we didn't choose to replace Bertie with another Golden

Size and Weight
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The height of a male Golden is usually between 56 - 61cms and bitches' between 51 - 56cms. The weight for dogs is normally between 30 - 34kgs and bitches 27 - 32kgs. This seems to be standard.

Known Problems
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Two of the know problems with this breed are with the hips and the eyes. Bertie had a "runny eye" on a regular basis but in fairness Bertie main problems were with his ears. The were constantly infected and the vets could never seems to cure it. Bertie died of Leukemia but I am sure this is not a common thing to the breed I think Bertie was just unlucky - he died aged 6 but Goldens usually live to being between 9 and 15 years.

Characteristics
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The Golden is a gentle dog and is an ideal dog to have as part of the family. They love children and love to be involved in whatever is going on. My partner used to child mind when we first had Bertie and this never proved to be a problem with the children they all loved him and he loved them. Goldens are as happy inside as outside, Bertie used to have a kennel outside which he would be happy to stay in or he was equally at home laid in his basket at the end of our bed. Goldens will attempt to drag, pull or carry anything they can fit into their mouths.

Taking about pulling anything they can fit into their mouths, here is a funny story about when Bertie was a pup. As just said my partner used to child mind during the day, 2 children, a girl aged around 6 and a baby boy still in nappies. One of Berties favourite tricks was emptying the bin, especially when we had hung an extra carrier bag full of rubbish on the back door in the kitchen. Anyway, one day when my partner had been to the town with the two kids she returned to a bomb site in our kitchen. Yes you have got it, Bertie had emptied the bin again, but, not only had he emptied the bin, inside it was one of the little boys dirty nappies - full of you know what. Bertie had taken the nappy in his mouth and proceeded to wipe it around the floor, the table the cupboards - infact anything he could get near. Yes that's night he had covered just about every inch of the kitchen in ****. My partner was not best pleased - it's a good job she loved him or I think he may have been spending the entire night in the dog house. She called me at work and I must tell you it wasn't a pleasant conversation.

House Training
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In my experience Goldens learn quite quickly even if you think at first that they will never learn, my experience was that it only took about four months. Any Puppy is not really capable of controlling themselves much before this time anyway so don't expect too much too soon. Dogs are creatures of habit and like to 'go' in the same place.

Though we didn't train Bertie this way we have trained our 2 yorkies by using the training pad "nappies" available from most pet shops - they are expensive but they are very good and they work. The cost of these is approximately £6.00 of about 12 pads. You should use the pads for training them and gradually move the pad nearer to the door, then outside - eventually you will be able to remove the pad and the dog should be then used to going to the door when it needs to be let out.

The odd accident is an inevitable part of house training your puppy, so be prepared to experience it. Remember, prevention is better than cure! View accidents as a lack of vigilance on your part.

And finally
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With just a little effort and training, your puppy will mature into a wonderful companion and a member of the family that you can take anywhere and you will be proud to own.

Keep photographs of your puppy as he grows into a mature dog. I have a wonderful photograph of Bertie at about 3 months old with his nose stuck in a yogurt pot - it makes me laugh every time I look at it.

I would recommend owning a Golden Retriever to anyone but you must have time for him. They require a lot of care and attention. If you give it them they will prove to be the most loving and loyal companion you could wish for.