Golden Retrievers are intelligent and obedient dogs, meek and playful, with an equilibrate personality, calm and sociable: they are very energic dogs, but you should constantly give them mental and physical stimuli. Golden is born in Scotland in 1800 as a hunting and retriever dog, but it is a perfect companion dog for families and children. This breed has different bloodlines: the American one and the British one.
British Golden Retriever, its features
The British Golden Retriever has some different features compared to the American one. The British one has generally lighter colors, it is massive and solid, heavier compared to the American line.
The British Golden Retriever has a shorter, wavier and thicker fur, a big and equilibrate head, the eyes of the British one are rounder and light or dark brown. Their long ears have low joint, the same level as the eyes. The neck of the British Golden Retriever is muscular, more powerful compared to the American one. And what about their health and life expectancy? British Golden life expectancy is 12 years and 3 months: the risk of cancer in British Golden seems to be lower compared to the American relatives.
A study carried out in 2010 showed a mortality rate of 38.8% (Dobson 2012 Adams et al. 2010), which is higher than average, but quite lower compared to the one of American Golden.
Talking about their temperament, British Golden features are well defined. This breed has a calm and meek temperament, but every dog has its own temperament, so some dog may be hyperactive as the American relatives. British Golden are easier to train, calmer and more mature compared to the American ones. The British line tends also to gain weight, so you should provide it only with quality food, according to its age and with all the nutrients required, but you should constantly monitor its weight and calorie consumption. So, you should avoid giving your Golden high-fat food and always making it do physical activity.
Golden is a perfect companion for trips, walks and runs, so an insufficient physical activity may cause undesired behaviors.
It is normal that Golden tends to lose fur and down-fur twice a year: so, you should use a quality brush to brush it twice a week and remove dead fur. When the dog do the molt you should do it once a day.
Baths may help untie knots of the dead coat, but you should dry the dog properly before starting brushing it.
Since it is the most widely spread breed in Europe and in Italy, the average price of British Golden is 1,500 Euros, but the price may be higher in professional farms.