GoldenWei

You should have seen my first couple times in the ring. I was soooooo nervous, I was shaking like a leaf, heart palpitations, feeling physically ill etc. I'm a total wuss. Luckily it didn't take me too long to get over it and now I love showing Congrats on the pup, when do you get him/her? I'm expecting my first, second and probably even 10th time in the ring to be something similar She should be here end of next week... her name will be Willow I think.

Cool, will try make Wednesday's. You have a field right, I did look at those Will definately come to find you to say hello.

Group three, YAY! Might see you round the ring at some point. ETA I'm sorry I couldnt resist I just stalked you (checked your post history LOL) and have a feeling I know what you are getting and if I'm right Love them, very pretty! PMSL, well if you are basing this on a fairly recent post, then yes, you are right. I wasn't expecting to get one so soon. Yeh basing it on your recent post Things happen for a reason, I had only just started looking at pointers when I stumbled upon Kite, it was fate, and I'm having a fantastic time showing her! Yeah, it was similar to what happened with my first ever golden (who I adored until the day she died and still miss her). Someone pulled out within a week of the time for her to go home... so yes, I believe in fate!

Group three, YAY! Might see you round the ring at some point. ETA I'm sorry I couldnt resist I just stalked you (checked your post history LOL) and have a feeling I know what you are getting and if I'm right Love them, very pretty! PMSL, well if you are basing this on a fairly recent post, then yes, you are right. I wasn't expecting to get one so soon.

Thanks for that. Austral isn't too bad. I need all the help that I can get so will try and make it when she is old enough. I was debating about taking my younger golden, even though he is desexed and on limited register, until she is old enough. Yes, I decided that I really should stick with gundogs So yep, may see you round sammy.

Cool, I will join today then, thanks guys. I don't want to say too much until I have her which (unless something unforseen happens) should be next week, but she will be in group 3, and there usually aren't too many of them in the ring, I have seen a few at various shows, but nothing like goldens and labs etc. I'm in Western Sydney. Do DogsNSW still hold show classes, I was looking on the website yesterday but I couldn't find any info.

Well, I have just put a deposit down on a show puppy.... I'm now sh*t scared. Have wanted a show puppy for such a long time, and now that its about to come to fruition... I'm like, what have I done!!! I haven't joined dogsNSW yet, probably should ask my breeder, but should I be joining now, prior to her coming home, or should I wait until after I have her? How long does it normally take for a membership to be approved?

I remember one night Phoenix was barking. It was the same bark he gives when he wants to go to the toilet. I'd only let them out 10 mins before and was trying to go back to sleep... I wasn't happy. So I get up, and guess who'd left the light on after I'd let them out. I apologised to the little prince, turned it out and went back to bed. No more barking.

We go to Baulkham Hills Vet, they should be open today, 9-12 and then again from 3-5. you need an appointment. Baulkham Hills Vet

I've been wanting to get a show dog for a very long time, so, my goal this year is to get my show puppy (she's on order) and then get into the ring. Once that is achieved, my goal is to not make a fool of myself everytime we enter the ring.

My first golden had Addisons. She developed it at 6 years of age. In answer to your question, its definately worth the treatment. My girl was on tablets, up to 5 per day I think, however her dosage did flunctuate through the course of her life. If she has Addisons, yes she'll be on medication for the rest of her life, but once its under control and she's stable, she should lead a reasonably normal life. You will need to watch her for signs that she may need more (or less) medication, and of course watch that she doesn't have an Addisionian Crisis. My girl used to be scared of thunderstorms, so in those times, ie. in times of stress, I would need to watch her even more closely. Anyway, happy to answer questions if you had any. Good luck with her.

I can't believe there hasn't been any responses to this thread yet. Well I will add some info from my personal experiences. 1. What is my relationship with the breed? (ie breeder, first time owner etc) I've owned goldens for the past 15 years now... having said that I am only on my third so haven't owned that many. 2. Where and why was the breed first developed? The Golden Retriever was developed in Scotland and England in the late 19th century for the purpose of retrieving wildfowl on land and water fowl. 3. How common is it in Australia? VERY. They have been over-bred by puppy farmers and backyard breeders unfortunately. 4. What is the average lifespan? 10-12 years, however cancer is becoming more prevalent in the breed and is decreasing this. My first golden died of cancer just short of 12 years, my second is now 11.5years and seems to be going strong. 5. What is the general temperament/personality? Happy, friendly dogs. They mature mentally quite slowly, mine have been very puppyish until atleast 2 years, Sascha my first didn't settle down until Indy came along at 3. They will more likely lick an intruder then bite. Having said that, Phoenix doesn't like strangers approaching the yard and will bark if he thinks they are up to no good. However he is unlikely to follow through if someone actually did take him on. They usually play well with other dogs and are quite social. 6. How much daily exercise is needed for the average adult? Depends on the dog. One of mine would be happy with with a short daily 30 min walk. The other needs a lot more exercise to keep him satisfied and not bounce off the walls. 7. Is it a breed that a first time dog owner could easily cope with? Again, it depends on the dog. Phoenix would probably be ok with a first time owner, he was so much easier to train and live with as a puppy then the other two. Sascha was my first dog, and I deliberatly chose the mischievios one as I had a misconception that they were a very placid dog. She was a horror, she'd pull clothes off the line, dig holes, and generally be very naughty. I made a lot of mistakes with her, but learn't a lot as well. I'd never trade her in, however for a first time dog owner, she probably wasn't the ideal choice. 8. Can solo dogs of this breed easily occupy themselves for long periods? If they don't have something to occupy themselves with they will get up to mischief. They can bark a lot, dig holes and man can they chew!!! My almost 12 year old will still find sticks to chew on given half a chance. They were bred to retrieve, and as such are very mouth oriented, they generally like to have things in their mouths! 9. How much grooming is required? A really good brush and comb once a week usually would suffice, the longer coat type (American type) can matt if brushed properly, a trim around the feet, pads and ears to tidy-up when it starts to look like it needs it, their chest hair is trimmed for the show ring but I don't bother with it. The shorter, wavy coats (English type) are easier to deal with and I prefer this. 10. Is it too boisterous for very small children or for infirm people (unless the dog is well trained)? Usually yes. They need to be taught from a very young age not too jump, they will knock young children over. If they get the zoomies get out of their way, I've been knocked over several times by them running into me. 11. Are there any common hereditary problems a puppy buyer should be aware of? Unfortunately Hip and elbow displasia are common especially in those that are backyard bred. Progressive Retinal Atrophy, cataracts are becoming common as well as entropian. Cardiomyopathy is also common. A good breeder will do the four tests, Hips, elbows, eyes and hearts. Do not buy from a breeder who doesn't have eye & heart clearance certificates for the puppys parents, and the hip and elbow scores should be low, and even. 12. When buying a puppy, what are the things you should ask of the breeder? (eg what health tests have been done (if applicable) and what is an acceptable result to those tests so the buyer has an idea of what the result should be) I would want to see atleast one of the parents in the flesh. Definately ask what they test for. If they don't test for the above four walk away. I'd want to know how much socialisation they get. Ask what the temperment of the parents are like. A good breeder should be able to match the temperment of the puppy to your families needs.Depending on what you want the dog for, ask what their parents excel at, ie. confirmation/obedience/field work etc.

