Who has a golden retriever?

[2468Chickensrgr8]

Well I am going to put a spin on this one.....

After having a lovable gentle Black Lab for 13 years .We had to put him down because of a stroke last May. Both my kids grew up and loved him deeply. We decided to get another dog about four months before he passed on...and we all agreed not to get another black lab because we didnt want to compare him to our big guy Bear and we went to many many breeders and finally found a great one who breed both labs and goldens .After checking out the parents and the breeder ( and she checked us out also)we choose a yet to be born Golden male puppy.....He is now a year old and has been through obidience classes.....puppy class and Grade one and two.He listens great..sits, stays ,lay's down etc on command..tThe problem is we have seen two behavourist because he is a snarly growlly beast towards me and my kids and also my husband and even other people........Dont get me wrong I(we) love him and are not going to give up on him....he has not bitten....before Xmas I was talking to the breeder again and she suggested bringing him back to her for awhile and she put him in her "pack"of dogs .Both behavourlists had conflicting "ideas" on how to stop the growling and aggresiveness towards a rawhide..He started not letting us touch his stomach or when one of the kids walked by him he would growl and snap...We had him checked out at the Vet many times$$$$$..But since he has figured out where he is in our pack ....he is doing better.....but in my heart I cannot leave him alone with the kids(13 and 10YRS) when they have friends over.....Our breeder has been great and has been working with us from the start.....Actually when he came home from the breeder a female pregnant black Lab(6YRS) came back with him and she has really put him in his place...we do everything with her first and the Golden is last .....she's a Diva grump !!hahaha and we are going to be adopting her after her pups are weaned......also this breeder has gave alot of dogs to charities that train for the disable.....end of my spin......

 

[ChickenFanaticAB]

i've never had a golden myself (raised by two rat terriers....great little dogs...one died two years ago at 16 and one is turning 16 this month...and now I also have a huge pain in the rear weimaraner/husky mix) Anyway, my experience with goldens is that they are extremely gentle loving dogs. I recently took care of a pair of them for a week, and my only complaints are that one of them was overly obsessed with her ball...wouldn't leave me alone trying to get me to throw it for her...so i recommend not letting them get too attached to one object...and the other one was still a puppy (11 months) and still very hyper...however, both are great in the house, and extremely loving...they do shed. a lot. and require a fair amount of grooming, but they usually love to get brushed so it's not much of a chore...and while I think it's great to adopt an older dog from a rescue/shelter as puppies they are absolutely irresistible!
here are some pics just for fun!

My crazy dog Sam with Pete the 11 month old...

Sophie..6 years....ball obsessed puppy...

Pete looking cute!

 

[MissChessy]

If you don't want a large dog, you might try a dacshund puppy. They are very faithful and loving dogs. Can be very territorial, but they do seem to have this knack of knowing you need attention when you are down or sick. I have a 3 year old "Moses" who is very sentimental and gets his feelings hurt easily. He is sooo funny with his game playing and I just enjoy him so much. Wish I knew how to use this picture bucket thinger, I would send a picture of him. Very smart dogs!

 

[sunnysidecluckers]

I have a Golden who is now 13 years old. They are so gentle and loving. They tolerate alot and are a great family dog and a dog for kids. Mine has arthritis now but she is still a big ole puppy at heart.

 

[poppycat]

I have a Golden and she is a very good dog, but she does have wheat allergies compounded by the fact that she will eat anything and everything she can possibly get at. She also sheds ALOT.

But she is gentle with our kids and my mother who has Parkinson's and doesn't care for animals too much.

She's only two so she can still get a little hyper, but she's good around other dogs and our two cats and she's a fantastic watch dog.

I have to give proper credit to Penny's breeder though too. She does an AMAZING job breeding, caring for and socializing her dogs.