Generally speaking, golden retrievers are very easy to maintain. They have double coat that is soft, smooth and of medium length. Up to a period of 6 to 7 months, retrievers have “puppy” coat that is constantly changing, and their coat will be fully grown and formed sometime around their first birthday. In the spring, the first shedding will begin, as this is the time when the coat starts to change. During this period, their coat changes intensively and regular brushing is a good idea (at least once a day). Normally, the top coat is constantly shedding throughout the year, but not too much, so you should not have too much dog hair around the house. Obviously, the top coat is longer, so the hairs can be picked up easily from carpets, furniture… It is strongly recommended to get brushes for both the top coat and the undercoat to be able to give proper care to your dog’s fur.
General fur care involves brushing regularly twice a week. Use a sturdy brush that first removes coarse, fallen hair and then use a fine brush that will give the hair a beautiful shine. Do not bathe your dog more than once every 3 to 4 months, as the skin can get irritated if it is excessively exposed to water and shampoos. Once you have washed and thoroughly dried your dog, you will be surprised to find out that the hair has a wavy and curly quality to it. If you want your dog’s fur to be straight and smooth, you will have to blow dry it. This is usually done only on special occasions (before exhibitions, for example).
Hair trimming and cutting
At times you will have to trim and cut the hair shorter in certain places, especially the ears. Start with the hair behind the ear and remove all excess and afterwards work on the inside of the ears. It is not so much about cutting the hair short as it is about making it thinner.
Use the same method to thin out the hair on the paws. It is super important that you do not cut too much hair on the lower leg since the retrievers need hair to be longer in this place. It is better to thin out the hairs often than to remove too much at once.
When doing the hair around ears and paws, make sure that you remove the fluffy hairs and not the health coat.
Their tail also need tending to. The best way is to first brush the tail and remove all dead hair. After this, have your dog lie on its side. Brush the hair out and make sure you have it all even. When trimming, the hair at the root of the tail should be longer than the hair at the top of the tail. The hair on the tail should form a nice arch, much like a blade on a knife (check out the photo). The longest end of the arch should be about 12 cm.
This photo shows a dog ready to take part in a dog show. Notice the shorter hairs around the ears and paws, as well as the nicely formed tail. Also, the picture shows the longer hair behind the paws as this is important.
Right, now up and go get your dog pretty.
