Saturday, March 23, 2024
HomeEditor PicksWhy Are Golden Retrievers Good Dogs

Why Are Golden Retrievers Good Dogs

- Advertisement -

Can You Train A Golden Retriever To Be Protective

Are Golden Retrievers Good First Dogs? ( Or A Bad Choice )

Image source: RadicalK9.com

Schutzhund is a sport that tests a dogs obedience, tracking, and protection skills.

Youve probably seen pictures like the one above of dogs latching onto a padded arm.

But what you probably havent seen is a golden retriever in one of those pictures

Thats doesnt mean golden retrievers cant be trained to be decent at Schutzhund, or be trained to be good at protecting you, but it just doesnt come as natural to them as some others.

Like we talked about earlier, golden retrievers are very trainable, but they just dont have the natural aggression of some other breeds.

If you want to train your dog to be more protective, I would definitely advise getting professional help.

An Incredible Sense Of Smell

When you think of an incredible sense of smell you probably think of working and police dogs like German Shepherds, but golden retrievers have one of the strongest senses of smell in dogs.

Their noses makes them amazing hunting dogs that can track down birds no matter how far they glide after being shot, and they are able to track them down even in areas where there are lots of smells.

There are many hunters that swear that out of all retrievers, goldens have the strongest sense of smell and their goldens can track down birds that their friends dogs often cant.

They Like Being Attentive To Their Owners

Golden retrievers have this interesting tendency to be exceptionally attentive to their owners, and we think that this is one of their biggest strengths. These cute and lovable companions love bonding with their owners, and in doing so, they display great interest, enthusiasm, and consideration toward them.

Interestingly, they also crave human attention in return and get downright needy, which is also why golden retrievers are so friendly. They use their friendliness to get their owners to fulfill their needs, and they return the favor by listening to them, obeying their commands and displaying a considerable amount of affection.

Don’t Miss: 4 Month Old Golden Retriever

How Do You Groom A Golden Retriever

Grooming will be an essential part of your life with a Golden Retriever. Brushing and bathing are the main grooming concerns.

You can maintain a healthy coat with regular grooming. The coat should be combed and brushed with a brush with firm bristles at least weekly, if not daily. Our experts have recommendations for the best shedding brush for your Golden. Minimize bathing to when your pup is visibly dirty or has an odor to avoid stripping the coat of oils necessary to maintain skin health. Dry shampoo can be used on the dogs coat as needed.

Goldens will require nail trimming every three to four weeks.; Also, brush their teeth at least several times a week but daily if possible.

Golden Retrievers In Television Shows

Why Golden Retrievers Are Good Protective Dogs (And Why ...

While there arent any popular TV shows primarily about a golden retriever, theres a lot with golden retrievers featured prominently. Here are a few of them.

  • Comet from Full House. Full House is an iconic sitcom about a dad, his best friend, and brother-in-law raising three girls after their mom passes away. Comet is the family dog, featured predominantly through the show though the dad isnt too sure about a dog at first.
  • Speedy from The Drew Carey Show, another sitcom. Speedy is Drews dog, playing on the trope of a typical everyman who has the traditional doggy best friend of a golden retriever.
  • While Vincent from Lostisnt a full golden retriever, hes a lab and golden retriever mix. Vincent is the only confirmed survivor of the island theyre all stranded on in the series. Of course, the writers had to make sure watchers knew Vincent was okay.

Just as with movies, there are many more shows with golden retrievers than on this little list. However, if youre craving a golden retriever in a show, heres a place to start.

Don’t Miss: Service Dogs Golden Retriever

Golden Retrievers Are Great As Service Dogs

Weve already talked some about how great golden retrievers are as rescue dogs, but how about how popular they are as service dogs? Golden retrievers are popular as seeing-eye dogs, hearing dogs for the deaf, and many other service dog specialties.

What are some of the reasons why golden retrievers are so popular as service dogs? Well, its because of their smarts, temperament, loyalty, eagerness to please, and size. Theyre intelligent dogs, being able to learn new commands and ideas quickly. They catch on to new tricks quickly.

Theyre of good temperament, being eager to please their human. They arent likely to ever try to run away and will, in fact, do many things to take care of their human, whether theyre trained to service animals or not. This loyalty to their owner is what makes them such great service dogs.

Golden retrievers are a great size as well for being a service dog. Theyre large enough to help support a person if needed or to protect their owner if needed. Their size also means they can block their owner if their owner is in danger, a common training for seeing or hearing aid dogs.

If youre interested in a service dog, either for yourself, someone else, or as a trainer of one, check out your local services. Each state has different organizations you can look into or join in with. Read about them on AKCs website.

They Love Us No Matter What

Golden retrievers seem to have an almost infinite capacity for love.

Theres no doubt that your dog loves you, as they show it in everything they do, from greeting you at the door to sitting at your feet to cheering you up when you feel sad.

But, goldens dont just show love for their own families, theyre happy to share out the love to anyone and everyone they meet.