I loved the one I had near me, but like other people said, the driers aren't very good. We bought one of those highly absorbant towels, can't remember what they are made out of but we used the towel as well as the drier. We've just moved to the Hawkesbury so I need to find another one close by.

No worries. Sascha never had a full on addission crisis, you will find that once they are stable on their meds they stay like that for quite a while. In the 6 years Sascha was on meds we probably only had to change her dosage half a dozen times or so... if that. The other thing to be mindful of is that if she normally gets stressed or frightened about something, eg. Thunderstorms like my old girl, just watch her carefully in those times. I had to give her an extra Cortate tablet (cortisone acetate) so she wouldn't crash when we had thunderstorms as she would go downhill quite rapidly. Maybe ask your vet, depending on what medication that Chloe is on and if its appropriate to do something similiar. Once you get over the initial shock and her bloods are stable then it is a manageable disease, so hang in there Oh, and Sash didn't die of it, she was PTS age 11 due to cancer. ETA: I just realised you have a Sasha too (different spelling though )... how freaky is that!

My old girl was an addison. She had it for the last 6 or so years of her life. She never had cushings. Her main sympton was anorexia, the only thing I could get her to eat was roast chicken and sometimes that was difficult when her levels were too low. Her other main sympton was letheragy. She did have a bit of vomiting as well, but not a lot, it was more the first two. Before she was diagnosed she lost a heap of weight, mainly due to her anorexia I think. Hope that helps.

Thanks Pax. Blacktown is probably almost as far as Castle Hill, so will probably give them a miss. Will check out the others thou.

thanks guys/gals. I've looked at the Hawkesbury agility one, but thought that was just agility. Pax, do you know anything about the one at Hobartville (besides one of the instructors did well at the royal )? Ie. What time etc. Assuming I don't work from home, 7pm would probably be the earliest I could make it. Windsor is close enough luvsdogs. I am on the other side of Richmond, so its probably 20mins, maybe less, to there from where I am.

We have moved to the Hawkesbury district, I was wondering where the best place to take Phoenix to obedience training would be. I was going to continue taking him on Monday nights up at Castle Hill, but it may be a struggle to get there on time. Thanks. ETA: while I am at it, is there any place where you can take them to frisbee, I notice there are some places in QLD but was wondering if anyone knew if there were similiar places in Sydney.

my goldens play like this as well... the older one generally has wet ears and stuff by the end of it... makes him look most untidy. Phoenix sometimes gets Indy's hair in his mouth as well, but its generally loose anyway as they both shed a lot, and Indy more than Phoenix because of his coat type.

I'm going to try and get up for a look as well. Ask a few questions etc.

thanks smisch. Will have a look at both of them, but I'd much prefer smaller classes, so sounds like Paws4Fun might be the way to go.

Thanks for the info Kavik. I might go up and have a look on Thursday night and also the one at Baulkham Hills. I'd prefer to take him on a weekday evening though, that why I like the idea of Thursday nights, however if there are heaps of dogs up there we might be better off somewhere else. He is fine with other dogs, I'd just prefer smaller classes.

Just wondering what peoples thoughts are on the Agility classes that are run up at Castle Hill on Thursday nights. I'm thinking of getting my 2 year old golden into Agility, just for fun at the moment, don't think I could remember all the obstacles in order to trial. I know that there are a few places around, just wondering what peoples thoughts are on the one at Castle Hill, are here better places to go? And do they start back this week? Phoenix is a raw beginner.

Would a gun dog get along with a little white fluffy dog or see it as something nice to catch? Both my gundogs get along with my small white fluffy cat... they don'y try and for breakfast. Having said that, my previous girl RIP sat on a maltese puppy!!! she was ok thou... think the maltese was as well.

yep, my younger golden used to get hot spots with frontline... he's been on sentinal tablets ever since.