My golden dude doesn't give a darn about small mammals but I have a dachshund mix that will destroy the small animal kingdom for existing. She lives for destruction.
We have two goldens, a 2 year old 90+ lb male and a 16 month old 55 lb female. Both are super super lean high energy working dogs.
The male just wants to be BFFs with every small creature he sees. He will lay down in the middle of the path when there's a small dog coming towards us and won't budge until they say hi or pass us.
The female wants anything smaller than she is to have its head mounted on a spike and its guts displayed as a warning to all others that may cross its path. She's crazy
I used to keep chickens and we had this dachshund that would just sit there quivering at the back patio door waiting for the chance to bolt to the coop and start digging in... relentless.
Yeah, mother in laws doxie has gotten a baby bunny and two snakes in the past like month. And then destroyed a small tree, hose and garden bc why? No idea lol just blood lust we assume
My friend said mine killed a squirrel, but I did not believe her...up until a month or two ago when he got ahold of a rabbit. Poor thing apparently died of a heart attack or maybe he squeezed too hard and caused internal injuries.
Mine runs normal, like any other dog. But when she chases bunnies she hops just like them. It’s adorable watching her chase them to the edge of the lawn and then hit the brakes. The woods are scary
We have rabbits that keep nesting their babies in our yard. I’ve seen Midas trying to play with the dang things, then we sometimes find one by our back door like he’s saying ‘somethings wrong with it - fix it.’ Yet at the same time, one evening he was carrying three around in his mouth for around half an hour, and when we got him to drop them they were still alive and we got them to a rescue. So we never know what to expect.
My golden killed rats that came over from a farmhouse tear down.
I thought at first that the rat was tossed across our fence.
Turned out that my golden would kill them.
Found out when a field mouse scurried out from under the lawn mower - she caught it clamped down and the mouse was completely dead.
https://preview.redd.it/n80a4eedto6d1.jpeg?width=964&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=63eda6e16b5a84ed2c1cdd86924e841dcee9c1ad
I have pet rats and my girl gets along great with them (although I certainly don't let them interact unsupervised). she is very gentle with them. Goldens are so different lol
she was amazing, I hope she is finding some fun things up in heaven while waiting for us once more. She's in a better place now as she was suffering from seizures and the vet thinks she had brain cancer.
My brothers bit my leg and tripped me on the stairs when he was 7months and I fractured my ankle when I fell because he was upset I didn’t want him jumping on me and refused to reward bad behavior and didn’t pet him. He’s finally starting to outgrow it but it’s tedious.
Ha! 100%. We have a couple regular squirrels hang on our property and they particularly love to sit on the fence and look into my home office window at our pup while I work; by the time our golden heads through the dog door to get them, he stands no chance.
Squirrels antagonize dogs like no other. My German Shepherd treed one and the squirrel started grunting at him and threw an acorn at him. They know what’s up. Drove my Shepherd insane!!!
Grew up with Goldens, had 5 of them. They hated squirrels but were the friendliest dogs I’ve ever had. The only one who ever snapped at us was a rescue who was abused and had DM and was in constant pain the last 6 months of his life…so hardly his fault.
We don’t have many squirrels where I am, so my golden is obsessed with lizards. When I let her out, instead of going potty, she goes to inspect the wall to make sure no dirty lizards are infesting the area.
That and bunnies.
Caught my 2nd playing with something in the backyard.
Tossing it up in the air - it would drop to ground - up in the air and land.
She found a bunny nest and was tossing dead bunny around.
All of us appalled.
https://preview.redd.it/lklrl37u9l6d1.png?width=2902&format=png&auto=webp&s=563cdec46808865b14c158f5ed239aad8b32189b
Ted and Ivy beg to differ. But they do have a common ground hatred of the fuzzy tree rats.
Yes we don’t have squirrels in Australia but we can’t watch David Attenborough anymore because our one will bark at the squirrels on there. All animals actually. We don’t have lions in Australia either but he shakes and growls at them too 😂😂
My 10 year old golden finally caught his first chipmunk the other day after years of trying.. thankfully he dropped it after I was literally screaming 🤣
A hunter wanted a retriever that was also a good family dog. So he deliberately bred a dog that would be good in the house. So it was part of their purpose from the start.
They are a mix between labs, bloodhounds and Irish setters. The breeding was around 1870 by a guy named? Lord tweedmouth, I think. The breed wasn't recognized until the 1920s
Yes you can! Last gathering was 2023 and they meet every 5 years! Plenty of time to find a new Golden friend too.
https://www.countryliving.com/uk/wildlife/dog-breeds/a44544676/golden-retrievers-meet-up-scottish-highlands/
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Flatcoats are the major part of the mix. Lord Tweedmouth bred those first (source: I own a flatcoat and am passionate about the breed). They have a recessive cream/gold gene and the odd yellow one from a flatcoat litter was used to create goldens. My Suki is on the right.
Adorable! And wonderfully informative reply.
I saw a pic of a black golden yesterday, I thought it looked so sleek and stylish. Turns out that was the original default coat! Lol
You’re describing my 5 year old golden perfectly. She’s a cold blooded killer behind a fence or glass. Protects our home from any dog that may be out for a walk in front of our house. Barks every time the family across the street lets their pooch out, but when she’s out for her walk, every person with a dog are the best thing that she’s seen all day!
Having only had ours 7 months she brings a ray of goldshine wherever she goes. Had a vet visit today and she bounces in and the girls immediately take her to their checkin desk so they can all have a cuddle. I feel blessed to see the happiness she has and she brings out in others.
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I like to think of it this way. All of mine have been the very best pups!
My vet says that Goldens were bred for the purpose of being an absolute delight at all times. I can’t say I disagree, although I could do with less defluffing of toys.
