Dogswest hold the WA breed registries, control registrations and pedigrees and maintain a code of ethics, binding on all members. They promote health and welfare, shows, training, judges training, trials and other dog related activities as well as advice about pedigree dogs. The ANKC (Australian National Kennel Council) is the overriding body nationally.

A code of ethics is an agreed upon set of standards which include the breeding, owning and correct husbandry of pedigree dogs which always surrounds the health and welfare of each breed. Every registered breeder who holds an ANKC breeder prefix signs the Code of Ethics and agrees to the content of the Code of Ethics, agreeing to uphold it at all times. This includes abiding by and breeding to the breed standard of any given breed. Breaches can result in suspension or expulsion.

A registered breed is a recognised breed that adheres to an accepted standard, usually from the country of origin. Registered breeds are recognised by canine controlling bodies around the world such as Australian National Kennel Council (ANKC), The Kennel Club (UK), The American Kennel Club, Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI).

Contact your state breed club for advice and a list of its breeder members. The GRCWA offers a breeder’s directory of breeders that are members of the GRCWA – Breeders Directory Read through our Puppies page so you know what responsible breeders do. The worst place to get a puppy is a pet shop and irresponsible backyard breeders. Buying from a pet shop or a backyard breeder perpetuates the inhumane practices of puppy mills as well as pet overpopulation and is detrimental to the Golden Retriever.

 Buyer Beware

Social media pages and websites mass producing and even auctioning puppies to the highest bidder should be considered not only unethical, but in complete breach of not only the governing state registries [Dogswest, Dogs NSW, Dogs QLD, Dogs VIC etc] but also the national registry [ANKC] Code of Ethics. Remember, registered breeders agree to uphold and promote the Code of Ethics. If a breeder is breaching that code, what other recommended breed practices are they breaching? Many online classified websites should also be met with caution. Please, contact your state Club for advice on contacting breeders.

Golden Retrievers are a popular breed and you generally have to wait 6 -12 months for a well bred healthy puppy. If you don’t wont to wait that long your best option is to look at a different registered breed or rescue a dog from a rescue organisation.

Due to the breeds popularity some people, hoping to make a profit may breed with their Golden Retriever without thought to the breeds welfare or maintaining the breed’s excellent temperament and characteristics. 

There are unethical breeders in the market. Do your homework.

Experience with the breed – how long involved?

Club membership and breed involvement – how long, do they show, obedience etc?

Health testing of their breeding stock – do they do it and what tests do they do?

Health checks of puppies – do they do it?

Home visit – can we see the environment where our puppy has been raised?

Home visit – can we meet the parents of the puppies? The sire may not be available if an outside stud was used, but you should at least be able to meet the mother, see her interact with her puppies and have info about the father.

Will the breeder be available and willing to help and advise you after purchase of a puppy?

Copies of the official Health Certificates for Sire and Dam

Copy of pedigrees of Sire and Dam

Vaccination and microchip paperwork for puppies

Pedigree and registration papers for puppies – these should be available at the time of purchase

Diet Sheet

Sales agreement

Dogs sold with main registration papers (blue forms) are eligible for competition in dog shows. If bred, their offspring can be registered.  

Dogs sold with limited registration papers (orange forms) are eligible for competition in obedience, trials, and other canine disciplines. Dogs on the limited register cannot be shown and if bred, their offspring cannot be registered. Breeders usually register the puppies which are being sold as pets and companion animals on the limited register. 

Vet checked simply means, checked by a vet. This usually happens at the time of micro-chipping and vaccination of puppies. The vet will listen to heart and check the overall well-being of the puppy. HEALTH TESTED means the puppies parents have undergone a series of agreed upon tests to help identify their suitability for breeding. This is with the aim of promoting and producing healthier puppies.

What are the Health Tests recommended by the Golden Retriever Club of WA?

• Hip and elbow xrays for adults prior to breeding as per the ANKC Hip and Elbow Health Scheme.  
• Have a current (within 12 months of breeding) eye certificate from a board-certified opthamologist
• Have a heart certificate from a board certified cardiologist. 

*****IMPORTANT NOTE: THE XRAY SCREENING OF ADULTS CAN ONLY BE CERTIFIED BY A QUALIFIED RADIOGRAPHER. A GENERAL PRACTITIONER IS NOT QUALIFIED TO READ OR SCORE THE XRAYS. PUPPIES AREN’T HEALTH TESTED, ONLY ADULTS AFTER TWELVE MONTHS OF AGE. 

Why are these Health Tests important?

The risks for many significant health issues can be greatly reduced through careful breeding practices, beginning with certain screening examinations of the parents of a litter. Each breed (and mixed-bred dogs too) has its own particular hereditary problems and Golden Retrievers are no exception. Failure to screen for these conditions before breeding results in taking unnecessary risks for genetic disease and frequently leads to distress for the buyer and dog alike. The GRCWA recommends and promotes these health tests to help to produce healthier puppies that will lead healthy lives with a minimum number of health issues.

The current average price for a puppy from fully health tested parents is $4000 – $4500.

NO!!! The price is not indicative of quality. Such a price is unfortunately usually relative to what the public will pay.

Quality to an owner should relate to how well one can talk to and relate to the breeder, both before and after purchasing the puppy. Trust and reliability in the documentation of the puppy, its health testing and that of its parents should form a solid basis for quality.

