Golden Retriever Puppies for Sale

Parents of Pawrade Golden Retrievers typically weigh 58–90 lb (fathers) and 48–75 lb (mothers).

The breed comes in one size, and a height more than 1 inch over or under the AKC standard is outside the AKC breed standard. The Mini Goldendoodle, a Golden Retriever and Poodle cross, is a smaller relative.

An English Cream is a Golden Retriever, not a separate breed: it is a Golden bred to the UK-style type. Cream is a standard color under the UK Kennel Club and FCI standards, and shades from cream to gold can appear in the same litter.

Most Goldens are kindly, friendly dogs that want to live indoors as part of the family. Long hours alone, in a crate or out in the yard make them unhappy, and that often shows as barking, chewing or digging.

Goldens are not heavy barkers, although some adults bark at activity outside. Puppies whine, grumble and bark to communicate, and boredom barking usually comes from being left alone.

A Golden is typically friendly to everyone, strangers included, so it is not suited to guard or watchdog work.

Goldens are generally very good with children, especially when parents supervise and put time into training the puppy. Golden Retriever breeders on Pawrade report socializing 88% of their litters with young children before the puppies go home.

Goldens usually get along well with other dogs. More than a third of Golden Retriever buyers on Pawrade already have a dog at home, and breeders report socializing 83% of litters with large-breed dogs.

Goldens generally get along well with other pets as well as other dogs.

An adult Golden needs at least 2 hours of exercise a day, with walks, swimming and games of fetch. A fenced yard helps, but a Golden will not exercise itself there, so it needs you to walk, swim and play with it.

A Golden is a large breed that needs daily exercise, so apartment life takes a real commitment to walks and play. Most Golden Retriever buyers on Pawrade live in a single-family home.

Only for short stretches, because Goldens want company, and isolation or long crate hours lead to barking, chewing and digging. A puppy should never be crated for a full workday, although naps of 1 to 4 hours after exercise and a potty break are fine.

Wait until your Golden is at least 12 months old before jogging, because its joints are still growing. Until then, keep play gentle.

Goldens handle heat only moderately, since they carry a dense double coat. On hot days, keep walks and play to the cooler hours.

Golden Retrievers shed year-round, with a major shed about once a year, and no dog is truly hypoallergenic. Daily brushing during the heavy shed keeps the hair under control.

Brush weekly for most of the year and daily during a heavy shed, and keep up with baths, nails, teeth and ears. The feet can be trimmed and stray hairs tidied, but the natural outline should not be clipped.

The double coat has a firm, water-repellent outer layer, straight or wavy, over a soft, dense undercoat. Feathering grows on the legs, underbody, neck and tail, and the full coat comes in at about 18 to 24 months.

Goldens are highly trainable and eager to please. Reward them with food or a retrieve, keep sessions short and varied, and give them a job to do.

A well-mannered Golden comes from socialization and consistent training, and teenage Goldens are energetic and mouthy. Plan a puppy class in the first year, then basic obedience, with a refresher class every couple of years.

Goldens still work as hunting retrievers and detection dogs. They also compete in obedience, agility, tracking, hunting tests and field trials, dock diving and conformation.

Retrieving and carrying games suit the breed best: balls and bumpers, swimming, carrying and delivery tasks, and scent games all use its retrieving drive and soft mouth.

Your Golden is most likely in adolescence, a normal phase when dogs test boundaries and may seem to forget their training. In Goldens the teenage phase runs from about 6 to 18 months. Teenage Goldens are energetic and mouthy, and it is the stage owners most often underestimate. Keep training short, varied and rewarding, and keep going to classes, because this phase needs the most structure. Rebellious behavior usually eases as your Golden nears 18 to 24 months.

A common rule of thumb is that a puppy can hold its bladder for about as many hours as its age in months. A 3-month-old, for example, can usually wait about 3 hours. The rule works up to about 9 months to 1 year, and every puppy is different. Take your puppy out first thing in the morning, after naps and last thing at night. Keep the crate close enough at night to hear a whimper.

