General Appearance

Symmetrical, balanced, active, powerful, level mover; sound with kindly expression.

Characteristics

Biddable, intelligent and possessing natural working ability.

Temperament

Kindly, friendly and confident.

Head and Skull

Balanced and well chiseled, skull broad without coarseness; well set on neck, muzzle powerful, wide and deep. Length of foreface approximately equals length from well defined stop to occiput. Nose preferably black.

Eyes

Dark brown, set well apart, dark rims.

Mouth

Jaws strong, with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth and set square to the jaws.

Neck

Good length, clean and muscular.

Forequarters

Forelegs straight with good bone, shoulders well laid back, long in blade with upper arm of equal length placing legs well under body. Elbows close fitting.

Body

Balanced, short coupled, deep through heart. Ribs deep, well sprung. Level topline.

Hindquarters

Loin and legs strong and muscular, good second thighs, well bent stifles. Hocks well let down, straight when viewed from rear, neither turning in nor out. Cow-hocks highly undesirable.

Feet

Round and cat-like.

Tail

Set on and carried level with back, reaching to hocks, without curl at tip.

Gait/Movement

Powerful with good drive. Straight and true in front and rear. Stride long and free with no sign of hackney action in front.

Coat

Flat or wavy with good feathering, dense water-resisting undercoat.

Colour

Any shade of gold or cream, neither red nor mahogany. A few white hairs on chest only permissible.
From 2000, only Cream, Gold or Golden will be accepted by the KC on registrations.

Size

Height at withers: dogs; 56-61 cms (22-24ins) bitches: 51-56cms (20-22ins)

Faults

Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the faults should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree.

Note

Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

General

- The average life span of a Golden Retriever is 10 to 14 years.

Character

- The Golden Retriever possesses a natural working ability and is very biddable and intelligent. They are a kind and friendly dog, full of confidence and tend to treat their family and strangers alike.

They make excellent family pets, being devoted to all the members of the family, and are very good with children. The Golden Retriever's worst enemy is solitude. They're very affectionate and require lots of love and attention from everybody.

Their main passion (apart from people) is water, no matter how cold or muddy it is! Given what they were supposed to do, they also love carrying things around in their mouths and bringing them back to their owners.

They are quick to learn and are usually very easy to train. Although they can occasionally be stubborn, they are obedient and willing to please most of the time. They are very easy to house train provided you keep a close eye on them and they soon realise what is needed. Golden Retrievers were meant for working, therefore they need quite a bit of regular exercising to be fully happy : whether it is hunting, running, agility, obedience exercises... just anything to keep his mind and body working regularly.

Health

- As a breed the Golden Retriever are known to have a few hereditary problems such as hip dysplasia, hereditary cataracts, progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) and multifocal retinal dysplasia (MRD). Responsible breeders always have their breeding stock hip scored and hold current eye certificates.

Male or Female ?

- People often ask if bitches are more loyal or loving, but with the Golden Retriever there is no difference in the temperament between dogs and bitches. Both sexes are equally loyal and loving and a male dog will make just as good a pet as a bitch, the only difference being that he will obviously be bigger than a bitch.

Grooming

- Golden Retrievers require little grooming, and a regular brush will suffice to keep their coat healthy. Although it is not essential, if the feet are kept trimmed it will save mud and dirt being brought into the house.

If the owner intends the dog to be shown, then he will need to be trimmed properly. Any good Golden Retriever Book will give advice on this. Golden Retrievers have been known to have substantial hair loss when moulting. Bitches tend to moult just before their season, usually twice a year, while dogs generally moult just once a year.