Quality relates to the health and soundness of the puppy you are purchasing, whether for a pet or a show dog. Please ensure all the correct (and complete) health testing has been carried out on the parents of the puppy prior to purchase, this includes certified x-rays of the hips and elbows, Eye certifcation and Heart certification by a qualified expert. Be sure to request and sight ALL documentation.

The standard for each breed is specifically drawn up to set out guidelines covering the desired externally observable qualities for that particular breed – its physical conformation, character and temperament.

It is important as it provides a working outline of the desirable traits and hallmarks of the breed, pushing healthy sound dogs. Movement, temperament and soundness are highlighted in the standard. The standard is the blueprint which defines each breed individually. When judging, one is selecting the best representatives of the breed, ie the best specimens to breed on with. It is not a beauty contest.

This is unfortunately an issue that has recently become the subject of untruths and misinformation. Sadly this misinformation has led many people searching for a puppy to become quite confused and conflicted in regard to pedigree dogs.  

Some breeders line breed, some breeders don’t, some breeders line breed when they want to set a trait strongly in their lines, other choose to out-cross for the desired trait. Either way, when done correctly by experienced and knowledgeable breeders, using genetically superior stock, line breeding sets type and health …… So, what is Line Breeding???

Line breeding is the doubling up of any ancestor within a pedigree. This is fairly common in most breeds to a limited extent. Line breeding is still common among many species in the wild. Natural selection allows individuals with traits desirable for survival to multiply, and quite often, individuals with similar traits are related. Due to the genetic strength of the said desirable trait, paired individuals pass on those valuable traits to their offspring, with the doubling up of those genes (known as homozygosis) – thus creating another healthy generation of the species to go on and multiply. Now, in the domestic dog world, natural selection doesn’t play a role. It’s left up to the breeder to decide which animal should be paired with which. An experienced and knowledgeable breeder will want to use animals that are pre-potent in health, type and temperament. The key is using excellent specimens, pre-potent, healthy and of superior genetics, whether they have common ancestry or not.

1st degree inbreeding is banned in all breeds within the ANKC, Australia wide. It just doesn’t happen and those who say it does are not being truthful. While linebreeding does occur, it is predominantly done in the 3rd and 4th generation. After the 5th generation it is considered negligible. When done correctly by experienced and knowledgeable breeders using healthy, tested dogs of correct type and temperament, the aim is to double up on desirable traits both phenotypically (traits we can see) and genotypically (genetic makeup). There is a higher chance of doubling up on good healthy traits, of course, only if genetically healthy specimens are used. When done erroneously, by inexperienced breeders using genetically unhealthy, untypical specimens – naturally, this may result in the doubling up of undesirable traits therefore, producing undesirable, unhealthy specimens.

 So, in a nutshell : Linebreeding is the doubling up of a common ancestor and should only occur when using strong, pre-potent and healthy individuals that have superior genetics for improvement of the breed.

The standard for each breed is specifically drawn up to set out guidelines covering the desired externally observable qualities for that particular breed – its physical conformation, character and temperament.

It is important as it provides a working outline of the desirable traits and hallmarks of the breed, pushing healthy sound dogs. Movement, temperament and soundness are highlighted in the standard. The standard is the blueprint which defines each breed individually. When judging, one is selecting the best representatives of the breed, ie the best specimens to breed on with. It is not a beauty contest.

This is unfortunately an issue that has recently become the subject of untruths and misinformation. Sadly this misinformation has led many people searching for a puppy to become quite confused and conflicted in regard to pedigree dogs.  

Some breeders line breed, some breeders don’t, some breeders line breed when they want to set a trait strongly in their lines, other choose to out-cross for the desired trait. Either way, when done correctly by experienced and knowledgeable breeders, using genetically superior stock, line breeding sets type and health …… So, what is Line Breeding???

Line breeding is the doubling up of any ancestor within a pedigree. This is fairly common in most breeds to a limited extent. Line breeding is still common among many species in the wild. Natural selection allows individuals with traits desirable for survival to multiply, and quite often, individuals with similar traits are related. Due to the genetic strength of the said desirable trait, paired individuals pass on those valuable traits to their offspring, with the doubling up of those genes (known as homozygosis) – thus creating another healthy generation of the species to go on and multiply. Now, in the domestic dog world, natural selection doesn’t play a role. It’s left up to the breeder to decide which animal should be paired with which. An experienced and knowledgeable breeder will want to use animals that are pre-potent in health, type and temperament. The key is using excellent specimens, pre-potent, healthy and of superior genetics, whether they have common ancestry or not.

1st degree inbreeding is banned in all breeds within the ANKC, Australia wide. It just doesn’t happen and those who say it does are not being truthful. While linebreeding does occur, it is predominantly done in the 3rd and 4th generation. After the 5th generation it is considered negligible. When done correctly by experienced and knowledgeable breeders using healthy, tested dogs of correct type and temperament, the aim is to double up on desirable traits both phenotypically (traits we can see) and genotypically (genetic makeup). There is a higher chance of doubling up on good healthy traits, of course, only if genetically healthy specimens are used. When done erroneously, by inexperienced breeders using genetically unhealthy, untypical specimens – naturally, this may result in the doubling up of undesirable traits therefore, producing undesirable, unhealthy specimens.

 So, in a nutshell : Linebreeding is the doubling up of a common ancestor and should only occur when using strong, pre-potent and healthy individuals that have superior genetics for improvement of the breed.