My SO and I were talking about this over the weekend. Our 7 month old has never been the slightest bit aggressive towards another dog, cat or human and just loves to meet everyone. When another dog is a little grumpy she tries everything in her power to be friends. Birds on the other hand are mortal enemies.
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Birds and Chipmunks bring out the beast in my Winnie
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Mine is the same but she gets upset when someone doesn’t want her attention and will bark and lightly bught annoyingly. She barks at dogs who don’t want to play with her.
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Something in your girl’s face reminds me so much of my girl as an adolescent!!
I just know that mine is also extremely nice. When I play hit a member of the family or wrestle around our Beagle gets very defensive but our golden will either try to play along or use her body to separate us. It's really sweet and adorable.
Haha! My Golden is my right hand gal - she thinks my kids are her puppies. I was playing Velociraptor with my kids - that's where I pretend to be a velociraptor and run after the kids (8 & 11) while I make dinosaur noises. If I catch them, they get hugged and then set free, so not a very high stakes game, just lots of giggling and some scream-laughing.
Ellie, on the other hand, decided that things were getting a bit too rowdy, so she literally leapt into action. She jumped on me, and knocked me onto the loveseat, and then sat on me until we all calmed down. It doesn't help that she weighs nearly as much as I do, but her heart is always in the right place.
One of mine is a field golden and he catches bunnies and carries them around in his mouth to show us. Once we acknowledge him, he puts the bunny down and it runs away a little wet and startled but unharmed otherwise
That’s cute. My found a nest of baby bunnies a month or so ago in my backyard and had a delectable snack. He chewed them right up and then licked his lips
Combination of being a breed that was selectively bred to be a working gundog and a family dog.
The working gundog bit means that they have to get along with both people *AND* other dogs, shoots would have a number of shooters with a number of hangers on, while each of the group wouldn't be required to have their own dog they would need enough dogs to retrieve everything shot. I'm not sure of actual numbers here, I did try and find out but I could only find references to much later where one person was suggesting parties of 8-15 so at a guess maybe 4-8 dogs?
Then you have the training aspect, they need to be willing to please, patient and biddable.
While Goldens are exceptionally good they share a lot of their traits here with similar gundogs (like the Labrador Retrievers).
Then the family dog bit is fairly obvious!
Mixed bag with ours, fine with fireworks and when we took him with us clay pigeon shooting...absolutely craps himself when pans clatter or fall out of a cupboard!
Wow, exact opposite here. My golden is straight up traumatized by the forth of July and thunderstorms. To the point that it takes about 2 weeks after the 4th before he's willing to go for a walk at night and I always make sure I'm home if it's going to storm and will sleep on the couch while he hides under the coffee table.
Mine to a tee. Only 8 months old but can’t keep her out of the water. She loves to retrieve on land or water. Brings toys to the edge of the swimming pool and waits for me to toss it in. My grandson and I frequently shoot crows and the report does not bother her at all. She gets the crows on her own and brings the back. Doesn’t seem interested in chewing them up.
I read it was sort of a random quirk when developing the breed- all hunting dogs are bred to be cooperative but for reasons of genetic randomness a few of the dogs in the breed development program for goldens were exceptionally friendly and happy - and the breeders liked that and continued to breed for it.
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This baby (9 months old) realized today that water was the best thing EVER! It’s going to be a fun summer 🤣
There are supposedly different types of goldens. I had one who was a fetch-a-holic and would have made a great hunting dog (if I hunted). Her favorite thing was swimming in an ice-cold river to get a frisbee.
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This guy doesn’t have a mean bone in his body, but damn, he makes his presence known if I dare have some hooman food and not share it.
I second this! Our golden gal was my daughter’s best friend’s best friend! She would call to ask how our pup is doing, and when she could come visit her again. (The best friend has William’s and is as perpetually friendly as our pup. They were best buds.)
My golden is extremely nice 99% of the time. However, he can be mean when the situation calls for it. He has been bitten by three different dogs. The first two he bit back because they were his size or larger. The third dog is a little yorkie with barely any teeth so he did not bite back. He does not like the yorkie though. It is my girlfriend's dog. She also has a pomeranian. The pomeranian can come up and eat out of my dog's bowl and he won't react whatsoever. If the yorkie gets within a foot of his bowl, he will start growling at him, but he's never attempted to bite him or anything. He was worse about it when he was younger, but I corrected him many times so it is not as common. He has been possessive around bones and food at times, but never actually bitten other dogs over it. He has also killed at least one rabbit and a squirrel because they ran from him and his prey drive kicked in. I have corrected him a few times since he killed the rabbit and he has seemingly stopped chasing them. By correcting him, I just mean I yell no, and he seems to understand not to do it anymore. My dog is more of a people dog. He loves everyone. He really couldn't care less about other dogs or animals, but is also not necessarily aggressive towards them.
Makes noise like they’re protecting. As soon as entrance is made, they get all friendly. Then to top it off, they will try to convince the friend in your house that they are barely fed, pet, played with or given any attention.
There is a golden that comes to the same dog park I go to, he just runs from person to person and sitting in their feet to get pats. When the person finishes he runs to the next. Endless loop. Love that guy. I own an English lab and she has a rather different approach to meeting all the humans. Mostly by just trying to lick their face.
This is one of many tasks ours completed.
When we got her half the street was afraid of dogs, and the two pre existing dogs were very wild (but friendly) and very large and standoffish.
A few years later she had the previously terrified neighborhood children (children who amplified their parents' old fears) wrapped around her ~finger~ tail(?)/nose(?) and we had no shortage of volunteers to groom her (lots of girls) and she was effectively the neighborhood therapy dog who made house calls (and of course perfectly stayed on the footpaths and did the needy in her designated areas).
