Golden Retriever – AKC Dog breed series
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the golden retriever is one of the most
appealing and popular of purebred dogs
with a friendly outgoing temperament
Hardy Constitution an attractive
appearance the goldens reputation as a
gun dog guide dog and family companion
is well-deserved
you
the golden retriever hails from Scotland
in England where mid 19th century
sportsmen developed a medium-sized dog
that excelled in retrieving both
waterfowl an upland game called at first
yellow wavy coat retrievers Golden’s
began appearing in British show rings by
the early 1900’s AKC registration
followed in 1925
you’ll be seeing many golden retrievers
during this presentation some are
outstanding examples of the breed
others are less so but all should help
your understanding of the golden
retriever
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primarily a hunting dog in general
retriever is a symmetrical powerful and
active dog in outline he is somewhat
longer measured from the point of chest
to point of buttock then he is tall at
the withers the ratio should be 12 to 11
the golden should never appear clumsy
nor long in the leg and should always
display a kindly expression the breed
should be shown in hard working
condition remember that overall
appearance balance gait and purpose must
be given more emphasis than any
component part dog should stand 23 to 24
inches at the withers bitchez 21 and a
half to 22 and a half inches any animal
which is up to one inch above or below
the standard size should be
proportionately penalized animals which
deviate more than one inch from the
standard are to be disqualified wait for
dogs ranges from 65 to 75 pounds for
bitches 55 to 65 pounds the emphasis on
moderation is important the limits have
been set to keep the golden and
efficient size for his type of hunting
even if a dog measures within the limits
of size those nearing disqualification
are to be considered very faulty and are
not to be preferred over a dog of
correct size let’s begin our detailed
examination of the golden retriever with
the head it should present a clean-cut
appearance the skull should be only
slightly arched and without prominent
occipital or frontal bones the fore face
is deep and wide and is nearly as long
as the skull the stop is well-defined
but not abrupt
the muzzle is straight in profile
blending smoothly and strongly into the
skull see how it’s slightly deeper and
wider at the stop than at the tip but
never pointed or lacking in under jaw
seen from the front the skull is broad
and slightly arched the eyes are set
well apart the muzzle a strong smooth
continuation of the skull without being
cut away under the eyes or cheeky
contributing to the strength and
nobility of the goldens expression the
goldens head is strong and clean-cut
without noticeable wrinkled throat enos
or heaviness in flus you can see here
how the correct structure contributes to
the typical golden character with warm
mellow expression good breadth and depth
of muzzle and strong under jaw is
important for ease and carrying heavy
game the nose should be black or
brownish black although the color may
fade to a lighter shade in colder
weather but a pink nose or one seriously
lacking in pigmentation is to be faulted
the teeth should meet in a scissors bite
in which the outer side of the lower
incisors touches the inner side of the
upper incisors full dentition is
preferred although there is no need to
count teeth when examining a golden the
lips along the sides of the muzzle must
be lifted to make a proper evaluation
obvious gaps caused by missing teeth are
serious faults misaligned teeth or teeth
which meet in a level bite are
undesirable major misalignment of teeth
is to be faulted
and under shot or over shot bite is a
disqualification
I should be friendly and intelligent in
expression they should be medium large
with dark close-fitting rims the eyes
should be set well apart and reasonably
deep in their sockets the color is
preferably dark brown although medium
brown is acceptable
there should be no white or haw visible
when the dog is looking straight ahead
yellow eyes detract from proper
expression and are not desirable also to
be faulted our round eyes slanted eyes
and narrow triangular eyes note that
dogs showing functional abnormality of
the eyelids or eyelashes are to be
excused from the ring ears are rather
short with the front edge attached well
behind and just above the eye see how
they fall close to the cheek when pulled
forward the tip of the ear should just
cover the eye these low set hound like
ears are to be faulted these ears are
correctly shaped and placed note that
the leather is soft and flexible and is
well furred with short soft hair on the
lower two-thirds this is in fact a
lovely golden head overall expressive of
the breeds typical intelligent friendly
character this appears to be a fairly
attractive head looking more carefully
the eye is too round the ears at
attention are carried incorrectly due to
excessive fleshing on the size of this
dog’s skull the ears are poorly set on
the sides of the head the fleshiness
also causes improper balance between
width of muzzle and width of skull
this combination of faults detracts from
the desired expression this expression
is ideal correct eye shape ear placement
and overall balance combined to make a
golden look warm
mellow friendly and intelligent now
let’s consider the golden retrievers
neck and body the neck is medium long
merging smoothly and gradually into the
well laid back shoulders
there should be no throat eNOS the neck
should be strong and muscular allowing
the dog to easily retrieve and carry
heavy game note the untrimmed natural
rough stripping of the ruff is very
undesirable shoulder blades are well
laid back with the upper tips fairly
close together at the withers upper arms
should appear to be about the same
length as the shoulder blades see how
this sets the elbow back beneath the
tips of the blades close to the ribs the
chest is deep with a well-developed for
chest and brisket extending to the
elbows from the front the chest should
be broad with a well-developed for chest
the chest between the front legs should
be at least as wide as a man’s closed
hand four legs should be straight and
sturdy with good bone but never course
with bone in proportion to overall
