Golden Retriever
 

Hello,

This is not fish related but I am looking for a good Golden Retriever breeder in the Edmonton area. I am sure someone here either has one or knows someone who breeds them. There are a few that I found by simple Google search but would like to get a few more. Also what was your experience with them and if you would recommend them.

Thanks!!

Following.

Wonderful dogs, easy to train (for the most part) but not very bright.....they fit most of the blonde jokes that are floating out there :razz:

Relatively nice dogs, dumb as previously pointed out. Most of the retrievers I know or have known have all had issues with their tails being complete and utter tools of destruction. I've also known a lot (~5 dogs) who've been put down early in their lives years 6 and under. Not sure if its a breed thing or not, but worth checking into.

You could try the golden retriever club, http://www.grcab.com/ for more info. Granted I haven't lived in Edmonton for around 5 years, but I think there used to be a breed specific rescue in the area as I often saw volunteers walking retrievers of all ages in the off leash parks. Might want to check them out too, or maybe the humane society as well.

Good luck, hope you find the right dog for you.

Not sure where the previous posters are getting there info from, but

Golden retreverses rank up in the top for smarts. In no way are they a dumb dog, but one issue you do need to be prepared for is they develop later. By this I don't mean physically but mentally as in maturity. You basically end up with a 60 something lb puppy for 3 to 5 years . In my case a 72 lb 3 year old puppy.

Very easy to train till they Figure out how to play you :rolleyes::rolleyes:

But even then they learn new tricks and such very quickly. Very good with other dogs, did I mention all they want to do is play for 3 to 5 years.... very good with kids. Like being active but happy to lay around when they get older... mine isn't there yet....

You do need to be very picky where you buy them from as improper breeding brings out a few issues with them like hip problems, alergys, etc... as for breeders I don't know any in Edmonton but the one I got mine from in kamloops here has people coming from the US and all over to buy puppies when she has them. She won't breed a girl till she is over 2 and she limits litters. Not in it to get rich but rather because she shows and loves the dogs.

I have three friends that live in my area that have golden and know 4 other people in town that have them. All have experienced the same things I have.

Take your time research breeders, go visit the kennels and see how the dogs are kept. If they won't give you a tour take them off your list. Also you want to see both parents. When I went to look at mine the grandma, great grandma, and mom lived there ans dad was 1 mile away with a friend that helps he with her boarding business and is a breeder himself. I also got full pedigrees of both parents and such. Now you may ask why when your just looking for a pet. I also signed an agreement that I can't breed my guy, but the pedigrees and family trees tells you how long the ancestors lived and if there were any genetic issues in the lines. So when your looking registration numbers of both parents are important. A good breeder will have the family tree printed out for you to view or show you on the computer. If not ask about it.

Steve

We have friends that have a couple of goldens and they may be the smartest dogs I know. They are not guard dogs but very loyal and willing to please. Dogs can only be trained as much as the owner is able to train them. They do love to wag their tails tho, which is always a concern but one that can be adjusted to.

I have looked up on grcab and talked to a few of the people there. Still looking for more tho. What is a fair price for a registered purebred? Most are $1200, which seems steep to me.

That's all bad breading. Mine docent knock over anything with his tail. Most of the time it is down, not knowing as big tail wagers like Brads dog :)

As for when they had to be put down that is well below the average and yes Is bad breeding. Big dogs do have shorter life's but I have found you should get at least 10 to 12 years out of a good dog. But some of my Kona's ancestors ranges up to 14 years with only a couple under 10.

Steve

I paid 1k and as you go towards van it goes up to 1.5 so 1.2 around Edmonton doesn't seam unreasonable although I would have expected higher

Bad breeding and bad feeding will reduce a dog's life drastically. I've never trained a golden retriever so I can't comment but I've never seen a dog yet that can't be decently trained to be a good family pet as long as the owners aren't lazy and actually put an effort in. Super friendly dogs to have and I hope you find and enjoy your new pet!

