Golden Retrievers are very popular dogs and generally make great family pets. They are very intelligent dogs that do well with proper training and a lot of exercise as they can be quite boisterous and playful. Golden Retriever puppies are attention seeking by nature and can go overboard looking for attention but establishing boundaries and rules can help make them more manageable.
Golden Retrievers are of the working dog category and are highly sought out for their ability to perform invaluable tasks such as search and rescue. They make excellent guide dogs and are used by the police for drug detection. Their high intelligence makes them ideal for advanced training. Getting a Golden Retriever at an early age is best as you can begin obedience training while the puppy is still young and moldable. Older Golden Retrievers that haven’t received proper socialization and obedience training can be a bit of a handful.
They are large and powerful dogs that can grow to 24 inches in height and they can weigh from 55-75 pounds. They are of a muscular build and have long flowing coats which range in color from a very light, pale beige that is almost white to a dark honey color. Medium golden colored individuals are favored for show purposes.
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Basic Knowledge
In the beginning the golden retriever was named the yellow retriever. In later years the name was largely replaced by the golden retriever, a name made up by the late Lord Harcourt. Also at the beginning of this century there was consternation about the origin of the breed. Black with a wavy coat retrievers were known in certain circles in the south of Scotland in those days, but especially black Labradors are very popular. Actual yellow retrievers were hardly known, except for a few members of noble families and their close friends. Their subsequent spread to all parts of England was not easy to provide. Therefore, it is rather late to try to put facts and truth. Fortunately there is still an undisputed source of information available.
Character
In Britain, Europe, the United States, South Africa, Australia and Japan this dog is very familiar. It is one of the six retriever breeds we know: the Labrador Retriever, Flat Coated Retriever, the Curly Coated Retriever, Chesapeake Bayretriever and the Nova Scotia duck tolling retriever(yes, really!). The golden retriever is full of life, workaholic and controllable of nature, and is therefore often used as a working dog such as service dog and hound. As a family dog he is very sound. Towards children, he is regularly understanding and good-natured, a real do-gooder, but not very watchful. Golden retrievers are often forceful but are softer in nature than the Labradors.
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The Labrador Retriever: An Intelligent Working Dog
As the breed name clearly points out, the Labrador Retriever was bred originally to assist in the hunt by retrieving downed game. However, as years passed, their roles did not change but rather expanded to include numerous tasks and services.
No service rendered by a dog can surpass the role of Guide Dog. Through the work of these highly skilled animals, a blind individual is able to move in the mainstream of life, guided by the “eyes at the end of the lead.” Such a human-dog bond reaffirms the valued place canines have assumed in our modern world. A Guide Dog and his owner share a special relationship, a dog that lives to serve and an owner who is able to live life to his fullest aided by the service of a life-long companion and friend.
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The Guide Dog program originated in Switzerland in the 1920s under the leadership of Mrs. Dorothy Eustis. The original Guide Dogs were strictly German Shepherd females, bred by Mrs. Eustis at her Fonunate Field Kennels. Over the years, Labradors as well as Golden Retrievers were also recruited into the program. In Great Britain, approximately 70% of the Guide Dogs are the Labrador Retriever, and Australia uses only Labradors for this task.
In the United States, The Seeing Eye was the driving force of the Guide Dog movement. This organization started in 1929 by Mrs. Eustis and is currently headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey.
It has maintained its own breeding kennel since 1941, producing 327 puppies in 1986, 117 of which were Labradors. Of a breeding stock of 40 adults, there are 15 female Labradors and four male Labrador dogs. Only the very finest dogs are selected for this special breeding kennel. They must have successfully completed the rigorous training program designed by The Seeing Eye and exhibited stellar qualities in temperament and conformation. Labradors are commended as easy breeders producing large litters.
The Labrador Retriever excels as a Guide Dog primarily because of his size, working ability, well-rounded temperament, and ability to get along so well with people. The Labrador also has a small streak of stubbornness that the people at The Seeing Eye find useful.
While this makes the Labrador Retriever slightly tougher to train, this quality sets the breed apart from most in that a Labrador can take charge and refuse a command when confronted with an emergency situation—such as when a blind owner commands the Labrador Retriever to move forward and a hazard apparent only to the dog lies in the way.
Dog Health – Proper Nutrition For Your Working Dog
Dogs that lead a very active lifestyle demand a more comprehensive diet than average dogs require to ensure proper dog health.
Examples of these hard-working dogs are those that participate in agility competitions as well as those that team up with law enforcement on a search-and-rescue mission.
For the best possible dog health, these dogs require nutritional needs that are different from an average household pet.
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Most of these sporting and working dogs participate in intermediate activities as well.
These are activities that require low to moderate duration and intensity. Examples include: Competition or agility, service, search and rescue, tracking or hunting, police or guarding, detection, and even managing livestock.
Essential Nutrients For Dog Health And Your Busy Canine Athlete
Because your dog is always on the go, you need to provide him with larger doses of food and certain types of nutrients.
This is especially important in times when they are most active. A typical working dog would need about 2 – 5 times more calories than a sedentary dog.
These extra calories are converted into energy that helps your dog health and canine athlete perform better.