It was something very special.
She entered the great playground beyond 6 years ago and has set an impossible standard for everyone else.
I have had goldens in the past and I currently have an almost 4 month old golden. They have all been great but I’m going to throw this out there, I’ve had 3 Bernese mountain dogs and they have been the absolute nicest with my current one being a dog that’s never even growled or snarled. I don’t think he has a single mean bone in his body.
Mine is a super sweet, ethereal angel 😇 99% of the time. However, she will stalk, hunt down and murder any lizard in her sights. I try to keep her from doing this, but she’s too fast!
The other day my ex said she liked me because I gave her golden retriever vibes, said I stay friendly with everyone. This is the second time someone has said this to me and it’s by far top 3 best compliment I have ever gotten.
there is a video out of a golden in a dress begging for battery operated wings to be put on. once they are on she admires herself in the mirror then gets her purse in her mouth and walks out of the room. She is too precious for words, I cant stop thinking about it.
Genetic mutation? A Williams syndrome type mutation makes dogs friendly and a little dumb https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/19/science/dogs-genes-sociability.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
They were bred to have "soft mouths" so that they wouldn't bruise the flesh of the water fowl. They're also bred to be unbothered by gun noises
So you've got a dog who has been bred for hundreds of years to fetch things gently and work in tandem with a person, to watch a hunter for cues, but to wait patiently until the time for their turn for action.
All those things also really work for life with a family. Soft mouth means they won't play too rough and accidentally hurt a small child. Fetch? I don't need to elaborate. And they're always ready for action but also happy to lay about when it's time for couch potato-ness.
I think the fact that they're goofy and adorable just seals the deal.
OT a bit…
When I walk my golden I see other Goldens and stop and chat about our love of Goldens.
I tell Sugar ‘oh look there’s your cousin’ when we see another Golden!
I watched as my 5 month old golden got repeatedly poked in the face by a baby the other day, no anger, in fact she actually just looked so happy to be there
She's an angel
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Yep, selective breeding is my guess.
I don't regard them as dogs, they're closer to being human than most people I've known in my life.
It's easy to forgive them when they get an attitude, as some seem to do.
And parading around the house with my socks or whatever they can find, we let that slide because they're so damn cute.
And when I throw a ball or a stick, and she retrieves it, only to play the 'keep away from human' game, I let her win every time.
It's because they're always 'starving' and give affection in the hopes it will be rewarded with cake (or something else they're not supposed to eat)🤣❤
We have had 3 goldens over 30 years, although the latest model belongs to our son but we have shared custody 😊
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How could they not be. They are absolute dopes lol
We have chickens and cats. Our goldens have never had a problem with either and the cats have hung out with the goldens. The chickens are curious but don’t hassle the golden. Our Irish, on the other hand…wants to be friends with the cats but can’t seem to understand the cats tolerate her and she still terrorizes the chickens if given the chance (we try to make sure the chickens are in the garden before the Irish goes out)
My boy is the sweetest alive, but he is also super protective! When my daughter and I are walking him or at the park with him, he picks and chooses which men to bark at to let them know not to mess with his girls. He knows something we don’t know.
If you look up old pictures of cart pulling dogs they are all sorts of breeds and a lot of them have wire muzzles on. I think there was a cauntious effort across breeds so they didnt have to worry about the dog biting random people.
I've often wondered about this myself. They were bred as gundogs, but how did they end up so friendly? If you look at our understanding of selective breeding, often traits are somewhat mysteriously intertwined so that when you get one you get the other - for example, the decades long project to breed tame foxes found that as foxes were selected for friendliness to humans certain other traits would appear - most notably floppy ears (sound familiar). My guess is that the trait for general bidability, soft mouth, non-reactivity pulled along the friendliness trait. And as their original gundog purpose became less prevalent, breeders then started selecting specifically for the friendliness trait. And here we are, in a Golden wonderland! :-)
My Maddie grew up with an Older Indoor/Outdoor Cat that was the sweetest, cuddliest fellow to the point where it was like "bro you're like an old man that wants to hug me all the time" but remained a vicious predator until he passed at 19. They used to work as a team. One time I was visiting and at 3 am Maddie came busting into my bedroom and jumped up very urgently and kept headbutting me in the dark so I figured she was just being neurotic and reached for the ball in her mouth and got a big handful of warm baby bunny. Mr. Kitty brought it in and she brought it to me. This happened multiple times over the years.
They're literally bred that way, it's all genetic. Goldens were first derived as hunting dogs that would be eager to please their owners and not harm dead ducks that were shot during hunting with their teeth.
Genetics is key with everything dogs. Pitbulls are greatly overrepresented in dog attack deaths because they were bred to kill other animals for sport. Shepherds naturally guard everything because they were bred to be guard dog. Bernese Mountain Dogs have a natural desire to pull things and be companions to Humans because they were bred to pull wagons in the Swiss Alps. Goldens were bred to be eager companions and gentle. In the last several decades breeding has bred even more of a family dog aspect into them as the sporting aspect slowly becomes less desired or cared about.
I've seen territorially aggressive goldens. They're wonderful companions but they need to be trained like any other dog.
And they kill small animals because that's what they were bred for - to retrieve small game like rabbits and ducks and bring them to the hunting party.
My guess is that it's because they are such a popular family dog.
Once their popularity as a family dog took off the breeding focused intensely on amenable personality. What helps to contribute to their personality (and how it developed over time) is their hunting dog background in the form of their intelligence. A sweet dog that is low on intelligence isn't as attractive as a sweet dog that's very intelligent. From house training to obedience intelligence (mostly) makes a dog *easier* if not more enjoyable to own and care for. So here is this dog that started out smart and beautiful and likely *somewhat* more "nice" than other dogs then comes along decades of family dog focused breeding - POOF (literally and figuratively) now you've got one of the most well tempered dog breeds out there.