Read Also: Do Golden Retrievers Need To Be Groomed

Why Goldens Retrievers Are Not Good Guard Dogs

Irrespective of the above-mentioned qualities, there are fair reasons why Golden Retrievers are not the best guard dogs. When compared with the market options, there are better options more suitable for guard dogs than Golden Retrievers.

In brief, Golden Retrievers are over friendly, and they get along with others easily. This is one of the worst qualities for a guard dog. As The Spruce Petsreveal, Golden Retrievers are among the 10 friendliest dogs. Besides, Golden Retrievers are protective of everyone around them. Therefore, they need a proper training to identify the outsiders or strangers before becoming friendly.

Are Golden Retrievers Still The Best Family Dogs

7 Reasons Golden Retrievers Are The Best Dogs (And 7 Reasons They’re Not So Great!)

Personally, from my own experience, they are! Due to their patience and kind demeanor, they make great pets for families with children, seniors, or people living on their own because theyre gentle around kids and strangers. Golden retrievers are also trustworthy, loving, and intelligent, so they will always be a great companion for families with infants and toddlers.

In fact, the American Kennel Club has solidified the Golden Retriever as one of the top 5 most popular dog breeds for over seven years.

This is due to the breeds fantastic temperament. Golden Retrievers have long been praised as the most loyal and friendly breed; this makes them a perfect candidate for families. Whether you have other pets, children, or have new friends over, the Golden Retriever breed is always friendly and responsive to others. Originally bred to hunt waterfowl, the Golden Retriever loves to play outdoors and can keep up with the most exuberant children.

Golden Retriever breed maintains its youthful charisma throughout its entire life, always in the mood to play and please its owners.

All breed members maintain this same temperament, as that is the primary key in its popularity. Aggression is very rare in Golden Retrievers, making them the number one choice for a family dog.

Also Check: Crate Training Golden Retriever Puppy

They Increase Our Lifespan

Various studies have suggested that people with dogs live longer on average than people who dont own pets.

There could be several reasons for this, one of the primary ones being that dog owners tend to get more exercise and have been found to have lower than average cholesterol levels.

Whatever the reasons, if our canine companions help us to live longer, thats another added bonus!

Golden Retrievers Are Intelligent

Originally bred to help us hunt prey, Golden Retrievers rank as the fourth smartest dog breed around, only coming in behind border collies, poodles, and German shepherds.

For those who own goldens, this probably isnt a surprise: Whether its playing fetch or doing tricks, retrievers often showcase their knowledge!

Having a smart dog offers a lot of fun and unique advantages. For example, because of that intelligence, you need to constantly teach golden retrievers new tricks and new games to challenge their minds.

They wont thrive with walking the same path every day; theyll want to explore their surroundings, learn, and experience new things.

It might seem like a lot of work, but this is how you build a real bond with your pet: Exploring with them, teaching them tricks, playing with them, and molding their mind will help you create amazing memories together.

Retrievers Are Easy to Train

With the golden retrievers exceptional intelligence, you can train them to do many skills.

Thats a big reason retrievers are one of the most common breeds for therapy and guide dogs and even search-and-rescue teams.

With a long history of hunting and retrieving game, goldens are great listeners when given direction and are a great choice for people looking to teach a dog to handle tasks other breeds just cannot.

Golden Retrievers Are Loyal

Golden retrievers are so loyal they actually get stressed if they dont see their owners for long periods of time.

Golden Retrievers Are Obedient

Also Check: What Is The Best Dog Food For Golden Retrievers

Reason #5: Golden Retrievers Are Smart & Easy To Train

This is kind of a two-in-one benefit of golden retrievers, but they go hand in hand.

Although they can be goofy, golden retrievers are the fourth smartest dog breed, which makes them relatively easy to train.

They also like pleasing their humans and love treats, which are two other factors that make them easy to train.

And speaking of being easy to train

Other Solutions And Considerations

Do Golden Retrievers Make Good Guard Dogs? 7 Best ...

There is no doubt that the Golden Retriever is valued for his intelligence and tireless work as a guide dog. The Golden Retriever is the most sought-after breed to be trained as a guide dog. Even celebrities who do not need guide dog services;have chosen the Golden Retriever as a pet. Their friendly nature and reliable qualities make them everyones favorite. Stars like Oprah Winfrey and Betty White have Golden Retrievers at their side. Betty White has taken her involvement with Golden Retrievers to another level and is the spokesperson for Morris Animal Foundation conducting Golden Retriever lifetime studies. The Golden Retriever is such a wonderful companion even Jackie Chan, the martial arts star who has no need of protection, has two by his side.;

You May Like: The Best Puppy Food For Golden Retrievers

They Have A Lot Of Patience

This one goes along with the benefit of why a Golden Retriever does so well with your children. Golden Retrievers are really tolerant and patient with children, which helps parents feel at ease when the dog and children play with one another. Even though children are sometimes a little rough with the dog, the dog will not show aggression over things that may set another breed of dog off.;

You must remember to monitor and watch your children around the dog, however. While your Golden Retriever is not going to make much fuss about an accidentally pulled tail or a kid falling over on them a bit, your children do need to learn how to be kind and respectful to their dog.

