# My Golden too tall or long legged?



## IDKaren1 (Jun 2, 2009)

Moses is 5 years old...have two friends with Goldens...they have shorter legs and block heads...as you can see Moses has VERY long legs and a longer pointer head...even a point ON HIs head. They think he is not a "true" Goldie cuz he is TOO tall. Any thoughts on this? Anyone else with long legged, long headed goldies? Thanks so muCH


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## NikB8 (Feb 4, 2013)

I have seen a lot of different body types for Goldens. I have a friend whose Golden is very tall/lanky and weighs 20 lbs less than Molson- Molson is on the smaller side height wise. Not all humans are the same.. dogs won't be either.

I think he looks very handsome and like a Golden.


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## Brave (Oct 26, 2012)

I have a mix, who is very very leggy, but I was told that is because he was neutered so young that he didn't get the proper hormones released at the proper times so he grew to be extremely leggy. I have a foster who is supposedly purebred and she has short stumpy legs. Regardless I think you have be purebred with long legs. You can be purebred with short legs. Your boy looks golden to me! Give him a kiss on his beautiful sugar face for me!


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Looks like a golden to me?


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## DanaRuns (Sep 29, 2012)

Your boy is a "true" Golden, for sure. Don't listen to anyone who would say otherwise.


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## Tayla's Mom (Apr 20, 2012)

Tayla is very tall and lanky and she was spayed at 4 months so that may have had something to do with it. Lily, who we just adopted, is almost 5 and was just spayed. She is shorter, but has a pointy head. Both are full goldens and very different.


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## IDKaren1 (Jun 2, 2009)

Brave said:


> I have a mix, who is very very leggy, but I was told that is because he was neutered so young that he didn't get the proper hormones released at the proper times so he grew to be extremely leggy. I have a foster who is supposedly purebred and she has short stumpy legs. Regardless I think you have be purebred with long legs. You can be purebred with short legs. Your boy looks golden to me! Give him a kiss on his beautiful sugar face for me!


He WAS neutered at FIVE months...just before I got him. Maybe THATS why.... I know he is typically VELCRO acting Golden :smooch: Right now he is SO heavy... took him to vet ..he is NINETY EIGHT pounds All summer he runs and swims and now with muddy, wet, snowy cold weather he slows down. You would think I am starving him..vet says ONLY half a cup twice a day! Well at least his legs are nice and thin!


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## Dan & Pat (Nov 20, 2010)

Our golden is tall as well about 27 " and around 90 lbs and a absolute joy


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## rhondas (Sep 10, 2010)

Looks like a purebred Golden Retriever male who was neutered by 6 months old.
I have 6.5 year old male that was neutered at 6 months (will never ever do that again) and he is 24.5 inches at the withers and 60lbs. Definitely tall and lanky.


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## Lilliam (Apr 28, 2010)

Your boy is gorgeous!!!! ALL golden!
I often have people question if Max is purebred golden. He stands exactly in the middle of the standard at 23.5 inches and he's very substantial, he weighs 80 lbs and I can feel his ribs and he has a nice waist. He does have a bit of a roll on the top of his back when he rolls but I honestly can't get him to lose any weight, I don't want to feel any more bone than I already do. He wasn't neutered until he was two and a half.
His friend at doggy day care, also a golden, stands a good three inches taller than him, is leggy, with a narrower head. He was neutered at six months. 
It may be part of genetics - taller dogs running in some lines - but I've read that early neutering affects growth.


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## IDKaren1 (Jun 2, 2009)

*Sounds like Moses!*



Dan & Pat said:


> Our golden is tall as well about 27 " and around 90 lbs and a absolute joy


Just measured him...he is 28 inches tall! I just need some weight off him without starving him! He is pretty thick


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## texasx96 (Mar 13, 2013)

Rowdy is just over a year old and intact. He's about 25" tall and weighs 73 lbs. 


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

My boy is tall and lanky also. He was neutered at age 2.

You can supplement your boy's food with unsalted green beans, they act as a filler and will help fill him up so he won't be so hungry. 

I've used green beans with my girl several times. I'm lucky, both of my two like fruits and vegetables, it's been easy for me to cut their food back and supplement with either.

Your boy is very handsome, looks a lot like my boy who turns 5 next month.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

All three of my goldens were neutered before a year, two of them before 5 months old. Only the one who was neutered at 7.5 months old is leggy. The other two are much more compact. I think it has more to do with the lines that they came from, personally. I've fostered many adult goldens who hadn't been altered before they came into the rescue and they all came in different shapes and sizes.


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## Makomom (Feb 28, 2012)

Mako was neutered before 6 months and he is tall and lanky also! He sometimes looks like a hunchback! In this picture you can see how long his legs are....he is also being stubborn and not wanting to walk down the street!!! Sat there for almost 10 minutes :doh:


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

Moses looks all Golden to me. Our Max also has a pointy head--that is called the "knowledge bump."


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## mygoldengirl (Jan 10, 2014)

My girl Shelby had long legs and the point at top back of her head. I think its a gorgeous look and no matter what anyone said, she was all golden as far as I was concerned. My younger golden with the tennis ball was a short leg with more of a block style head. Bottom line, both were awesome girls and missed very much.