Our golden loves almost everyone and everything, cats, fish, praying mantises, dogs (unless they’re black and white), chickens…
But if you’re a ferret she will find you. I don’t know what happens next because she’s never had the chance to finish her mission.
Funny you should ask. When I camped in my trailer with my two hooligans, I'd put out a bowl and fill it using an old plastic Smirnoff Vodka bottle filled with water. Whenever anyone questioned the bottle, my typical reply was: "*Why do you think Goldens are so goofy & happy all the time*?"
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My current (2nd) golden wants to kill every dog he sees. Impossible to take on walks, and we had to modify the electric fence to keep him out of the front yard.
Inside the house, he’s sweet as pie though.
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I hate to break it to you morons but my our beautiful loving golden retrievers don't exist in nature. All domesticated dogs are the results of man's direct involvement in their breeding. If that messes with your fantasy world then bring the down votes
I don’t know what squirrels did to Goldens in the ancient past but there is a blood feud that has no end.
My golden dude doesn't give a darn about small mammals but I have a dachshund mix that will destroy the small animal kingdom for existing. She lives for destruction.
We have two goldens, a 2 year old 90+ lb male and a 16 month old 55 lb female. Both are super super lean high energy working dogs. The male just wants to be BFFs with every small creature he sees. He will lay down in the middle of the path when there's a small dog coming towards us and won't budge until they say hi or pass us. The female wants anything smaller than she is to have its head mounted on a spike and its guts displayed as a warning to all others that may cross its path. She's crazy
I used to keep chickens and we had this dachshund that would just sit there quivering at the back patio door waiting for the chance to bolt to the coop and start digging in... relentless.
Yeah, mother in laws doxie has gotten a baby bunny and two snakes in the past like month. And then destroyed a small tree, hose and garden bc why? No idea lol just blood lust we assume
Well she was breed to hunt rabbits. Golden were breed to retrieve not hunt lol
My friend said mine killed a squirrel, but I did not believe her...up until a month or two ago when he got ahold of a rabbit. Poor thing apparently died of a heart attack or maybe he squeezed too hard and caused internal injuries.
Was his name Lenny?
“George is never gonna let me tend the rabbits if he finds out you got killed!”
Oof I felt that one, seriously a wonderful but sad story.
Mine runs normal, like any other dog. But when she chases bunnies she hops just like them. It’s adorable watching her chase them to the edge of the lawn and then hit the brakes. The woods are scary
goldens have soft mouths
Tell that to my ankles 😂
A soft mouth doesn’t stop them from breaking their necks. My girl has killed like 3 rabbits and none of them end up bloody at all. Just dead
We have rabbits that keep nesting their babies in our yard. I’ve seen Midas trying to play with the dang things, then we sometimes find one by our back door like he’s saying ‘somethings wrong with it - fix it.’ Yet at the same time, one evening he was carrying three around in his mouth for around half an hour, and when we got him to drop them they were still alive and we got them to a rescue. So we never know what to expect.
Love the name Midas lol
My golden killed rats that came over from a farmhouse tear down. I thought at first that the rat was tossed across our fence. Turned out that my golden would kill them. Found out when a field mouse scurried out from under the lawn mower - she caught it clamped down and the mouse was completely dead.
Mine kills rats
https://preview.redd.it/n80a4eedto6d1.jpeg?width=964&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=63eda6e16b5a84ed2c1cdd86924e841dcee9c1ad I have pet rats and my girl gets along great with them (although I certainly don't let them interact unsupervised). she is very gentle with them. Goldens are so different lol
Only when they want to.
Mine once brought me a toad. Toad was not damaged.
I’ve always heard this… but am yet to experience it in my 2 year old 😂
I experienced it with my old golden that passed away 17 days ago on may 28.
💔 sending hugs.
she was amazing, I hope she is finding some fun things up in heaven while waiting for us once more. She's in a better place now as she was suffering from seizures and the vet thinks she had brain cancer.
My brothers bit my leg and tripped me on the stairs when he was 7months and I fractured my ankle when I fell because he was upset I didn’t want him jumping on me and refused to reward bad behavior and didn’t pet him. He’s finally starting to outgrow it but it’s tedious.
That’s not acceptable behaviour by your brothers! Did the dogs just sit there and witness the biting and tripping? 😃
lol my brothers golden pup
I found a dead squirrel in my backyard. Poor guy couldn’t escape the dog 😭😭😭
I can't shake the picture in my head of a dead squirrel friend who was electrocuted by a power line. There but for the grace of God go I...
I hate that my boy has killed a baby bird, but I’m so glad he’s not the only one that gets too excited about small animals in his reach
Ha! 100%. We have a couple regular squirrels hang on our property and they particularly love to sit on the fence and look into my home office window at our pup while I work; by the time our golden heads through the dog door to get them, he stands no chance.
Squirrels antagonize dogs like no other. My German Shepherd treed one and the squirrel started grunting at him and threw an acorn at him. They know what’s up. Drove my Shepherd insane!!! Grew up with Goldens, had 5 of them. They hated squirrels but were the friendliest dogs I’ve ever had. The only one who ever snapped at us was a rescue who was abused and had DM and was in constant pain the last 6 months of his life…so hardly his fault.
I am HOUSE GOLDEN.
We don’t have many squirrels where I am, so my golden is obsessed with lizards. When I let her out, instead of going potty, she goes to inspect the wall to make sure no dirty lizards are infesting the area.
