We raise our puppies inside of our home using proven Puppy Culture protocols . Every week our puppies are carefully and lovingly raised as well as intentionally trained and socialized.  By time your puppy arrives into your home he/she should be clicker and crate trained, have the basics of potty training started and be able to sit for petting and greeting.  To learn more about how we prepare your puppy for your family click here.. https://shoppuppyculture.com/pages/puppy-culture-1 

Our goldens see a holistic vet for nutritional consultations. Due to the specific nutrition needs of our breed and the risk of DCM we have chosen a food company that has developed a holistic recipe after many years of veterinary experience. We currently feed Dr. Gary's and Diamond Naturals. Each of our dogs is given size appropriate meals along with supplements tailored for their particular nutritional needs. We use a rotation of real fresh food toppers to supplement our dogs diet including organic eggs, vegetables, meat, fish and fruit. 

We offer a limited genetic health guarantee.  Each puppy is to be examined by your veterinarian within three days of his/her arrival. Our puppies complete a extensive veterinary exam with our veterinarian before family pick up day. Our health guarantee offers a replacement puppy from an upcoming litter or partial refund should a puppy fail to pass the preliminary or final OFA health clearances (hips, elbows or heart). The puppy must: not be bred, not be over weight, fed a premium dog food as agreed upon in our purchase agreement, receive age appropriate exercise and must be spayed or neutered (after 18 months) to receive a replacement puppy.  See our health guarantee and purchase agreement document for further details. We have done everything possible to reduce the risks in our lines through extensive genetic testing.

Our puppies receive premium nutrition, worming, nosodoes and age appropriate veterinary care a few days before family pick up day. We do not believe in a one size fits all approach so each puppy's individual circumstances are assessed before making a decision about what therapies and vaccines to give. This is discussed with our veterinarian as well as each family as individuals as a part of their purchase and adoption process.  We strive whenever possible to use the most natural holistic methods of puppy rearing. Each puppy is micro chipped to ensure that they can always find their way home. We remain on file as breeders and secondary contact.

We have committed to the breeder code of ethics recommended by the Golden Retriever Club of America. This includes but is not limited to the following core health clearances: OFA certifications on hips, elbows and eyes, as well as a thorough cardiac evaluation by a veterinary cardiologist. Each dog is genetically tested through Embark testing which screens for genetic diseases present in our breed. grca.org/about-the-breed/grca-code-of-ethics/ 

A lot of love goes into each dog we raise and choose to breed. We carefully choose our dogs from reputable breeders who are like minded and have a passion to improve and preserve our breed. When it comes to pets you get what you pay for. We carefully screened every breeder we choose our puppies from. We chose only the best dogs. We spent months in our search, chose proven breeders and imported some puppies from some of the best kennels in Europe. We have spent many months training, socializing, attending dog shows for Judge evaluations, and learning about our breed in every way possible. We have researched nutrition, health, and sought only the best veterinary care for our brood. Our families benefit from the love, time, and expense we put into our puppies.  We look at the pedigree, cost of raising, training , time invested, and health testing for each pairing and price our puppies competitively. We want to offer only the best to our families because we want them to enjoy our puppies as a part of their families for many years to come. 

Included in your puppy purchase is 8 weeks of puppy culture rearing, deworming, veterinary care, first shots (as per agreement), detox for vaccinosis, going home goody bag with gifts, as well as food, healthy records, AKC registration, genetic health guarantee, purchase agreement document, microchip registration information, and a life time of support from us. 

Note- for pricing see upcoming litters. Each litter has a price listed

Raising dogs naturally is a BIG priority to us. We seek out natural methods first and when ever possible follow their protocols. As previously mentioned, we see a holistic vet, avoid extra and routine toxic practices common in dog care. It is clear that many dogs are sick due to the large number of pesticides and toxins that they are being exposed to in both the environment and in other forms that are being actively given to them. In order to reduce the risk of cancer in our lines, we use only natural products and follow holistic veterinary care recommendations. We have expanded their diet to include fresh organic food and numerous supplements and detox remedies. 

