Breed: Golden Retriever
The Golden Retriever is a breed of dog, historically developed as a gundog to retrieve shot waterfowl and upland game during hunting. As such they were bred to have a soft mouth to retrieve game undamaged and an instinctive love of water. Their intelligence and versatility sees them employed in a variety of roles including illegal drug detection, search and rescue, as hunting dogs and as guide dogs. Its friendly, eager-to-please and patient demeanor has made it one of the most popular family dogs (by registration) in the world.
Appearance
British type
Some variations do exist between the British type Golden Retrievers prevalent throughout Europe and Australia, and those of American lines and these differences are reflected in the breed standard. Its muzzle is wider and shorter, and its forehead is blockier. It has shorter legs, with a slightly deeper chest, and shorter tail. Its features make it generally heavier than the Canadian type. Males should be between 56–61 centimeters (22–24 in) at the withers and females slightly shorter at between 51–56 centimeters (20–22 in). Their weight, however, is not specified in the UK standard. The KC standard calls for a level topline and straight hindquarters without the slight rear angulation found in American lines. The eyes of the European type are noted for their roundness and darkness as contrasted with the triangular or slanted composition of their American counterparts. A Golden Retriever of British breeding can have a coat color of any shade of gold or cream; however, red or mahogany are not permissible colors. Originally cream was not an acceptable color in the UK standard; however, by 1936 the standard was revised to include cream. It was felt this exclusion was a mistake as the original "yellow" retrievers of the 19th century were lighter in color than the then current standard permitted. As with American lines, white is an unacceptable color in the show ring. The British KC standard is used in all countries with the exceptions of the US and Canada. Some breeders of this type in America may import their dogs to improve the temperament and health noted in those bloodlines . The incidence of cancer among English bloodlines is significantly less than is seen in the American lines.
American type
An American Golden is lankier and less stocky than a British Type. A male should stand 22–24 inch (58–61 cm) in height at the shoulders, and females should be 21.5–22.5 inch (55–57 cm). They range in weight from 65–75 lb for males and 55–65 lb for females. The coat is dense and water repellent, in various shades of lustrous gold, with moderate feathering. The gait should be free, smooth, powerful, and well-coordinated.
Canadian type
The Canadian Golden Retriever is a newer type of Golden. Appearance is meant to be similar to the American type in height and weight, with a light coat color. Color is described as not as light as a British type, and not as dark as an American type.
Field line Golden Retrievers tend to be smaller and have a less dense coat than their conformation line counterparts, and they are usually darker in color.
History
The Golden Retriever was originally developed in Scotland by 'Georgia'Bold text'[[
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Improvements in guns during the 1800s resulted in more fowl being downed during hunts at greater distances and over increasingly difficult terrain. This led to more birds being lost in the field. Because of this improvement in firearms, a need for a specialist retriever arose as training setter and pointer breeds in retrieval was found to be ineffective. Thus work began on the breeding of the Golden Retriever to fill this much needed role.
The original cross was of a yellow-coloured Retriever, Nous, with a Tweed Water Spaniel female dog, Belle. The Tweed Water Spaniel is now extinct but was then common in the border country. Majoribanks had purchased Nous in 1865 from an unregistered litter of otherwise black wavy-coated retriever pups. In 1868, this cross produced a litter that included four pups; these four became the basis of a breeding program which included the Irish Setter, the sandy-colored Bloodhound, the St. John's Water Dog of Newfoundland, and two more wavy-coated black Retrievers. The bloodline was also inbred and selected for trueness to Majoribanks' idea of the ultimate hunting dog. His vision included a more vigorous and powerful dog than previous retrievers, one that would still be gentle and trainable. Russian sheepdogs are not mentioned in these records, nor are any other working dog breeds. The ancestry of the Golden Retriever is all sporting dogs, in line with Majoribanks' goals.
Golden Retrievers were first accepted for registration by the The Kennel Club of England in 1903, as Flat Coats - Golden. They were first exhibited in 1908, and in 1911 were recognized as a breed described as Retriever (Golden and Yellow). In 1913, the Golden Retriever Club was founded. The breed name was officially changed to Golden Retriever in 1920.
The Honorable Archie Majoribanks took a Golden Retriever to Canada in 1881, and registered Lady with the American Kennel Club (AKC) in 1894. These are the first records of the breed in these two countries. The breed was first registered in Canada in 1927, and the Golden Retriever Club of Ontario, now the Golden Retriever Club of Canada, was formed in 1958. The co-founders of the GRCC were Cliff Drysdale an Englishman who had brought over an English Golden and Jutta Baker, daughter in law of Louis Baker who owned Northland Kennels, possibly Canada's first kennel dedicated to Goldens. The AKC recognized the breed in 1925, and in 1938 the Golden Retriever Club of America was formed.
Article Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Retriever
