Golden Retriever puppies are cheerful, loving, and always eager to please. Their extraordinary intelligence and high trainability make them impressive working dogs.
Golden puppy is recognized as a versatile breed and possesses several characteristics that make them stand out. It is one of the most distinguished breeds in the United States.
Golden Retrievers excel at retrieving game for hunters, sniffing out narcotics for law enforcement, and as therapy, military, and service dogs. They’re great with kids and very protective of their human family.
How to Take Care of Golden Retriever Puppy
Taking care of your Golden Retriever pups involves a lot of things including feeding, grooming, training, and exercises.
Feeding your Golden Retriever puppy:
Golden Retrievers need 2 to 3 cups of high-quality food a day, divided into three meals.
- Age appropriate diet
Golden Retriever puppy's diet should be appropriate for your dog's age, gender, and activity level. The food requirements of a Golden puppy change as they grow up. Try to monitor their food as they can easily put on weight.
- Meet their nutritional requirements
To support their energy level, your Golden puppy's diet should meet their nutritional requirements.
- Avoid overfeeding
Do not overfeed your Golden Retriever puppy even if they act like they are starving.
- Clean those feeding bowls
Food and water bowls should be cleaned regularly. Thoroughly clean them even if it looks like your Golden Retriever puppy licked it “clean.
- Feeding schedule
Maintain a regular feeding schedule for your Golden Retriever puppy. Do not leave your puppy’s food out all day. If it doesn’t eat, pick it up and wait until the next meal.
- Pet parent tip: You must ensure that clean and fresh water should be available to these Golden Retriever puppies at all times.
Grooming needs of Golden Retriever puppy:
Golden Retriever puppy has a double coat that comes in many shades of gold. The puppy has a dense, water-repellent outer coat with a thick undercoat.
- Golden Retrievers are heavy shedders. They require frequent brushing to keep the hair from flying in the house.
- Golden Retriever puppies don't need frequent baths. Give them a bath once a month or when they get dirty.
- Brush your puppy's teeth at least two or three times a week to remove bacteria and tartar buildup.
- Trim your puppy's nails once or twice a month to avoid splitting and discomfort.
- Golden puppy's eyes should be clear with no redness, swelling, or discharge.
- Golden Retriever puppy's ears should be examined and cleaned every week with a canine ear cleaning solution.
- When you groom your Golden Retriever puppy, look inside its mouth and ears for signs of allergies or infection.
Also, check for sores, rashes, signs of infection, or inflammation on your Golden Retriever puppy's skin.
You can use the following tools for grooming your Golden puppy:
- Dematting Comb
- Medium-size pin brush and slicker brush
- Grooming rake
- Grooming scissors for tidying up the coat
- Nail clippers
- Dog toothbrush and toothpaste
Grooming your Golden puppy is a great way to bond with your fur buddy. It should not be a burden for you or your puppy. Make it a positive experience filled with praise and rewards. Regular grooming and careful examination of your puppy will help you spot signs of infection and potential health problems early.
Training your Golden Retriever puppy:
Golden Retriever puppies are highly intelligent and eager to please. This makes them very easy to train. These intelligent pups can fairly understand your commands and enjoy learning new tricks. Golden Retriever puppies are extremely sensitive, so punishments will damage their personality.
Here are some of the training that you need to do with your Golden Retriever puppy:
- Leash training
- Crate training
- House training
- Basic obedience training
Puppy training classes for Golden Retrievers serve as part of the socialization process.
Exercise requirements of Golden Retriever puppy:
Goldens are very active and smart pups. They need regular chances to release their pent up energy. Exercising your puppy is rewarding for both Golden and the owner. Here's how you can meet your puppy's high exercise requirements:
- Daily walk: A regular walk will stimulate their mind with the sights, sounds, and smells they come across. Some dog parks have a track that you can utilize for walking.
- Fetch Games: All Golden Retriever puppies are great chasers and fetch games will help to burn pent-up energy. It enables your little puppy to remain physically and mentally stimulated. You will need a small ball or toy, suitable for puppies and ask him to fetch the ball.
- Tug of War: Golden Retriever puppies love tug of war almost as much as we do. They can play this game for hours. You'll need a strong tug toy for this game. Remember to supervise the game if kids are playing.
While playing tug of war, it’s important to ensure that your Golden Retriever puppy doesn’t get hurt. It should be a controlled game and they release when you want them to.
- Find The Treat: This is a fun game for your Golden Retriever puppy but a more relaxed game for you. It is played by hiding treats around the house and is a great way to keep them occupied and steal away an hour for yourself.
Instead of treats, you can hide their favorite toys as well. Some Golden puppies can find the treats very quickly while others will take a little longer.
- Running, and Jogging: A short run or jog can do wonders for your Golden Retriever puppy. This will burn off a good deal of their pent up energy.
- Swimming: Swimming is a great exercise for your Golden Retriever puppy. It burns energy and uses all the muscles including the front legs and shoulders. Swimming is a low impact activity that burns energy fast and helps to strengthen and tone muscles. You must ensure that your Golden Retriever puppy has a swim vest for safety.
- Frisbee Toss: You can also play Frisbee with your Golden Retriever puppy. It requires skill, coordination, and timing and is a great energy burner for your puppy. Start by rolling the frisbee on the ground towards your Golden puppy. You should be careful while you play frisbee toss with your little puppy.
- Interactive toys: Golden Retriever puppies enjoy playing with interactive toys. You can give them an assortment of puzzle toys to challenge their brain.
Major Health Concerns of Golden Retriever
Golden Retriever pups are moderately healthy but are prone to few health issues. The health problems that may affect this breed are:
- Subvalvular Aortic Stenosis: It is a heart disease that is hereditary. It is caused by a narrow connection between the left ventricle and the aorta of the affected Golden' heart.
- Osteochondrosis Dissecans (OCD): It is an orthopedic problem in Golden Retrievers. This condition is caused by improper growth of cartilage in the joints.
- Allergies: Golden Retrievers are prone to a variety of allergies. Goldens may be allergic to dust, pollens, molds, certain foods, and flea saliva.
- Von Willebrand's Disease: It is a common hereditary blood clotting disorder in Golden Retrievers. Affected Goldens may experience excessive bleeding, even from minor cuts.
- Gastric Dilatation-Volvulus: It is caused by the sudden influx of gas and air in the Golden Retriever pup's stomach. This causes it to distend and twist.
- Epilepsy: This disease refers to abnormal and uncontrolled bursts of electrical activity in your Golden Retriever's brain, causing seizures.
- Hypothyroidism: A Golden Retriever with Hypothyroidism produces low thyroid hormones. This problem in golden retrievers is curable and treated with medication and diet.
- Hip Dysplasia: It is a genetic progressive disease. Golden Retrievers with hip dysplasia show reflectance in rising, jumping, or running. Deformity of their hip causes pain and lameness on one or both rear legs.
- Elbow Dysplasia: It causes a developmental deformity of the elbows. Elbow dysplasia in Golden Retrievers can cause limping, lameness, swelling, pain, and often leads to arthritis.
- Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA): It is an inherited eye disease affecting Golden Retrievers. Affected Retrievers initially experience vision loss in dim light. PRA can eventually cause complete blindness due to bilateral degeneration of the retina of the eye.
Parting Shot on Golden Retriever Puppy
Golden Retriever puppies are one of the finest family dogs in the world. They easily get along in just about any home or family. They will steal your heart with their great looks, loving nature, devotion, and intelligence. This ever-friendly puppy will fill your home with joy and happiness.
If you have any questions about Golden Retriever pups, please do let us know. We would be happy to help you.