She's excitable, that's all :)

I don't agree on seeing both parents. Someone with a good bitch should breed to the best stud they can, even if it's an out of town dog. For me, someone owning both dogs is a warning bell for backyard breeder.
Not saying you won't get a great dog out of it, but if you're paying that kind of money, you should get the best possible breeding.
My female Border Collie's sire is out of the Sask, but a quality working sheep dog with trial history to prove it. Bred to a local dog with equal history in trialing.

If I were looking for a GR, I'd look at working lines.

If you want it registered to breed registered puppies then expect to pay a lot. If you don't want to breed it then I wouldn't worry about a piece of paper as the dog really doesn't care what the paper says anyway and spend less than half.

It kills me to see that kind of price too. I have papered Border Collies, they cost anywhere from $300 -$500 with no breeding restrictions.

Maybe they need to breed some blonde Border Collies so they can charge more for them. :wink:

I can find unregistered dogs for $300-600 but they are backyard breeders and i just feel leery about trusting someone who has no clue about the history of their own dog.

..........experience, 35 yrs of grooming them and 30 yrs of training.
All the so called top ten smart breeds are based on how easy the breed is to train and just because a breed is eager to please humans doesn't necessarily make it intelligent. It's a sad fact that a lot of truely intelligent dogs end up being put down because of "problem" behaviour

Reguardless of what people think of the breed I like them and I am still on my search for a breeder.

They are a wonderful dog and I would recommend them to anyone with a young and active family.......I was just defending my opinion :biggrin:

No problem at all, i do always appreciate peoples opinions, and we are a fairly active couple and young couple. I wouldnt mind a running partner either.:biggrin:

but it hurts :mrgreen:

Don't mean that they own both, my breeder doesn't another breeder that lives a few miles away owns the dad. but every one I talked to when I was looking even 6 different breeders all said that the sir and damn should both be available for viewing untill the puppies are gone, so when they use an out of town sir they all said they make arrangements for people to view if they want to, and at the very least they have the full pedigrees available with pictures. a couple even said when the puppies are born they bring the sir back untill they are sold, so guess different idea's going on, but no not one of them would own both, except for one who bought a male puppy from a certian line to bring into hers, but she was out of burnaby and he dog were over priced concidering all she had was potential and no proven sucess. I think she wanted 2K for a pet.

as I mentiond befor anyone who uses goldens under 2 years of age for breeding is some one to stay away from also, can't rule out hip displacia (how ever it is spelt) unill they are 2

working and show lines in Golden's are very blurred now, mine is a working line that wouldn't have been allowed in competition 30 years ago because it has a darker coat than the old show lines. but it is all proper in proportion and hight, although he is 5 lbs over weight right now. I believe the top retriever in new west minister this year was from a working line, but what is important is the matching for the breeding work or show, doesn't matter as long as they come from healthy breeding pairs, you going to brush a working retriever just as much as a show one, and be prepared for that, they mat so fast if you put off a brushing, and the hair they shed is nuts..

one thing I found is that is you want a more affectionate retriever get a male, if you want one that is more independent and aloof get the female. I got the male.

also as some one mentions food is huge for goldens, lots of skin issues and algerys from foods, I have used arcana grasslands since kona was a puppy and have never had issues, well when he gets into the cat food there are issues for a day or two :rolleyes:

Steve

I wasn't going by that list, was using the actual intelligence list that has brad's dog right up in the top two. it goes by actual intelligence not eager to please. mine has figured out how to do some things that just make me scratch my head and it pleased no one but the dog...... I'll see if I can find it again it was three years ago when I was looking into it, but they talk about train-ability and intelligence.

They do get a bum rap and people call them dumb because they tend to be stubborn and free willed., and I have found if you use treats to train, then don't expect them to do it again if you don't have a treat :mrgreen:

Steve

I think they already do :(

yup, we should have got one of them. we paid 1000 with a no breeding restriction (there is actualy a 5000.00 buck fine if I do breed him) , fully papered and regestered though. and that was cheep in Van for the same thing you pay 1500 to 2000. but eveything cost more in vancouver.