Moses looks like an awesome golden to me


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## EvaDog (Jun 16, 2013)

Eva is tall and lanky too. She makes most of the other goldens we come across seem quite short. We were told by a trainer that she is of the field retriever variety, which is a strain of golden retrievers breed for field work. These goldens have longer noses, longer legs, a thinner coat, and more energy. Don't know if it is true, but this definitely characterizes our girl. She is all golden to us and we love her to bits.


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## itch Dep (Oct 19, 2014)

Maximus, Max, our Golden is just 8 months old and is huge. Not only tall and long legged but large bodied. Also has a pointy snout as well and is as purebred as one can hope they can be. He is also the sweetest and most loving but gets a little playful at times. I guess, there are variations in every breed. Our Beagle, Bart, whom we miss dearly, was a typical Beagle, except he had shorter ears and was just a lovable mass of muscle. May I therefore input that your Golden is just beautiful and is 100% Golden as far as I can see.  http://instagram.com/p/uGT_eMS9su/

p.s. My name is Mitch Dep, don't know why the m went missing there...


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## Holly's Mum (Oct 4, 2014)

Are his legs actually longer, or do they look longer because he's less hairy than show types? My girl us more working strain than show strain and she has a slighter coat too. I was told on Friday by a complete stranger that she's too thin (she's spot on where she should be)!


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## itch Dep (Oct 19, 2014)

Wow, Max does seem to be a popular name for Goldens, like bart is for Beagles I guess. Our Golden, Maximus, Maxi or Max is huge! Hence the name Max. He is just 8 months and 10 days old and is way taller and massive than any Golden I have seen so far and not obese, mind you. Accdg to the Vet, he is way taller than the max height of adult goldens already. Yep, he is also 100% pure bred too.  Ain't Goldens the best, love them all, the pics in these forums, love them all!


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

Our Max is a big boy, too. Over 100 pounds and 28+ inches tall.


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## janababy (Jan 2, 2012)

Plain and simple, he is a gorgeous looking boy!!!!!


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## Lennap (Jul 9, 2010)

IDKaren1 said:


> He WAS neutered at FIVE months...just before I got him. Maybe THATS why.... I know he is typically VELCRO acting Golden :smooch: Right now he is SO heavy... took him to vet ..he is NINETY EIGHT pounds All summer he runs and swims and now with muddy, wet, snowy cold weather he slows down. You would think I am starving him..vet says ONLY half a cup twice a day! Well at least his legs are nice and thin!





IDKaren1 said:


> Just measured him...he is 28 inches tall! I just need some weight off him without starving him! He is pretty thick


 Firstly my Remy is also a very leggy, long boy and is also 28 inches at the shoulder. He came to me from a rescue down in TN and as fixed at 9 months - there is no doubt in my mind that he is all golden. There is even a golden in his daycare who came from a breeder who is a bit taller than him! I guess they are just breeding them taller these days (outside breed standard I might add).

Secondly to pull weight off - feed the amount of kibble the Vet recommends and then supplement that with canned green beans. It will fill him up (lots of fiber) and you won't feel like you are depriving him! I can't control my own weight, but my Remy was 15 lbs heavier after last winter and is now back down to perfect!

Good luck


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## thorbreafortuna (Jun 9, 2013)

This is funny because yesterday I met a woman at a park with what to me looked like a thin leggy young golden. He is a rescue and she doesn't think he is pure bred, but I think he could easily be a lankier body type golden with a very early neuter ( they do neuter rescues very young!). The funny part is that SHE responded kind of doubtfully when I said my Thor was 100% golden because he looks closer to her dog than other Goldens she'd met. Now, Thor is clearly not a conformation Golden and he is a little leggier and thinner boned but not so much that he doesn't look like a typical golden, in my opinion. Thor is the darker one on this picture. I wasn't able to get a good picture of her dog and mine yesterday, they were running too fast on those skinny legs?. Point is, when people aren't telling me he's too dark, they're telling me he's too thin. Can't take it personally.


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## Lennap (Jul 9, 2010)

thorbreafortuna said:


> Point is, when people aren't telling me he's too dark, they're telling me he's too thin. Can't take it personally.
> View attachment 452698


Only one person is considered credible with those comments and that is my Vet!


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## JMME (Jun 18, 2012)

Ripely is also very tall and I didn't neuter him until he was almost a year and a half old. I always thought he would fill out more to go with the legs and people/family have told me he is too thin and narrow. However, according to my vet, he is perfect and he told me that people are just used to seeing overweight dogs. In this picture, his legs are partially submerged but you can see the length!


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## alphadude (Jan 15, 2010)

Ax is way leggier than Angus. He also has the thin, pointy skull with the knowledge bump in the back. My take is that Ax comes from "field" lines and I know that Angus with the stubby legs (too stubby in my eyes) and huge blocky head comes from conformation lines.


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## rjw4244 (May 14, 2013)

He sure looks good to me.


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## Chritty (Aug 17, 2014)

IDKaren1 said:


> Moses is 5 years old...have two friends with Goldens...They think he is not a "true" Goldie cuz he is TOO tall. Any thoughts on this?



Try telling them that THEY don't have true Goldens


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## DJdogman (Apr 23, 2013)

We have two 2 year olds. The one who was neutered at 6 months is much taller and skinnier than the intact one, who is blockier all round with a squarer face and bigger paws.


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