That and bunnies. Caught my 2nd playing with something in the backyard. Tossing it up in the air - it would drop to ground - up in the air and land. She found a bunny nest and was tossing dead bunny around. All of us appalled.
AMEN! The morning squirrels vs my golden is a war that will go on for centuries
Same with Weimaraners. The good and fluffy English boys seem to get on well with all other dogs except those vicious huns
https://preview.redd.it/lklrl37u9l6d1.png?width=2902&format=png&auto=webp&s=563cdec46808865b14c158f5ed239aad8b32189b Ted and Ivy beg to differ. But they do have a common ground hatred of the fuzzy tree rats.
My dog had a cone on and he caught one for the first time the other night. We joked the cone gave it funnel vision! Just nabbed it, rip squirrel 🐿️
Marty didn’t care about tree rats until his first bday. After that, Murder Death Kill if he could only get off the leash.
My corgi tries to grow wings, hasn't worked yet.
Squirrels hate them back just as much. Had a crazy one harass my golden for weeks
Yes we don’t have squirrels in Australia but we can’t watch David Attenborough anymore because our one will bark at the squirrels on there. All animals actually. We don’t have lions in Australia either but he shakes and growls at them too 😂😂
I did not know there are no squirrels in Australia.
My girl is scared of squirrels!!
Lizards too
Can confirm.🐿
And Canadian Geese
My golden jumped out of a moving car window off a cliff to chase a squirrel….he didn’t catch it
My 10 year old golden finally caught his first chipmunk the other day after years of trying.. thankfully he dropped it after I was literally screaming 🤣
A hunter wanted a retriever that was also a good family dog. So he deliberately bred a dog that would be good in the house. So it was part of their purpose from the start.
This is the answer I was looking for
They are a mix between labs, bloodhounds and Irish setters. The breeding was around 1870 by a guy named? Lord tweedmouth, I think. The breed wasn't recognized until the 1920s
classic Lord Tweedmouth
Thanks tweedmouth u a real one for that
This is my favourite comment of all time
❤️
Yes and there is an annual Golden meetup at the ruins of the Lords home in Scotland!
omg this would be amazing. now to get my Golden across the ocean without having to put him in a plane hold.
Exactly!
:o first I'm hearing of this! Wonder if I can go even tho I don't have a doggy ATM :(
Use a human ATM, dogs don't have money
Yes you can! Last gathering was 2023 and they meet every 5 years! Plenty of time to find a new Golden friend too. https://www.countryliving.com/uk/wildlife/dog-breeds/a44544676/golden-retrievers-meet-up-scottish-highlands/
https://preview.redd.it/ynjfgoff8g6d1.jpeg?width=1457&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=68ec2a7d8224e8aecdb81bc4968f1227bccf6141 Flatcoats are the major part of the mix. Lord Tweedmouth bred those first (source: I own a flatcoat and am passionate about the breed). They have a recessive cream/gold gene and the odd yellow one from a flatcoat litter was used to create goldens. My Suki is on the right.
Adorable! And wonderfully informative reply. I saw a pic of a black golden yesterday, I thought it looked so sleek and stylish. Turns out that was the original default coat! Lol
#LONG LIVE LORD TWEEDMOUTH
HAIL LORD TWEEDMOUTH!
I’m guessing he’s dead at this point 💀
When I get my golden I’m naming him Lord Tweedmouth or Tweedmouth.
Baron of Tweedmouth, his name was Dudley Majoribanks (which is even funnier)
Wrong. Portuguese water dog.
Mine was vicious, when there was a barrier between him and someone else. If someone actually broke in, he would have helped him carry stuff out.
This is my dog. The Aussie on the other side of the fence? Mortal enemy. In the same yard? Bffs he’s showing his belly rolling around.
You’re describing my 5 year old golden perfectly. She’s a cold blooded killer behind a fence or glass. Protects our home from any dog that may be out for a walk in front of our house. Barks every time the family across the street lets their pooch out, but when she’s out for her walk, every person with a dog are the best thing that she’s seen all day!
Yup, I call mine an alert dog - she tells you if someone is there, then wants cuddles from them 😂
Im pretty sure mine would do the same🤣
Mine barks at the UPS guy like she wants to eat him, then promptly leans on him to get petted and tries to jump in his truck.
Mine too!!! I’ve never heard anyone else say this
Having only had ours 7 months she brings a ray of goldshine wherever she goes. Had a vet visit today and she bounces in and the girls immediately take her to their checkin desk so they can all have a cuddle. I feel blessed to see the happiness she has and she brings out in others.
Goldshine 😭😭😭
I have 2 goldens.. they are such sweet angels.. I have no clue why they are so adorable but I think god sprinkled special fairy dust on them! 😇🥰💕
https://preview.redd.it/yebh2tskhg6d1.jpeg?width=1121&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=941faad11e217da4216951ea9cbc0e6fd7c0c592 I like to think of it this way. All of mine have been the very best pups!
I love this quote!!! 💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕
One of my favorites! It’s so true! 💞💕💞💕💞💕💞💕💞💕💞💕💞💕
My vet says that Goldens were bred for the purpose of being an absolute delight at all times. I can’t say I disagree, although I could do with less defluffing of toys.
My SO and I were talking about this over the weekend. Our 7 month old has never been the slightest bit aggressive towards another dog, cat or human and just loves to meet everyone. When another dog is a little grumpy she tries everything in her power to be friends. Birds on the other hand are mortal enemies. https://preview.redd.it/4oaogw25be6d1.jpeg?width=2721&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d0cd0c6b3a9fd7a516fbf4f169e62c840280104e
Birds and Chipmunks bring out the beast in my Winnie https://preview.redd.it/3tlmuh83ce6d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f8a34f491d7300977a6d1065fc34b116517d87e6
Lol she looks so polite
No, she’s not a beast at all!