Your responsibility is to guide the relationship between the dog and the child, to make sure that kids can handle the family dog, and your dog is not hurt either.;

The good news is that this breed of dog is great with little ones, so it will be easy to train both the children on how to play with the dog and the dog on how to get along with the children in no time.

The kids will provide some energy outlets that the dog needs as they play and run around together. And since a Golden Retriever has a lot of patience to handle children, its a relationship with a lot of love on both sides.;

History Of The Golden Retriever Breed

The golden retriever breed actually started in Scotland. They were bred to be hunting dogs, but more specifically, as bird dogs. These beautiful dogs are extremely intelligent, loyal and social which made them especially desirable as companions for hunters.

They started out as a cross between a Tweed Water Spaniel and a yellow-colored retriever. However, as the breed evolved, they became their own mix and developed features all their own.

The breed continued to evolve until President Gerald Ford brought his golden retriever named Liberty to the White House and Americans fell in love with her. It was soon after, that Golden Retrievers became the third most popular dog in America.

Now with a little backstory out of the way, lets get to the 15 reasons Golden Retrievers make great first time dogs.

Read Also: How To Make My Golden Retriever Gain Weight

Golden Retrievers Are Social

While some dogs excel at being guard dogs or ferocious police or military attack dogs, golden retrievers typically fail at all of those. They simply love people and want to be friendly with everyone.

Golden retrievers will rarely if ever, shy away from a party. They love to be the center of attention, and not even necessarily in a loud, playful way. Even if they only get to greet each guest and lie near the party, theyre usually very content just being with all the humans.

Golden retrievers can get lonely if they arent given enough social interaction. This is because theyre such social dogs.

More About This Breed

Why do Golden Retrievers put their Paws on you?
  • It’s no surprise that the Golden Retriever is one of the top ten most popular dogs in the U.S. It’s all good with the Golden: he’s highly intelligent, sociable, beautiful, and loyal.

    He’s also lively. The Golden is slow to mature and retains the silly, playful personality of a puppy until three to four years of age, which can be both delightful and annoying. Many keep their puppyish traits into old age.

    Originally bred for the physically demanding job of retrieving ducks and other fowl for hunters, the Golden needs daily exercise: a walk or jog, free time in the yard, a run at the beach or lake , or a game of fetch. And like other intelligent breeds who were bred to work, they need to have a job to do, such as retrieving the paper, waking up family members, or competing in dog sports. A tired Golden is a well-behaved Golden.

    As well as giving your Golden Retriever physical and mental exercise, you should also be prepared to include him in your family activities. The Golden Retriever is a family dog, and he needs to be with his “pack.” Don’t consider getting a Golden unless you’re willing to have him in the house with you, underfoot, every day.

    There’s one other potential drawback to the breed: He’s definitely not a watchdog. He might bark when strangers come around, but don’t count on it. Most likely, he’ll wag his tail and flash that characteristic Golden smile.

  • Read Also: Why Do Golden Retrievers Eat So Fast

    Golden Retrievers In Famous Movies

    Theres a lot of dog movies, and an overwhelming majority of them star golden retrievers. After all, who doesnt love a big, golden fluff ball on screen? Heres some youve probably seen.

    • TheAir Bud;series by Disney. Who could forget a golden retriever who can play basketball? Furthermore, who doesnt love to watch golden retrievers conquer every sport? There was a total of five in this series.
    • TheAir Buddies;series also by Disney. This is a spin-off of Air Bud, following his puppies and their adventures. These were direct-to-video movies, but still considered classics to fans of golden retrievers.
    • The Santa Pawsmovies, again by Disney and starring Buddys puppies from the original Air Bud These are Christmas specials.
    • Homeward Bound: The IncredibleStory and the sequel, Homeward Bound 2: Lost in San;Francisco by Disney are two movies about pets on a journey to find their owners, starring a golden retriever, tabby cat, and bulldog.

    Theres also a multitude of movies not starring golden retrievers, but with plenty of them cast in the movie.;

    They Are The Perfect Size

    Golden retrievers are a great size for a first time dog. They dont get too big, but theyre also not extra small. The average size of an adult female golden retriever is around 55-65lbs . An adult male will average 65-75lbs .;

    As a puppy who is ready to be adopted, they will weigh roughly ten pounds . Itll take them 18 months to reach their full adult size.

    When a puppy is born, theyre only about 14 to 16 ounces . However, when a puppy reaches the age of four months, it will be roughly 30lbs . By eight months, it could be 50lbs . In fact, golden retriever puppies grow about 10% larger each week.;

    For their height, a male can be anywhere from 23 to 24 inches tall. Females will be around 21.5 to 22.5 inches .;

    Read Also: How Much To Feed A Golden Retriever Dog

    RELATED ARTICLES
    - Advertisment -

    Most Popular

    - Advertisment -