Their reply was, “This week.”
So I asked very respectfully, “How long have you been looking for a Golden Retriever puppy?”
They then replied, “Does it really matter?”
Getting a Golden Retriever puppy is in many ways very similar to adopting a human baby or child into your family; or at least we think it is. True, animals are not humans and the law regards animals as property, not individuals with rights. But that in no way diminishes the considerations and thoughts that should go into getting a puppy or dog, and making it a significant part of your home. Here is a list of considerations we put together that provide some very interesting similarities between human babies and Golden Retriever puppies:
| A Human Baby vs. A New Golden Retriever Puppy (striking similarities in what you should consider and properly plan for) |
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Considerations: |
Human Baby: | New Puppy: |
| Will it require substantial monies to finally bring one home from the hospital or a reputable breeder? | Yes | Yes |
| Will it require significant monies to be spent in preparing your home for the arrival of your new family member such as a crib (crate) bedding, food, toys, diapers and wipes (clean-up supplies), etc. ? | Yes | Yes |
| Will it require substantial monies to be spent after you bring it home for things like doctor’s appointments, vaccinations, possible treatments for minor sicknesses, more food and diapers for the long-term, etc. ? | Yes | Yes |
| Will the initial period after bringing it home more than likely exhaust you and result in less sleep, seemingly endless care and attention, getting up in the middle of the night, dealing with whining and crying, the baby constantly wanting to be held when perhaps you just want a little extra sleep or some “me time”… ? | Yes | Yes |
| Will it require undivided care and attention at first to prevent it from getting into something that could hurt it like into a cabinet and eating something harmful or pulling something off a table that could fall on it and cause injury? | Yes | Yes |
| Will you have to baby-proof (puppy-proof) your home for a period of time? | Yes | Yes |
| Will you have to spend time teaching, educating, and training your new family member that will require personal sacrifices and patience? | Yes | Yes |
| Is it important to establish your house rules for the new family member… things that you expect and desire to instill in them as acceptable and unacceptable behavior, etiquette, manors, good habits, etc. ? | Yes | Yes |
| Will there be times when you are disappointed with something they did, and you have to find a way to get them to understand the wrong that was done and at the same time how much you love them unconditionally? | Yes | Yes |
| At the end of each day for years to come, will all the joys, fun times, cuddling, cutesiness, family vacations, pictures, and memories more than outweigh any of the negatives, and these become long forgotten and you’ll end up doing it again by adding a second, and who knows, maybe more family members because it’s all worth it? | Definitely | Definitely |
So now one should also think about this question, “How much time should you spend thinking about getting a Golden Retriever puppy before you actually purchase one?” The answer to this question is going to be different for every family or individual. It will depend on your current commitments, lifestyle, how valuable your current level of freedom is to you and your willingness to dedicate a part of your life to the new family member. It will also depend on things like if you’re an individual or a family that can share in responsibilities, whether you have owned a Golden Retriever puppy before (or any breed of puppy for that matter), and are your finances in order where you can take on the additional expenses of a puppy in your household. Have you done any research to educate yourself about becoming a responsible dog owner including the pet owner regulations in your community, city, and county? Also, some people own their own home which is ideal but if you are renting a home or an apartment, have you spoken to your landlord about having a pet and will there be a pet deposit? After considering these factors, some might be ready to get a puppy much sooner than others. We would say maybe a few months, or maybe as much as a year if you have to give yourself enough time to get everything in order to take this huge step in owning a Golden Retriever puppy.
But then comes the next big step (and maybe one of the most important steps) is to try and find a good breeder who is reputable, experienced, honest, considers breeding a passion and not just a quick money-making means to be able to afford a new mini-van for their family. One who has a track record of providing healthy puppies to dog owners with no history of health issues in areas that can be a problem with Golden Retrievers such as joints, heart, and eyes. One thing is for sure in the dog breeding arena across the country: It has been flooded with many thousands of people who have decided to get into the breeding business with hundreds more each year, but have not done their homework before doing so. Quite frankly, many of these people don’t know what they’re doing and give a bad name to breeders in general. So how do you find a good breeder? Ask a lot of questions such as,
- How long have they been breeding Golden Retrievers?
- Do they breed multiple breeds, or just Golden Retrievers?
- Have they ever sold puppies to a broker or pet store, or only to the final pet owner?
