FAQs
Why do you require a co-ownership?
To us a co-ownership means a lifelong commitment to you and your dog. It does not mean that we own a half, third or a quarter of a dog! You own your dog and you are responsible for your dog but should a situation arise that warrants our help we want to be able to do so. We are not looking for “guardian” homes or to breed your dog at a later time. We will keep or have “show homes” available for dogs we want to keep in our breeding program. If this type of situation is not comfortable for you then we are probably not the right breeders for you. This is a way for the dog to be protected in an emergency as well as for us to always be able to help no matter the situation.
We understand that co-ownerships can go horribly wrong, but it's like anything in business, it's who you go into business with! We probably don't know you all that well and you don't know us. We will meet with every family that gets a dog from us in our home. This is an opportunity for us to get to know you and your family dynamics as well as for you to get to know us and ours. References are available upon request. There are no financial reasons for us to do a co-ownership. There is no difference in cost for the buyer or breeder. Co-ownership for us is not done to breed your dog at a later time, if we felt something was of breeding or show quality we would keep it ourselves or have those conversations with families interested in that prospect.
What type of registration do puppies receive?
All puppies are sold on limited registration. This means that they are not eligible for conformation and no offspring would be registrable with AKC. They are however eligible to compete in all performance venues through AKC such as obedience, rally, scent work and so many others.
What do we feed our dogs?
All puppies will go home on either Purina Pro Plan Sport 30/20 Salmon and rice or Royal Canin Golden Retriever Puppy food. We highly recommend leaving them on this food. Purina Pro Plan Sport is an all stages food and does not need to be changed. Royal Canin Puppy can be fed until two years of age at that point depending on your dog’s lifestyle we either recommend Royal Canin Golden Retriever Adult food, Royal Canin Large Dog food or Purina Pro Plan. Please reach out to us to discuss your own situation.
What are their temperaments like? How big are they going to be?
While Goldens have amazing temperaments, that does not mean Goldens come trained. We are big advocates for AKC class style obedience classes and doing multiple sessions. It’s also great for safely socializing your puppy. Goldens stay puppies for longer than most breeds, be prepared that they don’t fully settle until 2-3 years old.
We breed to the golden retriever standard (https://images.akc.org/pdf/breeds/standards/GoldenRetriever.pdf)
with that boys should reach about 65-75 pounds and girls should be 55-65 pounds. Goldens should be a medium sized dog.
A common misconception is that males are more aggressive, this is not true and any aggression would not be a sign of a solid well bred, well socialized golden retriever of either gender. Another one is that females are sweeter, the best way we describe the differences in temperament is that females want to know what’s in it for them where as males are all about you. Females will be more independent and males a little more attached.
Do you crate train?
Absolutely and we are strong advocates for continued use of crates. Especially in vehicles, you wouldn’t let a small child ride lose in a vehicle it is just as dangerous to allow a dog to ride loose on a car as well.Young dogs and adult dogs need down time and crates are the best way to ensure that. As much as we never want it to happen to anyone if for some reason there is an emergency (flood, fire, etc.) and emergency services comes into your home your dog will need to be crated. We want it to be a comfortable place for them. Crate training will begin before puppies ever go home. We personally use ruffland kennels (https://rufflandkennels.com/) you can go through their website and see why, look at pictures of the state of their crates after an accident and it speaks for itself. Its also a safe place for dogs and a place to decompress.Talk to us about sizes before you order!
Can I take my puppy/dog to dog parks or to puppy/dog socials?
We do not and will never endorse dog parks or off leash dog “socialization”. Again Goldens have great temperaments but you do not know what will set off another dog and a dog park or off leash group situations are a recipe for injury, disease, lifelong trauma and so many other things.
How do you pick puppies?
Puppies are evaluated at 7.5 weeks for temperament and structure by several long time breeders/AKC judges whose opinions we hold in very high regard. That is when we will know which puppy we want to place where. Our puppies are raised in our home and are closely watched by us from the moment they are born to see how their temperaments develop giving us the knowledge of who will fit in which home. We will meet each family at our home to get a better idea of the right puppy for you.