Our golden cannot fathom that any person or creature would not want to be her friend.
This is exactly what I say! "She cannot conceive of a creature that does not want to be her friend."
Mine is the same but she gets upset when someone doesn’t want her attention and will bark and lightly bught annoyingly. She barks at dogs who don’t want to play with her.
My girl does this. Boy just patiently sits and makes the saddest eyes at you until you feel guilted into more attention
https://preview.redd.it/o8nq3y20cg6d1.jpeg?width=1536&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=01a852214b58678000f2e10c70d909ac3a7953cb Something in your girl’s face reminds me so much of my girl as an adolescent!!
My 7 month old looks just like yours! Same size color and everything I thought it was her for a second! Love these sweet angels!
https://preview.redd.it/rubu7dld7q6d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b68bb79b3cb2a4978034e7cb070220545b72eb33 She’s a happy girl
God wanted us to have a true friend.
Love this answer! 🩵
It works both ways, whose friend is whos?😄
And this is what I believe ❤️ https://preview.redd.it/8adja171ig6d1.jpeg?width=1121&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ed682201199eff26a18440b15add1141e5eaa1a4
I just know that mine is also extremely nice. When I play hit a member of the family or wrestle around our Beagle gets very defensive but our golden will either try to play along or use her body to separate us. It's really sweet and adorable.
Haha! My Golden is my right hand gal - she thinks my kids are her puppies. I was playing Velociraptor with my kids - that's where I pretend to be a velociraptor and run after the kids (8 & 11) while I make dinosaur noises. If I catch them, they get hugged and then set free, so not a very high stakes game, just lots of giggling and some scream-laughing. Ellie, on the other hand, decided that things were getting a bit too rowdy, so she literally leapt into action. She jumped on me, and knocked me onto the loveseat, and then sat on me until we all calmed down. It doesn't help that she weighs nearly as much as I do, but her heart is always in the right place.
They really do think they’re as light as feathers! Lol 😂
Except their back legs. Lol
Exactly! 😂😂
I have a beagle and a golden and this is exactly my experience too!!!
One of mine is a field golden and he catches bunnies and carries them around in his mouth to show us. Once we acknowledge him, he puts the bunny down and it runs away a little wet and startled but unharmed otherwise
That’s cute. My found a nest of baby bunnies a month or so ago in my backyard and had a delectable snack. He chewed them right up and then licked his lips
OMG. I bet he was cute as anything doing it, too! Rascal.
Combination of being a breed that was selectively bred to be a working gundog and a family dog. The working gundog bit means that they have to get along with both people *AND* other dogs, shoots would have a number of shooters with a number of hangers on, while each of the group wouldn't be required to have their own dog they would need enough dogs to retrieve everything shot. I'm not sure of actual numbers here, I did try and find out but I could only find references to much later where one person was suggesting parties of 8-15 so at a guess maybe 4-8 dogs? Then you have the training aspect, they need to be willing to please, patient and biddable. While Goldens are exceptionally good they share a lot of their traits here with similar gundogs (like the Labrador Retrievers). Then the family dog bit is fairly obvious!
The gun dog thing really checks out with mine. He doesn’t flinch on 4th of July or at abrupt loud noises in general
Mixed bag with ours, fine with fireworks and when we took him with us clay pigeon shooting...absolutely craps himself when pans clatter or fall out of a cupboard!
Wow, exact opposite here. My golden is straight up traumatized by the forth of July and thunderstorms. To the point that it takes about 2 weeks after the 4th before he's willing to go for a walk at night and I always make sure I'm home if it's going to storm and will sleep on the couch while he hides under the coffee table.
Mine to a tee. Only 8 months old but can’t keep her out of the water. She loves to retrieve on land or water. Brings toys to the edge of the swimming pool and waits for me to toss it in. My grandson and I frequently shoot crows and the report does not bother her at all. She gets the crows on her own and brings the back. Doesn’t seem interested in chewing them up.
I read it was sort of a random quirk when developing the breed- all hunting dogs are bred to be cooperative but for reasons of genetic randomness a few of the dogs in the breed development program for goldens were exceptionally friendly and happy - and the breeders liked that and continued to breed for it.
God made the first Golden eat his own poop and it humbled them forever.
Still eating poop to this day haha
Cat poop to be sure, rolled in litter for an exquisite texture.
Ah, the nerds gummy clusters of the dog world
Ah yes, cat treats, as we called them
Lmao I feel like every golden owner has seen this happen at least once 😂
It was bred into them, along with a love of water, swimming, and fetching things.
https://preview.redd.it/ch7pu5jw7g6d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=17931c2a5360c50367e3916a561d603d05c8db2d This baby (9 months old) realized today that water was the best thing EVER! It’s going to be a fun summer 🤣
Mine got 1.5 of those things. Super friendly, likes wading in water, no interest in swimming and zero time for fetch.
There are supposedly different types of goldens. I had one who was a fetch-a-holic and would have made a great hunting dog (if I hunted). Her favorite thing was swimming in an ice-cold river to get a frisbee.
Mine just tried to trip me in the kitchen, so....
My golden is very aggressive. . . towards leaves moving in a wind. Otherwise, not so much.
https://preview.redd.it/p6by4em0dg6d1.jpeg?width=2316&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dc34bdbf0c42ed593458752167f445a4a601b178 This guy doesn’t have a mean bone in his body, but damn, he makes his presence known if I dare have some hooman food and not share it.
I love my golden to death. But my theory is that we bread the dog version of Williams syndrome into them.
I don't think many people would understand that, but damn if it doesn't make total sense. Everyone is friend. In the most adorable way possible.
