Introduction
Golden Rules For Golden Retrievers
Discipline
Exercise
Health
Feeding

A Popular modern legend that has developed states that the Golden Retriever was developed from a troupe of Russian circus dogs, this is of course not true. Golden Retrievers were developed from working gundogs, as working gundogs. Over the next few months you will be reminded of this mythical circus connection more so when you think of the fact that clowns are a major feature of any circus. Don't worry they will grow out of this clownish phase as they grow out of puppyhood.

There is a great wealth of books and guides on the subject of Golden Retrievers but don't forget a Golden Retriever has never written nor read one so if your dog does not behave exactly as the "book" says it's only because all Goldies are individuals and in the main it will be nothing to worry about. If worries persist then please don't hesitate to get in touch with me.

Being an owner of a Golden Retriever is one of life's greatest pleasures more so because Goldies are more happy to share their love with anyone who will accept it, making them the ideal family dog.

Enjoy your Golden, I hope you will all be very happy with each other.

As a new owner of a Golden Retriever puppy, there are a few things you need to know about this lovable breed of dog if you both are to have the best of relationships over the next few years.
These cover:
1. DISCIPLINE
2. EXERCISE
3. HEALTH
4. FEEDING

As a breed Golden Retrievers are among the easiest to train. This is due to an inherent willingness to please their owners, as can be seen from the many Golden Retrievers trained as guide dogs for the blind. It is important, both to you, and the dog, that right from day one of ownership your dog learns right from wrong. And that, when you say no, he knows you mean it, this can easily be achieved without anything more than a firm tone of voice. A clear NO when he is doing something he shouldn't and a clear and well meant GOOD GIRL / GOOD BOY complete with lots of fuss when he is doing right, is about all that is needed in the early stages. If he knows his place, where he is allowed, and just as importantly not allowed, you will find life is very much easier and happier for you both. This elementary training has already commenced before you gained ownership of your dog and I really do urge you to continue on with it.

It is also important that your dog has a place of his own, i.e. a dog bed in a quiet corner. Somewhere he can escape to, and if need be, sent to, if he is misbehaving. In spite of his ability to plead with his big brown eyes he should not be fed titbits from your plate when you are eating. There is nothing wrong with giving your dog leftovers from your meals but they should be given with his own meals and the fat content needs to be watched very carefully. He should also have his own food bowls, which naturally must be kept as clean as your own.

It is important that right from the start you do not allow your dog to sleep with you, heartrending as his cries may be. He must be allowed to settle into his new environment. It is understandable that he will feel lonely at first; after all he has known nothing but the close company of his littermates and mum since the day he was born. In the long term just hardening your heart to the lonely cries in the night is the best way to deal with this, it wont last forever.

House training is also easily achieved with patience and persistence from you. The dog needs to be taken outside as soon as the puppy is awake if you are to avoid wet patches in the house! Immediately after eating is also a good time to give the pup a chance to do his duties as this is the time when most dogs need to go! It will also need to be taken outside on a little and often basis and much praise needs to be lavished on it when duties are carried out outside. Rubbing a puppy's "nose in it" when accidents occur in the house may lead to your puppy eating his own excrement and this unwitting 'training' must be avoided at all costs and so initially you must be prepared for some accidents. A firm NO will let you pup know he has done wrong and then take your puppy outside.

In the beginning your puppy will need no more exercise than can be provided in your garden, in fact until your puppy is 14 weeks old (or 12 weeks depending on your vets use of vaccine) he will not be allowed to leave your garden anyway. When he is old enough to be taken for a walk, you don't have to start with hikes miles long, your puppy's exercise needs to have been built up slowly. It is a very good idea to start on quieter areas and build up to areas with more traffic and noise. Exercise should be carried out at the same time each day if possible and while it is good to take your dog for weekend romps in the country, B. S. E. permitting, the daily needs are far more important for a fit healthy dog. It should be born in mind that the early stages of your puppy's life, just like any other young animal, will consist of much sleeping and your puppy will need lots of it. This is something the younger members of the family and friends need to bear in mind; when the pup is tired, he should be allowed to sleep in his own bed in peace. As with children, play is a very important part of your puppy's development but it should be born in mind that it should not be at the expense of his well being and sleeping needs.

Worming
Your pup has already been wormed at four weeks and at seven and one half weeks and you must consult your vet as to when he should be wormed from now onwards. It is very important that any worm infested faeces that you find as a result of the treatment be disposed of immediately as this is necessary to prevent re-infection.

Inoculations
Your puppy MUST be inoculated against DISTEMPER, CANINE HEPATITIS, LEPTOSPIROSIS AND PARVOVIRUS. Your vet will give your puppy two injections, either two or four weeks apart. Your pup cannot mix with other dogs or enter areas which other dogs use until the inoculations take effect. Again, be guided by your vet and please don't forget to ask him about an identification chip for your dog as he is very precious and believe me, irreplaceable.

Hip Scores
When you read your puppy's pedigree you will see that his genealogy is, where known, composed of dogs with hip scores well below the breed average; good hip scores are essential before the breeding of Goldens should take place. This of course does not negate the possibility of your puppy having problems with his hips at some time during his life but the likelihood of this happening is very much reduced. I have done my best to ensure that your puppy will have the best of starts. But you also must now do your best by ensuring that your puppy is prevented from climbing up and down stairs in the early stages of his life. In fact many breeders will not allow their dogs to even attempt steps until they are at least 12 months old. Also your exercising of your dog should start with short walks building up slowly. This basically gives the dog's skeleton time to develop at the same pace as the muscle surrounding the joints

The feeding needs of your puppy will change over the last few months, at the moment he/she is on four meals a day, two with goats milk and two meat meals/ all in one balanced diet. In order to allow your puppy to grow as he should, you will need to keep up this regime for a while and change it as the puppy makes its way towards maturity. Goats milk may be hard for you to purchase and can be substituted for skimmed cows milk but do accustom your pup slowly to the change by feeding gradually increased amounts.

Week 1
Breakfast - One or two eggs scrambled with milk.
Lunchtime - Feed Eukanuba complete meal for puppy, large breed; (the packaging on the product will guide you as to amount to feed as it is based on the weight of the puppy). An alternative is Hill's but try to refrain from feeding an inferior make if possible as all pups need the best start in life - don't they. You may feed Pedigree canned puppy food as a good alternative to dried food if you prefer to do so and again check your can for the amount to feed.
Teatime - As lunch.
Evening Meal - One to two Weetabix in milk. At about four months the evening milk meal can be phased out. Continue to feed three times a day until six months old and then combine the two meat meals at teatime.

Full Grown Golden Retrievers
A full grown Golden Retriever needs about one pound of meat per day and half a pound to three quarters of a pound of biscuit, however if the dog is to spend much time out of doors and is very active then more may be added to this Maintenance diet. If your dog eats everything put down in front of him while he is growing then a little more will do no harm. Your dog will mature between eight and twelve months of age.

Fresh, clean water should always be available to your dog at all times and it is essential that you check that his water bowl is full before he is fed any dry, complete dog food.

One word of warning regarding eggs. You may well be told to feed raw eggs but don't. Although a dog will eat raw eggs, and they do contain all the Amino acids a dog requires, it simply cannot make use of them unless it is cooked and taken to excess raw eggs can lead to a biotin deficiency.