Our female dogs go into season about every 6 to 8 months. Once their final health clearances are completed our reservation list for preferred families officially open. We will announce confirmed pregnancies and deposits will be placed on puppies as received. These families have gotten a head start on choosing the puppy of their choice. If more than 6 puppies are born in a litter the next families place a deposit until all puppies are reserved. Occasionally we have puppies available after the 7 week mark for adoption but we prefer each puppy selection takes place at the time of temperament testing at 7 weeks of age. 

It is not uncommon to wait six months or more for your puppy to be born. There is a great advantage to getting to know your breeder and following your puppies story from the very beginning. Our facebook page and instagram will be the first place to see when a pregnancy is confirmed or litter has arrived. Available puppies will be posted here first.

If you would like to meet our dogs or puppies we would love to have you do so. We have selected several ways for this to occur. We would love you to visit with us at our classes or golden retriever club events, on puppy party days and family pick up day. Due to the high incidence of parvo in our city we do not have visitors frequent our home. It would endanger our dogs to allow visitors to come in and out before our young puppies have immunity established against diseases especially by those who have seen and interacted with other litters . So we reserve these special days for visits where families can meet puppies and make their selection after the temperament tests and vet visits have been completed. For those who live out of town we make a great efforts to provide you with photographs ,videos and puppy cam visits.

We made this decision very intentionally. If you have ever lost a young golden or had one lost to cancer you understand the heart break. One of our veterinarians advised us to consider a larger gene pool. As we began our research we met and talked to many breeders. After years of searching  in the American lines we realized that there was an opportunity to  import show quality dogs and bring fresh lines to the US. In fact the Europeans golden retrievers  followed a similar conformation to the Americans but had a longer life expectancy and less cancer than the American counterparts. So we decided to take the plunge and offer our families better bred dogs from some of the most reputable kennels in Europe. Wow!! I can honestly say after raising goldens for 20 plus years I'm so impressed by the conformation, health and temperament of our current goldens. A well bred dog is truly a tribute to his/her breed.

Each of our puppies are raised to allow their temperament to blossom. At seven weeks of age your puppy will be given one or two temperament tests administered by a member of our team of trainers or person involved in many years of dog handling. This test allows us to see which puppy maybe best suited for your lifestyle.  At this time we will help you in making the best selection according to your desires and interests. 

We do offer delivery and shipping via air or ground for an added fee.  Prices vary depending on location and method of delivery. When ever possible, we would like to have each puppy attended by either the purchaser or a travel nanny. Due to the incidence of scams and other issues, out of town families may be asked for additional documentation and video phone calls.

Only pick of the litter puppies may be available with full breeding rights. We extensively screen potential breeders to be sure they are a good fit for our puppies and the rigors of breeding. We prefer these full registration puppies be placed in homes without younger preschool age children. We desire these puppies to continue to be shown in the ring, train in obedience, serve as therapy and service dogs. Each future breeder commits to obedience training as well as life long contact with us, so we can continue to evaluate our lines and offspring. A health report is requested yearly or every six months as appropriate. We DO NOT offer this privilege lightly. The future of our breed depends on responsible and ethical breeding and purchasing.

Periodically we will offer an older puppy from our AKC star puppy program for adoption. These puppies are highly sought after and will be available only once per year by advance reservation . We may at times offer a dog to families who is being retired from breeding. we will be very picky about which homes our dogs retire to. These dogs are not cast offs or low quality dogs, on the contrary they have years of training and are sweet in every way. We have developed a very special bond with these precious family members and want them to enjoy being spoiled members of their own families.

If you would like to hear what others have said about our dogs please see our recommendations page you will find notes from our veterinarian, groomer and others in our golden retriever community. We also recently set up a google buisness page for our familes to leave their reviews, pictures and recommendations.

