Golden Retriever breeders in Kentucky reviewed

Golden Retriever breeders in Kentucky: Goldenstar Goldens

This Golden Retriever breeder in Kentucky is located in Louisville, KY. According to their website, they have been involved in Golden Retrievers for over 30 years. All of their breeding dogs are carefully screened for hips, eyes, elbows and knees. Apart from breeding, this breeder is active in conformation, agility and obedience with their dogs. If you are located near Lousiville and are interested in this breeder, please visit their website.

Golden Retriever breeders in Kentucky: Waterfront Golden Retrievers

This Golden Retriever breeder in Kentucky is located in Lexington, Central Kentucky. According to their website, they strive to produce perfect family companions with excellent health and good temperament. All of their dogs are well-socialized and active in a variety of events such as conformation, agility, rally and others. All of their breeding dogs are carefully screened for breed-specific health issues such as ichthyosis, heart disease, eye disease, hip and elbow dysplasia and others.

If you are interested in this breeder’s puppies, please visit their website.

Golden Retriever breeders in Kentucky: Kelston Golden Retrievers

This is another Golden Retriever breeder, located in Lexington, KY. According to their website, all of their breeding stock are OFA certified for hips and elbows, as well as screened for eye and heart disease. In their breeding, Kelston Goldens follow AKC standards for Golden Retrievers. If you are located in or near Lexington and are interested in this breeder, please visit their website.

Golden Retriever breed review by Alexandra and her Golden Retriever Rufus

Rufus is really everything we wanted and more. He is extremely people-oriented, outgoing and affectionate. He is probably the most loving dog out there. He lives for his family and he is the happiest when he is around us, which is really mutual!

Among some of the downsides to owning our Golden Retriever is the amount of dog hair you will have to deal with on a daily basis. It is ridiculous how much vacuuming it takes to make pretty much no difference in the layer of hair on the floor and carpets as well as furniture. Add to that all the effort and time invested in grooming this beast! He requires brushing and cleaning, otherwise, that beautiful coat will mat and get tangled. Often we have to give Rufus a bath especially in the cold time of the year when we get lots of dirt and/or snow outside, otherwise, he will track the elements into the house.

When my partner and I were planning to adopt a dog, we had a few things in mind in terms of the future breed. First of all, we wanted a medium-to-large breed as we both don’t really love smaller dogs. We wanted a breed that isn’t very vocal or at least one that wouldn’t bark all the time. (As we both had experience with that before and didn’t enjoy it!).

We also wanted a dog that is capable of occupying itself for at least part of the day because we both work even though I work part-time. We wanted an active breed that would be happy outdoors and up for the many hikes that we do, but not overly excitable and not overly needy like a Border Collie or something. So working breeds like collies or German shepherds were out.

We wanted a dog that would be cautious of strangers but not necessarily an aggressive dog whose guarding instincts we’d have to constantly modulate.

And finally, we wanted a dog that’s people-oriented and affectionate.

We looked through a lot of breeds and finally made, perhaps not the most original choice, of getting a Golden Retriever!

Rufus is really everything we wanted and more. He is extremely people-oriented, outgoing and affectionate. He is probably the most loving dog out there. He lives for his family and he is the happiest when he is around us, which is really mutual!

He is also very obedient, even though we have never done that much training. I really appreciate that about our Golden, the fact that he will just do as asked and I don’t have to raise my voice or learn how to train him so he listens to me. He just does. I think it could be part of the Golden Retriever personality – this desire to please the owner, or maybe it’s just that we are so lucky with Rufus.

Like all Golden Retrievers, Rufus is a gorgeous pup. He always attracts attention whenever we take him out, and even we still see him as definitely the most handsome one in our family.

In terms of energy levels and activity, he is definitely a very active dog. He needs several good walks a day and at least one really long walk on the weekend where he can run around and explore new places or even just expend his energy in our local dog park. Outside, he seems to have endless amounts of energy, which actually works great for our family, because we are also active. Hours of hiking or cycling, or swimming at the lake – he loves all of that.

At the same time, I wouldn’t say he is hyperactive. It’s just the healthy energy all dogs have. At home, he can definitely relax and in fact, spends quite a lot of time lounging on the couch. (Where he actually isn’t really allowed). Most of the time, as long as he’s had his regular daily walks and toys to play with, he’s all set. Although he is a fairly large dog, Rufus has never been “inconvenient” to have around the house. Sometimes we will forget he is even there, because he is pretty quiet and self-sufficient, provided we are around.

Among some of the downsides to owning our Golden Retriever is the amount of dog hair you will have to deal with on a daily basis. It is ridiculous how much vacuuming it takes to make pretty much no difference in the layer of hair on the floor and carpets as well as furniture. Add to that all the effort and time invested in grooming this beast! He requires brushing and cleaning, otherwise, that beautiful coat will mat and get tangled. Often we have to give Rufus a bath especially in the cold time of the year when we get lots of dirt and/or snow outside, otherwise, he will track the elements into the house.

The other thing is we had to fence in our back yard when we first got him, and then build the fence up a year later because Rufus is very tall and very agile and he can jump! Sometimes he gets very curious about what is going on behind the fence and after a few escape attempts that we thankfully caught, we decided we wanted to invest in his safety! Now he just sits in front of the fence, listening to what happens outside.

Other than that, we are quite in love with our Golden. He brings so much joy into our life and we have never once regretted adopting him!