House-training takes a steady routine, and a crate or puppy pen helps whenever no adult can supervise. Breeders on Pawrade report whether they have started crate training, so ask how far your puppy has got.

Golden Retriever breeders on Pawrade report a typical litter of 7 puppies, usually between 4 and 10.

Most Golden Retriever litters on Pawrade meet young children and larger dogs before the puppies go home. Breeders report socializing 88% of litters with young children and 83% with large-breed dogs. They also report getting litters used to loud music or TV (58%) and the vacuum cleaner (57%). These figures come from what breeders reported for 581 litters.

Clear the floors of socks, shoes, paper, toys and trash, because a Golden puppy will carry off almost anything. Set up a crate or puppy pen for whenever no adult can supervise, and stock a large-breed puppy food. Book a first vet visit that covers the heart, eyelids, skin and diet.

Start right away, because the first 3 months are the most important time for socialization. Puppy classes can begin as early as 7–8 weeks, with healthy classmates and clean floors, as your vet advises. Introduce people, dogs, noises, grooming and car rides, and keep up classes through the first year.

Most puppies finish teething by about 6 months, when the adult teeth are in. Baby teeth start to fall out from about 12 weeks, and chewing is strongest in between. Offer a few safe chew toys at a time and rotate them, supervise chewing, and keep shoes and socks out of reach.

Most puppies finish their core vaccine series at about 16 weeks, as your vet advises. Until your vet says the series is complete, skip dog parks and other places where unknown dogs gather. A puppy class with healthy classmates and clean floors is fine before then.

Most growth is done by about 18 months and all of it by 2 years, although males may keep filling out, especially in the head, for up to another year. Goldens mature slowly in mind too, and puppy exuberance often lasts into adulthood.

Feed a large-breed puppy food in measured meals, so growth stays slow and the ribs are easy to feel. Avoid unproven grain-free or legume-rich diets, which are linked to a heart muscle disease in the breed, or ask your vet about a taurine test if you feed one. You can ask what your puppy is eating now before it comes home.

The Veterinary Health Report is the record of your Golden Retriever puppy's exam before it goes home. The breeder's licensed vet gives the puppy itself a full hands-on exam to PetPay's standards and writes down what they find. It gives you and your own vet a clear starting point for your puppy's care.

The breeder's licensed veterinarian examines every puppy before it goes home, to PetPay's exam standards. The results are recorded in the puppy's Veterinary Health Report, and a copy travels with your puppy for your records.

The breeder's vet examines the whole puppy and pays close attention to a few things that matter in Goldens. The vet listens to the heart for a murmur, which in Goldens can point to a narrowing just beneath a heart valve (subvalvular aortic stenosis). The vet also checks the eyelashes, the skin and coat, the bite and, in males, the testicles.

Before travel, every puppy follows PetPay's vaccination and deworming schedule as far as its age allows: deworming at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 weeks, and the distemper, parvo, adenovirus and parainfluenza combination shot at 6–8, 9–11 and 12–14 weeks. Bordetella and corona are given at the vet's discretion, and no vaccine is given within 3 days of travel. Rabies is given by a licensed vet on the schedule your state requires. Your own vet completes the series. Your puppy's vaccination and deworming records are separate documents that travel with your puppy. Bring them, with the Veterinary Health Report, to your first visit so your vet starts from the same record.

If the vet finds something that could put your puppy at risk during travel, your puppy stays with the breeder until it's resolved. Problems that can be treated before travel are treated by the breeder's licensed vet first. Anything else the vet notes is shared with you.

Puppies grow and change quickly, and their immune systems are still developing, so no single exam can find everything. Hips, for example, cannot be judged in a very young puppy. The report is a strong early look at your puppy, and your own vet builds on it at every checkup.

Every puppy comes with a health guarantee administered by PetPay, independent of the seller. The terms are on the health guarantee page.

Golden Retriever buyers rate their Pawrade experience 4.6 out of 5 on average, from 539 reviews, and about 81% of those reviews give 5 stars.