I second this! Our golden gal was my daughter’s best friend’s best friend! She would call to ask how our pup is doing, and when she could come visit her again. (The best friend has William’s and is as perpetually friendly as our pup. They were best buds.)
My golden is extremely nice 99% of the time. However, he can be mean when the situation calls for it. He has been bitten by three different dogs. The first two he bit back because they were his size or larger. The third dog is a little yorkie with barely any teeth so he did not bite back. He does not like the yorkie though. It is my girlfriend's dog. She also has a pomeranian. The pomeranian can come up and eat out of my dog's bowl and he won't react whatsoever. If the yorkie gets within a foot of his bowl, he will start growling at him, but he's never attempted to bite him or anything. He was worse about it when he was younger, but I corrected him many times so it is not as common. He has been possessive around bones and food at times, but never actually bitten other dogs over it. He has also killed at least one rabbit and a squirrel because they ran from him and his prey drive kicked in. I have corrected him a few times since he killed the rabbit and he has seemingly stopped chasing them. By correcting him, I just mean I yell no, and he seems to understand not to do it anymore. My dog is more of a people dog. He loves everyone. He really couldn't care less about other dogs or animals, but is also not necessarily aggressive towards them.
Makes noise like they’re protecting. As soon as entrance is made, they get all friendly. Then to top it off, they will try to convince the friend in your house that they are barely fed, pet, played with or given any attention.
There is a golden that comes to the same dog park I go to, he just runs from person to person and sitting in their feet to get pats. When the person finishes he runs to the next. Endless loop. Love that guy. I own an English lab and she has a rather different approach to meeting all the humans. Mostly by just trying to lick their face.
God knew people who were afraid of dogs needed a dog to prove that some dogs were made of pure love.
This is one of many tasks ours completed. When we got her half the street was afraid of dogs, and the two pre existing dogs were very wild (but friendly) and very large and standoffish. A few years later she had the previously terrified neighborhood children (children who amplified their parents' old fears) wrapped around her ~finger~ tail(?)/nose(?) and we had no shortage of volunteers to groom her (lots of girls) and she was effectively the neighborhood therapy dog who made house calls (and of course perfectly stayed on the footpaths and did the needy in her designated areas). It was something very special. She entered the great playground beyond 6 years ago and has set an impossible standard for everyone else.
I don't know, they're just chill.
I have had goldens in the past and I currently have an almost 4 month old golden. They have all been great but I’m going to throw this out there, I’ve had 3 Bernese mountain dogs and they have been the absolute nicest with my current one being a dog that’s never even growled or snarled. I don’t think he has a single mean bone in his body.
Mine is a super sweet, ethereal angel 😇 99% of the time. However, she will stalk, hunt down and murder any lizard in her sights. I try to keep her from doing this, but she’s too fast!
Look up the intent of the breed creator. A dog to hunt and walk all day together with you then snuggle quietly by the fire with you at night .
The other day my ex said she liked me because I gave her golden retriever vibes, said I stay friendly with everyone. This is the second time someone has said this to me and it’s by far top 3 best compliment I have ever gotten.
there is a video out of a golden in a dress begging for battery operated wings to be put on. once they are on she admires herself in the mirror then gets her purse in her mouth and walks out of the room. She is too precious for words, I cant stop thinking about it.
Genetic mutation? A Williams syndrome type mutation makes dogs friendly and a little dumb https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/19/science/dogs-genes-sociability.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
Selective breeding for disposition. The trait exists because the original breeder wanted a gentle dog that could also accompany him on hunts.
Golden are angels on earth, who eat revolting things so we can’t say they’re perfect
https://preview.redd.it/vji23gtxig6d1.jpeg?width=1121&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5704502e18be3d87d0344c0e10c1777747289dd7
They were bred to have "soft mouths" so that they wouldn't bruise the flesh of the water fowl. They're also bred to be unbothered by gun noises So you've got a dog who has been bred for hundreds of years to fetch things gently and work in tandem with a person, to watch a hunter for cues, but to wait patiently until the time for their turn for action. All those things also really work for life with a family. Soft mouth means they won't play too rough and accidentally hurt a small child. Fetch? I don't need to elaborate. And they're always ready for action but also happy to lay about when it's time for couch potato-ness. I think the fact that they're goofy and adorable just seals the deal.
Because there is absolutely no brain in those massive heads
One of life’s best mysteries…
They were bred by mixing sugar, spice and everything nice! iykyk
Squirrels trade secrets on how to be a$$ ho$$$s to Goldens.
I believe Goldens are angels sent down from heaven.
You’re not wrong! https://preview.redd.it/ka3xt1c3jg6d1.jpeg?width=1121&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c01bca80a9d6958666e0464968f17a7691eaea6a
OT a bit… When I walk my golden I see other Goldens and stop and chat about our love of Goldens. I tell Sugar ‘oh look there’s your cousin’ when we see another Golden!
I watched as my 5 month old golden got repeatedly poked in the face by a baby the other day, no anger, in fact she actually just looked so happy to be there She's an angel https://preview.redd.it/590wtldxgi6d1.jpeg?width=3472&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ed01e33a26e944acd805c862d01439c5a79a5236
They will gladly let you annoy them as long as it means they get attention.
They’re not playing with a full deck. Also - mine hates deer.
Idk but thank God for golden retrievers. They’re so nice, we don’t deserve them. My GR is literally an angel. I love her! Edit: Spelling
Because, like orange tabby cats, they have one brain cell. KIDDING!