Steve

Sorry, that list does specify train-ability :) But I do agree, the ones I've seen are fairly smart, working in the agility ring. They can put things together fairly well. Not like Border Collies, mind you, but still pretty sharp. I think they're great dogs for families with kids. I wouldn't call them dumb, just happy. If you want dumb, get an Aussie :razz:

oh I call him dumb all the time, expecialy at 10:30 at night when I am in my robe trying to go to bed and the dumbA$$ won't come in because I don't have a treat in my hand. He thinks its funny just to sit there and play dumb.

Steve

I've seen lots of pure breds in Edmonton that have registered parents but the owners didn't register the puppies for very reasonable prices. My dog is from a husky breeder that happened to be trying to sell their acreage at the time so they were selling the puppies unregistered for a third of their usual price. Some people just do it because they love puppies and don't register any of them even though they could and get more money. Just need to spend some time and keep an eye out.

http://www.whitephantomkennels.com/r...t-not-papered/

just some info..

it just doesn't make sence. it cost under 20 bucks to regester a dog as a private individual, if you are a breeder doing 2 or more of a litter it is even cheeper. why would they discount 300 to 800 bucks to save 20?
usaly if they don't register them it is because they can't.

Steve

Anyone who says that golden retrievers are not the smartest or like blonds . Has never owned one . I have had two retrievers our first one was so smart at times I thought she could read my mind. Unfortunately she passed away at the young age of six. Our current golden is nine and she still has the energy of a puppy . Great dogs I cants say enough about the loyalty factor they have followed by two boys around like they were there own pups. My first golden would put my son to bed when he was little and as soon as he fell asleep she would walk down stairs after doing her job. Good luck finding a new member to your family but I do warn you that your Going to need a good vacuum :)

Makes a good point about disease/defect tests. Always ask for proof of the testing and first shots regardless of breeder, hobbiest, registered or unregistered. I took the rest with a grain of salt after I read their article on how crossbreeds are bad and imply that most people who doesn't register their dogs or sell crossbreeds are out to scam you and don't care for their animals.

Not everyone breeds dogs to make lots of money, usually just the bad ones. I met the mother and father, saw their awards, saw their pedigrees, have copies of the vet checks and list of diseases/genetic defects that were tested for, have copies of the all their first shots and vacinations. The actually asked me at the time of sale if wanted to have him registered but after all this why would I care if he came with a piece of paper as he was getting fixed so it would be worthless anyway. I bought a friend for the family and a companion for my other dog, not bragging rights. As I stated, they were selling their acearage and needed to get rid of the dogs. They were getting old and moving into town so they couldn't breed dogs any more as it was getting to be too much for them with the kids all grown and moved away. Some people don't actually breed animals for the money as hard as that is for some people to believe, it is because they love the dogs. The owner ran a very successful business and just bred dogs for fun, their house was selling for well over a million dollars. Just because someone doesn't pay a fortune for a dog doesn't mean that there is a problem with the animal. The OP just needs to make sure that regardless of what dog he buys that he ensures all the proper vet checks and vaccinations have been done to lessen the chance of health issues down the road.

Alot of great points by everyone. Thankyou

Never even read that part, just pointing out the registering part. I have a pitty X from the SPCA, best dog ever.
That being said, if someone with a cross is trying to get big bucks for puppies, it's pretty scammy :)
For purebred dogs, sold as purebred, they must be registered and accompanied by papers by law. Any decent breeder would know this and not offer paperless options, cheaper or not.
I agree papers are pointless to most people, I keep mine around so I remember my dogs birthdays -lol

I keep the wife around for the same reason!

Hahahaha!

Lucky guy. My wife doesn't remember my birthday -lol