Four Key Nutrients For Busy Dogs and Dog Health
1. Carbohydrate: Once your dog reaches adulthood, he has no need for carbohydrates in his diet, although he is able to absorb this nutrient if eaten. Less carbohydrates in the adult dog’s diet creates better performance. Therefore, minimum amount of carbohydrates is required for the working dog or any dog that participates in any kind of activity that lasts for more than two minutes.
2. Protein: Protein contains amino acids, which are the building blocks for hormones, tissues, and enzymes. This nutrient provides energy and helps develop muscle mass for extra size and strength. Keep in mind, however, that too much protein in your dog’s diet can lead to excessive protein breakdown. A busy dog should have a diet that includes high-quality protein, enough to provide for muscle and structural repair.
3. Fats: The main source of energy for intermediate athletic dogs comes from fats. This nutrient contains about twice as much energy as carbohydrates and protein provides. Adding more fat to your dog’s diet is the best way to increase his energy and strength. A diet high in fat is more appealing to your dog while at the same time providing him with better endurance. Therefore, it is very important to supply him with adequate amount of essential fatty acids along with saturated and unsaturated fats.
4. Water: A hard-working dog normally loses more water during laborious activity so it is very important to provide him with an ample supply of water to keep him hydrated.
This is even more important for dog health when your dog is under extreme temperatures (both hot and cold weather).
Avocados: A Surprisingly Healthy Fruit For All Dogs
A useful dog health tip is that most dogs love avocados. They taste good, and they are an excellent source of fat. Fat is responsible for providing dogs with extra amount of energy and gives them healthy skin as well as an extra glow in their coat.
Strangely enough, it was the dogs themselves who led us to the idea of using the avocado as a supplement to the canine diet. It seems that avocado growers’ pet dogs were competing with the growers for any fallen fruit. The growers became curious and decided to compare the nutrients that this amazing fruit contained with those needed by canines.
According to a Veterinary professor at Iowa State University, this fruit enhances hair quality as well as skin tone, with which avocado growers have reported in their dogs is most likely due to the amount of linoleic acid of the fruit when added to the dog’s diet.
Of course, this fruit alone could not be recommended as the only nutrient source for dogs. But an avocado, in small quantities as a supplement, might be helpful if adequate amount of fat were not available from other sources.
A dog’s requirement of fat depends mostly on the amount of activity he engages in. For instance, an active working dog needs up to twenty percent fat in his diet, while the average household dog that walks a few blocks everyday needs only five to eight percent of fat in his diet. The very thin dog should get a diet rich in fat until his weight and health improve. The pregnant and nursing female dog also needs greater amounts of fat in her diet.
The majority of canine canned foods contain adequate fat to satisfy the need of an average household dog. However, if the dog is fed a diet strictly of dry meal, it might be moistened with additional sources of fat.
Avocados are an excellent source of fat for this purpose. And for canines that get most of their fat from canned foods, this tasty fruit also serves as an occasional treat. Avocados might be alternated with other occasional food supplements to add variety to the dog’s regular diet. Simply put, dogs love avocados and they are good for them!
Word Of Warning: Documented evidence suggests that some dogs, as well as other domestic animals like cats and cattle, can be severely harmed and prove fatal when they eat the avocado pit, skin, leaves, and bark of the avocado tree. Therefore, when supplementing your dog’s health and diet with avocados, make sure to only give him the meat of the fruit.
Nutrition For Active Dogs – Proper Nutrition For Your Working Dog
Dogs that lead a very active lifestyle demand a more comprehensive diet than average dogs require. Examples of these hard-working dogs are those that participate in agility competitions as well as those that team up with law enforcement on a search-and-rescue mission.
These dogs require nutritional needs that are different from an average household pet. Most of these sporting and working dogs participate in intermediate activities as well. These are activities that require low to moderate duration and intensity. Examples include: Competition or agility, service, search and rescue, tracking or hunting, police or guarding, detection, and even managing livestock.
Essential Nutrients For Your Busy Canine Athlete
Because your dog is always on the go, you need to provide him with larger doses of food and certain types of nutrients. This is especially important in times when they are most active. A typical working dog would need about 2 ? 5 times more calories than a sedentary dog. These extra calories are converted into energy that helps our canine athletes perform better.
Below are four key nutrients for busy dogs.
1. Carbohydrate: Once your dog reaches adulthood, he has no need for carbohydrates in his diet, although he is able to absorb this nutrient if eaten. Less carbohydrates in the adult dog’s diet creates better performance. Therefore, minimum amount of carbohydrates is required for the working dog or any dog that participates in any kind of activity that lasts for more than two minutes.
2. Protein: Protein contains amino acids, which are the building blocks for hormones, tissues, and enzymes. This nutrient provides energy and helps develop muscle mass for extra size and strength. Keep in mind, however, that too much protein in your dog’s diet can lead to excessive protein breakdown. A busy dog should have a diet that includes high-quality protein, enough to provide for muscle and structural repair.
3. Fats: The main source of energy for intermediate athletic dogs comes from fats. This nutrient contains about twice as much energy as carbohydrates and protein provides. Adding more fat to your dog’s diet is the best way to increase his energy and strength. A diet high in fat is more appealing to your dog while at the same time providing him with better endurance. Therefore, it is very important to supply him with adequate amount of essential fatty acids along with saturated and unsaturated fats.
4. Water: A hard-working dog normally loses more water during laborious activity so it is very important to provide him with an ample supply of water to keep him hydrated. This is even more important when your dog is under extreme temperatures (both hot and cold weather).