- Do they own all their sires and dams?
- Do they offer a health guarantee of at least one year?
- Have they had any past health issues with any of their breeding dogs?
- How many litters have the sire and dam had together?
- Has there been any health issues in puppies from past litters?
- Has the breeder carefully considered and thoroughly looked into the family trees of the dogs they are breeding to see if there would be any significant inbreeding? A good breeder should look at least as far back as 6 generations on both parent sides and a coefficient of inbreeding should be evaluated (see this article).
- Will the breeder work with you and advise you down the road if you have concerns that come up with your puppy so that you aren’t at the sole mercy of a veterinary clinic who seems to charge a lot of money for one simple vet visit?
- Is the breeder happy to talk to you about Golden Retrievers even if they don’t have one to sell you at the moment, or do they seem to be too busy to discuss things with you? Breeding Goldens should be a breeder's passion rather than just a means to add profit to their pockets.
Now let’s go back to the individual who contacted us and asked if we had any puppies available and was hoping to get one that week. We tried to explain the importance of putting a considerable amount of thought into it rather than acting on what seemed to be a good idea at that moment. They responded that it was for their young child’s birthday. Now we very much hate to stereo-type or make assumptions about anyone, but this seemed to us to be someone who perhaps didn’t put very much thought into it but was just trying to make their child happy. Actually, that’s an excellent motivator because we think every child should get an opportunity to have a Golden Retriever puppy. But there's so much more than a child’s desire that needs to be considered before taking on this huge responsibility.
Which brings us to our next point. Not only is it important for families and individuals to find a good breeder of Golden Retrievers, but it is equally important for good breeders to find a good home for the puppies that they breed! This means that we want you to ask us questions and we want you to also answer some of ours. Part of our screening process works like this: We'll ask you to fill out our “puppy application,” and we ask you to read our “purchase agreement”, our “supplemental terms and conditions”, and several of our blog articles before you consider buying one of our puppies. These requests are designed to make our perspective puppy buyers think carefully with both eyes wide open before getting one of our puppies. It's not a critical process where only a select few make the cut; rather it is about you making a wise decision of what is best for you, your family, and most of all this new puppy who is just like a helpless baby when you bring it home.
With the recent situation in our country concerning the spread of Covid-19, many people have decided to get a puppy while they are off work and at home. Actually, this is an ideal time to get a puppy, but at the same time, we would like our potential puppy buyers to avoid those spur-of-the-moment decisions without thinking things through very carefully. And what happens when everyone goes back to work and things change with everyone’s schedules? Is the puppy's best interest included in that scenario? With this in mind, we are anticipating some cancellations and we are ok with this because things in people's lives change and we get that.
Starting in February of 2021, Emery-n-Denise's Golden Puppies began a new puppy purchase program for everyone interested in a Golden Retriever puppy. We think this new program will accomodate the needs of everyone. If you are absolutely sure that we are the right breeder for you and you are 100% positive that you want to buy one of our puppies from an upcoming puppy litter, then our Priority Reservation list is right for you. But if you are still doing your research and talking to various breeders, or maybe you are still trying to decide if now is the right time to bring a puppy into your home, then our Standby Reservation list might be the right choice for you. The difference between our Priority and Standby reservations is the deposit amount. 1st Priority requires a $300 deposit, 2nd Priority requires a $200 deposit, and Standby does not require any deposit until we inform you that we specifically have a puppy available for you from a recently born litter.
But in all cases, we need to talk to you first, you still need to fill out a puppy application, and you still need to carefully read our purchase agreement. We need to know for sure that you are very serious about getting one of our puppies, that you have carefully thought about it, and you are ready to accept the financial and time commitment responsibilities of bringing a new puppy into your household. Please call us at (417) 559-3305
and make inquiries to find out if one of our reservation lists is right for you.We hope this article helps our perspective puppy buyers make an educated, well-informed decision before buying a Golden Retriever puppy. We never try to pressure people to buy from us, and if you decide not to, we will still talk to you, try to help you, and offer our suggestions in finding that perfect furry family member. Thank you for considering Emery-n-Denise’s Golden PuppiesTM.
Emery-n-Denise's Golden Puppies are exclusively a Golden Retriever Breeder of AKC pure bred Golden Retrievers and we have Golden Retriever Puppies For Sale serving Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Illinois, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Okalahoma.
