Puppies have not yet formed some fixed habits, making them easier to train and quick learners. Moreover, dogs raised from a young age tend to be more affectionate and may regard their owner as their parent. Golden Retrievers have a gentle temperament and outstanding appearance, making them the ideal companion dog for many people. So, how to choose a Golden Retriever puppy? Methods for choosing Golden Retriever puppies.

Bone Mass

We can distinguish by observing the paws. A Golden Retriever puppy with good bone mass, even if only about one month old, should have relatively sturdy paws with a width of more than 5 cm horizontally. Bone mass is extremely important; if the bone mass is insufficient, the future Golden Retriever will have a thin physique and will not become an ideal high-quality Golden Retriever.

The shade of the coat can be based on personal preference, but if the coat color is so light that it is close to white, then the quality does not belong to the excellent category.

The color of the Golden Retriever puppy will not differ much from its adult color. Generally, the hair around the puppy’s ears is the closest to its adult color. The Golden Retriever’s coat color is gradient; a high-quality Golden Retriever puppy’s body shows the distribution of darker and lighter colors it will have when grown.

Thick and dense fur is definitely a sign of a high-quality Golden Retriever; adult Golden Retrievers have a double-layered coat.

Coat Quality

The coat of a Golden Retriever should be soft and grow downward. If the hair is severely curly or appears in clumps, it indicates poor coat quality.

Owners need not deliberately pursue the "bump on the top of the Golden Retriever’s head." In fact, this has little correlation with whether a Golden Retriever is purebred; it is mainly determined by the parents’ bloodline genetics.

In the middle of the nose, there is a downward concave vertical line; the deeper it is, the better compared to a shallower one.

Use your hand to hold the puppy’s mouth; the thicker the mouth, the wider it will be in the future. Otherwise, it is easy for the dog to develop a pointed snout. Within a proper range, the wider the mouth, the stronger it feels when held by hand; such appearance is better.

The Golden Retriever’s ears should not be too large—ears that are too long and too big are not advantages but flaws. When pulling the ear tip, it should just cover the front edge of the eyes. If it exceeds a lot, it is a defect.

When observing adult Golden Retrievers, their sclera (white of the eyes) should not be visible when looking straight ahead. However, when selecting young Golden Retrievers, this is not the case. All mammals have a feature that the size of their eyeballs at birth is basically the same as when grown. Many people had large eyes as children, which seemed to become smaller as they grew up, but actually, the eye size did not change. Therefore, when buying a Golden Retriever puppy, you should choose one that shows an appropriate amount of visible sclera; the key is moderation.

The Golden Retriever’s nose should be pure black; if it is pink, this indicates poor pigment deposition in the dog.

Many friends neglect the tail when choosing a Golden Retriever puppy. Normally, the puppy’s tail should naturally hang down; when wagging, the highest point should be level with the backline, or slightly above it. If a Golden Retriever’s tail is raised high onto its back, it means the tail root grows in a position that is too high.

The toes should naturally gather together, not spread apart. If the distance between the toes is too large, the paw pads are obviously thin, or the paw pads look long and slender, these are not signs of high quality.