Retrievers Make Great Pets!

I have always loved dogs for as long as I can remember! Their faithful, never ending devotion to their families is remarkable. Always there to greet you when you come home, cuddle up with, play and exercise with, protect your family and home, and have their special way of placing a smile on your face after a rough day are just a few of their good qualities.

Our family dog, Angel, is a mix of golden retriever and labrador retriever. She is the sweetest, most gentle creature I've ever met! When I started researching to find out more about her breeds, I was fascinated at what I found! If you have a dog or are a fan of dogs, have fun reading a bit about them, enjoy some silly and interesting videos about them, and learn more about how to care for these precious animals.

My puppy, Angel, on the right!

Since she is a mix of golden and labrador retriever, I thought you might want to see the differences in these two similar breeds. Can you see some similarities between her and her relative breeds?

We do not have any baby pictures of Angel because she was adopted from the SPCA when she was two years old, but she might have looked like some of these puppies! (The last one is not a retriever, but thought you might enjoy it!)

Golden Retrievers are known to be very sweet and good natured making them a great choice for a family dog. Children love their playfulness, and adults love their faithful companionship. Their great intelligence makes them easier to train than some other breeds. They are a popular choice to become service dogs in many jobs.

The first retrievers were bred in Scotland in the late 19th century from a combinations of Irish Setters, Bloodhounds, and Spaniels. The breeders hoped to create a dog who would make a great hunter, and they succeeded!

Find Information & Print Outs about Dogs from Enchanted Learning. The Dog Breed Info Center has interesting information about Golden Retrievers and several wonderful pictures of retrievers! The American Kennel Club has detailed descriptions about the physical aspects of golden retrievers.

Retrievers are very loyal work dogs! There are many stories of them being trained as service dogs to the blind, rescue heroes, therapy dogs, and police / detective partners.

The first retrievers were trained to 'retrieve' wild game for their owners such as waterfowl and pheasants both on land and water. Their great intelligence, strength, and temperance made a wonderful combination to help people hunt. Through the years they have been breeded into six main categories of retrievers and several more varieties.

A grown lab may grow to about two feet in height and weigh anywhere from 50 - 80 pounds. Their fur comes in three main colors: black, yellow or golden, and chocolate (a brownish-red mixture). Labs are agile, fast, and highly energetic! They sure like to go for long walks and play outdoor games! Being very social, these wonderful creatures love to be around people and participating in their activities. Besides being gentle friends, lovable family members, and playful athletes, retrievers today may still go hunting with their masters, but they are also being trained to help patients in therapy, people with disabilities, police in drug searches, and rescue personnel with search and rescue efforts. Quite an awesome breed, don't you think? If you want to know more about Labrador retrievers, the following will get you started.

Some famous labs include Seamus (the dog that accompanied Lewis & Clark's journey), Ubu (you know, from tv productions - "Sit Ubu, sit."), and Old Yeller (the movie I cry throughout).

The Dog Breed Info Center gives information about their temperament, size, health, life expectancy, exercise, grooming, origin, and more. I love the picture of the black, chocolate, and yellow labs on the page!

The American Kennel Club gives the history and a thorough description of Labrador retrievers.

Show your retriever (or any other doggie breed for that matter) how much you love him or her by patiently training and taking care of it! Here are a few ideas.

Angel loves this fun family movie series!