We have had every color of golden retrievers over the years. We started out with bright red hunting lines. We had one litter that had the whole golden rainbow represented. As our lines continue to expand we will develop variations and various shades of gold. Right now our highest priorities are health temperament and conformation. The European show lines tend to be on the light side of the golden rainbow and because we want to breed for therapy driven temperaments we will choose these extraordinary goldens as our foundation dogs. We have found some lines to produce very hyper -driven dogs who would excel in the field but may not be as happy in a home. We do not use the term "english creme or white golden". The goal of our program is not to favor one color. We are passionate about our breed and Golden retrievers come in many shades of gold and we treasure each color and its characteristics. Some of our puppies will be light , others will be mid range but all will be true to their golden retriever characteristic temperament. 

But I Don’t Need a Show Dog!

In News, Tips & Advice

excerpts as Written by: Terri Lewin Gilbert

Why do people recommend choosing a breeder who shows and titles their dogs to folks who are just looking for a pet and have no interest in showing? Why should breeding to breed standard be important to a pet home? Does it seem excessive, or “snobby”?

It’s not, and here’s why.

Dog shows are a means of evaluating dogs against the breed standard, to evaluate soundness, movement/gait, type, and temperament.

Soundness: The state of physical and mental health when all organs and faculties are functioning properly, each in its rightful relation to each other.

Type: Breed type encompasses appearance, character, condition, bone structure, temperament, and movement; “breed type is all these things.” Breed type also includes a character specific to each breed, a combination of behavior, temperament and carriage that demonstrate an essence of the breed.

Gait: The gait of a dog is its quality of movement. You want to see ease of movement, unimpaired by illness or poor structure.

Temperament: The general attitude a dog has towards other animals and people. From the Newfoundland Breed Standard: “Sweetness of temperament is the hallmark of the Newfoundland; this is the single most important characteristic of the breed. The Newfoundland is a sweet-dispositioned dog that acts neither dull nor ill tempered. He is a devoted companion.”

So. That’s a very basic intro to what goes on at a show… why does this matter? You want a pet, a companion, not a show dog, right? Well, you chose Newfoundlands for a reason. You’ve done your research, and have read that they’re great with kids and other animals, they’re gentle giants, not aggressive, they make excellent companions and love spending time with their people. That their good and kind nature predisposes many Newfs to be excellent therapy dogs. That they’re large, and STRONG. Good, responsible breeders seek to preserve those definitive and positive characteristics.

Here’s an example– there are aggressive and aloof Newfoundlands. An aggressive dog is no joke, and a 140lb. aggressive dog even less so. Aggression can run in lines. Wouldn’t it be difficult to show an aggressive, reactive, fearful, or excessively shy Newfoundland? Do you want to take the gamble and trust someone about their dog’s history, or would you rather buy from someone who has taken their dogs into the ring and had the dog’s temperament proven over and over, consistently?

What about type and structure? How the dog is put together, able to move freely and comfortably? Would you rather buy from someone who has proven publicly, over time, that the dog they’re breeding can move well, free of limp, or a structural problem? Or just trust someone who has no interest in proving their dogs? It’s your puppy’s quality of life and comfort (as well as your wallet) that’s at stake.

Not every dog in a well-bred litter is going to be show quality- there will ALWAYS be pet-quality puppies. Well-bred, but maybe with a slight imperfection, and those are the puppies placed in pet homes. You don’t have to want a show-quality puppy to get a well-bred puppy!

Here’s the bottom line…. every day, Newf rescue is seeing more and more aggressive Newfs. Newfs in pain because they were poorly bred. Newfs requiring extensive vet care, expensive surgery. People having to remand their dogs to breed rescue because they can’t manage the dog, fear the dog, or found out the dog needs costly vet care they can’t afford.

This is not about being snobby, being elitist, thinking that one dog is “better” than another, it’s about ensuring you get a puppy that acts and looks like the breed you fell in love with. It’s about ensuring that all Newf puppies have the best start in life, and will grow into a loving family member. It’s about loving our breed enough to want to see everything that’s good about them preserved for future generations to enjoy. If you want a healthy dog, with a properly sweet temperament, choose your breeder wisely.