Yep, selective breeding is my guess. I don't regard them as dogs, they're closer to being human than most people I've known in my life. It's easy to forgive them when they get an attitude, as some seem to do. And parading around the house with my socks or whatever they can find, we let that slide because they're so damn cute. And when I throw a ball or a stick, and she retrieves it, only to play the 'keep away from human' game, I let her win every time.
They’re literal angels. My girl never fails to make me smile.
It's because they're always 'starving' and give affection in the hopes it will be rewarded with cake (or something else they're not supposed to eat)🤣❤ We have had 3 goldens over 30 years, although the latest model belongs to our son but we have shared custody 😊
https://preview.redd.it/j2ty65i5pi6d1.jpeg?width=5712&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6aed0196024c6200ab9d3316dac0af015bfaddb1 How could they not be. They are absolute dopes lol
We have chickens and cats. Our goldens have never had a problem with either and the cats have hung out with the goldens. The chickens are curious but don’t hassle the golden. Our Irish, on the other hand…wants to be friends with the cats but can’t seem to understand the cats tolerate her and she still terrorizes the chickens if given the chance (we try to make sure the chickens are in the garden before the Irish goes out)
My boy is the sweetest alive, but he is also super protective! When my daughter and I are walking him or at the park with him, he picks and chooses which men to bark at to let them know not to mess with his girls. He knows something we don’t know.
If you look up old pictures of cart pulling dogs they are all sorts of breeds and a lot of them have wire muzzles on. I think there was a cauntious effort across breeds so they didnt have to worry about the dog biting random people.
I've often wondered about this myself. They were bred as gundogs, but how did they end up so friendly? If you look at our understanding of selective breeding, often traits are somewhat mysteriously intertwined so that when you get one you get the other - for example, the decades long project to breed tame foxes found that as foxes were selected for friendliness to humans certain other traits would appear - most notably floppy ears (sound familiar). My guess is that the trait for general bidability, soft mouth, non-reactivity pulled along the friendliness trait. And as their original gundog purpose became less prevalent, breeders then started selecting specifically for the friendliness trait. And here we are, in a Golden wonderland! :-)
Idk, mine can be very naughty as well haha, but he is just my little baby
My golden is lovely but I watched her swallow a newborn baby bunny while she was staring into my eyes like a monster.
they are angels
My Maddie grew up with an Older Indoor/Outdoor Cat that was the sweetest, cuddliest fellow to the point where it was like "bro you're like an old man that wants to hug me all the time" but remained a vicious predator until he passed at 19. They used to work as a team. One time I was visiting and at 3 am Maddie came busting into my bedroom and jumped up very urgently and kept headbutting me in the dark so I figured she was just being neurotic and reached for the ball in her mouth and got a big handful of warm baby bunny. Mr. Kitty brought it in and she brought it to me. This happened multiple times over the years.
I have a theory they are aliens.
They're literally bred that way, it's all genetic. Goldens were first derived as hunting dogs that would be eager to please their owners and not harm dead ducks that were shot during hunting with their teeth. Genetics is key with everything dogs. Pitbulls are greatly overrepresented in dog attack deaths because they were bred to kill other animals for sport. Shepherds naturally guard everything because they were bred to be guard dog. Bernese Mountain Dogs have a natural desire to pull things and be companions to Humans because they were bred to pull wagons in the Swiss Alps. Goldens were bred to be eager companions and gentle. In the last several decades breeding has bred even more of a family dog aspect into them as the sporting aspect slowly becomes less desired or cared about.
do i have the only grumpy golden on this subreddit? mine isn’t too fond of people/dogs he doesn’t know
I've seen territorially aggressive goldens. They're wonderful companions but they need to be trained like any other dog. And they kill small animals because that's what they were bred for - to retrieve small game like rabbits and ducks and bring them to the hunting party.
I have a goldendoodle nice and friendly but with the intensity and endless energy of a poodle
Mine is pretty mean 😢
My guess is that it's because they are such a popular family dog. Once their popularity as a family dog took off the breeding focused intensely on amenable personality. What helps to contribute to their personality (and how it developed over time) is their hunting dog background in the form of their intelligence. A sweet dog that is low on intelligence isn't as attractive as a sweet dog that's very intelligent. From house training to obedience intelligence (mostly) makes a dog *easier* if not more enjoyable to own and care for. So here is this dog that started out smart and beautiful and likely *somewhat* more "nice" than other dogs then comes along decades of family dog focused breeding - POOF (literally and figuratively) now you've got one of the most well tempered dog breeds out there.
Our golden loves almost everyone and everything, cats, fish, praying mantises, dogs (unless they’re black and white), chickens… But if you’re a ferret she will find you. I don’t know what happens next because she’s never had the chance to finish her mission.
Funny you should ask. When I camped in my trailer with my two hooligans, I'd put out a bowl and fill it using an old plastic Smirnoff Vodka bottle filled with water. Whenever anyone questioned the bottle, my typical reply was: "*Why do you think Goldens are so goofy & happy all the time*?" https://preview.redd.it/y8xuhzp4gl6d1.jpeg?width=3264&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=45255c08dd04ac3115d576de06e3966331d7fbe9
My golden bites. We got him that way.
They got fucked up hormonal stuff - their serotonine levels aint normal
Stubbornest breed I've worked with.
My current (2nd) golden wants to kill every dog he sees. Impossible to take on walks, and we had to modify the electric fence to keep him out of the front yard. Inside the house, he’s sweet as pie though.
Downvoted?
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Has anyone's golden killed a groundhog?
Just selective breeding. Nothing supernatural going on
I think the question is why did they select for it
Because they wanted a friendly dog ⬆️
I hate to break it to you morons but my our beautiful loving golden retrievers don't exist in nature. All domesticated dogs are the results of man's direct involvement in their breeding. If that messes with your fantasy world then bring the down votes