balance this faulty front is elbowing
out and toeing in here the front is too
broad here the front is too narrow
this front assembly is correct with a
deep broad chest closed elbows and
straight strong forelegs
remember that heavy coat around the
shoulders may mislead the eye so be sure
to feel with your hands to determine
correct structure pasterns are short and
strong sloping slightly with no sign of
weakness front feet are medium-sized
round
compact and well knuckled they’re
cat-like with thick pads dewclaws may be
removed but are generally left on
splayed or hare feet an upright or weak
pasterns are faulty the goldens body is
well balanced short coupled and deep
through the chest ribs are long and well
sprung carried well back toward the
hindquarters again be sure to use your
hands to feel through the coat the
spring and depth of rib and well
developed for chest should be readily
apparent you should also feel a firm
level top line this dog’s back is too
soft this dog’s body is correctly
balanced with a deep chest and well
sprung long ribcage the top line is firm
and level and the under line shows very
little tuck up the loin is short
muscular wide and deep and the croup is
only slightly sloping the tail is set on
so as to follow the natural line of the
croup with no interruption of the top
lines silhouette the tail is thick
muscular and not trimmed at the base the
tail bones should reach to but not below
the point of hawk the tail is carried
level with the back or with a slight
upward curve but should never curl over
the back or be tucked between
the legs hindquarters are broad and
strongly muscled and should be angulated
to balance with the four quarters
stifles are well bent and hocks are well
let down there should be short strong
rear pass turns see how the hock joint
falls slightly behind a line dropped
from the point of buttock these straight
stifles and short second thighs are not
correct these correct hindquarters are
broad and strongly muscled from the rear
the legs should be straight cow hocks
spread hocks or sickle hocks are to be
faulted hind feet are round and tight
with well arched toes and thick pads the
golden retrievers coat is his protection
against harsh weather heavy underbrush
and cold water it should be dense and
water repellent with a soft thick
undercoat and a firm resilient outer
coat the outer coat should lie close to
the body and may be either wavy or
straight without preference there is
moderate feathering on the back of the
forelegs and on the underbody heavier
feathering appears on the front of the
neck back of thighs and the underside of
the tail the coat on the head paws and
front of legs is short and even the hair
on the front of the legs should lie
against the leg and not be groomed to
stand away excessive length open coats
and soft coats are very undesirable when
golden retrievers are seen in the ring
having been stripped scissored back
brushed and fluffed it must be noted
that this is contrary to correct golden
type
the natural appearance of the golden
should never be altered by over grooming
feet may be trimmed and stray hairs
neatened but the overall appearance
should be totally natural
although whiskers are sometimes removed
this is not to be encouraged
although the golden should be lovely in
the show ring he must also reflect the
moderation and efficiency of a practical
water dog as for color the golden as its
name implies should be a rich lustrous
golden color of various shades the
predominant coat color may range from
light to dark but should always reflect
some golden hue note that the underparts
feathering and tail plume are often
lighter than the rest of the coat and
sometimes appear to be nearly white
these are natural shades of the coat not
white markings with the exception of
graying or whitening of face or body due
to age any white marking other than a
few white hairs on the chest should be
penalized according to its extent
graying can begin fairly early on the
face and may slowly spread to the rest
of the coat such graying due to age
should not be penalized body color of a
deep center like red or a cream or near
white coat should be faulted note to
that any noticeable area of black or
other off-color hair is a serious fault
some latitude should be given to the
light puppy whose coloring shows promise
of deepening with maturity the goldens
gate should be free smooth and powerful
showing good reach in front and drive
from behind coming toward you the front
legs should converge toward a centerline
as speed increases feet should tone
either in nor out there should be no
flipping up of feet but rather a smooth
low efficient action going away the rear
legs should follow cleanly behind the
forelegs with a straight line from foot
to hip and the pads clearly visible as
speed increases the feet will converge
toward a centerline of travel
this dog is toeing in in front here the
hind quarter movement is too close here
again is correct gait powerful and well
coordinated with a firm top-line the
golden should be gated on a loose lead
at a moderate speed allowing him to
carry the head naturally at a moderate
trot the judge can best evaluate the
overall movement balance and soundness
of the dogs
finally a word about temperament the
goldens popularity stems in large part
from a friendly reliable and trustworthy
nature while these qualities might not
always be apparent in the show ring the
golden should never display either
aggression toward other dogs or humans
or unwarranted shyness or nervousness he
need only to show a willingness to do as
his handler asks and a polite regard for
his surroundings
the goal and in constant motion with an
overabundance of showmanship is not in
keeping with true character and demeanor
remember that moderation is your key to
judging the golden retriever this is not
a breed of extremes particularly in
respect to size substance coat or
showmanship the golden is a moderate
sized dog dogs approaching the extreme
limits of size set by the standard
should never be preferred over a
comparable dog of correct size
amiable gentle and eager to please the
golden retrievers good looks an
appealing disposition keep him high on
the list as a companion service dog for
the disabled able hunter and always a
valued family member
you
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