# Do you think my puppy is a full blooded Golden Retriever? Need opinions!



## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

* My parents sent me a picture of Ella when they found her online and my first thought was that she looked like a lab. I even told my parents that she didn't look full blooded and found a new breeder, but they insisted on getting Ella. When we went to pick her up, and I got to see her up close she looked like a Golden to me then. I still questioned the white patches all over her, but then looked it up and it said it is an unfavorable quality in Goldens. We will not be breeding her or showing her, she is just a pet so we are okay with the white patches. I love Ella and I will be okay if she isn't full blooded, but I would be upset with the breeder for not being completely honest. I have had other people say she didn't look full blooded either so now I want your opinions since you all know a ton about Goldens on here. I never saw any pics of the parents, but my dad has the papers for her. So what do y'all think? :gotme:

*The first left pic is when we picked her up on 12/21, the top right pic is her 2nd day at home. The bottom left is her sleeping and where you can see the white patches on her chest. The bottom right was a picture of her that I took yesterday. Also, there is a picture in my signature, I think she looks most like a Golden in that one.


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## Naples6020 (Dec 14, 2012)

She looks like a mix to me. I am not saying your breeder did this but, they have been known to use papers from other pups that may have passed. They also may use papers from pups that owners that did not get the pups fixed. So, the owners never get the AKC papers. Just saying, food for thought. She may be a full golden but at first glance I would say no. Just FYI


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## Kally76 (Jun 14, 2010)

I think she is mixed. The white feet, belly, tip on her head, and her very short hair is a little unusual for a full blooded golden. She is gorgeous though.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

It's extremely unlikely that she's a full Golden. White mismarks are common in the breed and harmless unless you're showing in conformation, but her marks are more extensive than I've ever seen on a full blooded GR. My Jax has a large white blaze on his chest and two white toes on a front foot, and he's one of the most mismarked I've ever seen, and that's a lot less than Ella.

Add to that the fact that her coat and features aren't quite typical for a Golden of her age, and I'd put 99% odds on her being a mix. So what, though? I can't support the idea of careless and dishonest breeding, but once it's over and done with, a dog deserves the same amount of love regardless of the care and honesty of her breeder.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

I think it's likely she has something else in her.... but definitely her expression looks golden to me. She looks very sweet<:


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

Ugh this makes me mad, I do not like dishonest people. Lol. He seemed like an honest breeder too, that's why I trusted what he said. But when I started thinking about it, I knew I had never seen a Golden with a large amount of white. So what do you think she's mixed with? Lab?


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

She's absolutely adorable, but I also think she's mixed. I am guessing she is maybe mixed with Lab.

Have you considered doing a DNA test?


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

It is possible the breeder did not know. It only takes a few minutes unsupervised outdoors for a strange dog to have gotten her mother pregnant. A litter can have different fathers. You could DNA test her and report your suspicion to AKC for further guidance.

If someone I sold a puppy to doubted the lineage I would have given a refund and taken the puppy. If they wanted to keep the puppy then I would have DNA tested Cozy and paid for the stud to be tested too. If the results came back as the puppy was not the stud's pup- I would have offered a partial refund if they wanted to keep the pup or a full refund & I would get the puppy back.

If the results came back as Cozy and the stud as a match for the puppy then the Debbie 
Doubter would have to reinbursement for the cost of the DNA tests or give me the puppy back for a partial refund.


She is adorable though. I love her markings. They give her such character!


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

Thanks for the info! I did not know that there could be different fathers! They live out in the middle of nowhere so I wonder what other dogs they have. I think we should DNA test her, we most likely will. As much as I wanted a full blooded Golden, I would never return her. I could never do that to a dog. :no: She's wild, but i love her. : lol. I think that we should get a partial refund since she's not full blooded though. We have the breeder on Facebook so we just messaged him.


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## leesooim (Nov 1, 2012)

Definitely not purebred IMHO, but she's absolutely adorable! I love the picture of her in the jersey  Hopefully the breeder is responsive to you! I heard those DNA kits are reasonably accurate, and you can get them online at Amazon if you so choose in case the breeder doesn't have an answer (or won't help you figure it out).


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## Mayve (Aug 21, 2012)

Purebred or not, she sure is cute!


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

If you were going to do a DNA test on her, I would do the parentage test. This would mean getting the breeder involved, since the parents would have to swabbed too.

I personally don't put much faith in the DNA tests that purport to tell you what breeds are in your dog. I have seen too many really wonky results. Not to mention some breeders on an all-breed list I am on sent in swabs on their champions, and came with a really interesting mix of breeds 

And I agree-she looks like a mix to me. She is adorable but if you paid much money for her, you were cheated, IMO.


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## Ninde'Gold (Oct 21, 2006)

She's so cute!! She doesn't look purebred but who cares! (unless you paid lots of money for a "purebred").


People are saying Lab mix but Labs don't typically have white on them either.

She sure is adorable though.


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

He responded and said that he is sending us copies of the parent's papers. I still want to do the DNA test though to make sure.
I'm going to look into parentage test, thanks! We paid $500 for her. I saw on FB that when they were first born they were $800 but she was the last one left. And some of the other pups had white markings too.


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

Good luck getting anything settled with the breeder. 

She is an adorable puppy, and I think her white markings are very pretty. when she is grown she may look like FeatherRiverSam's dog Woody.

http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com/golden-retriever-pictures/124745-okay-dad.html


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

Chance & Ella's Sister said:


> He responded and said that he is sending us copies of the parent's papers. I still want to do the DNA test though to make sure.
> I'm going to look into parentage test, thanks! We paid $500 for her. I saw on FB that when they were first born they were $800 but she was the last one left. And some of the other pups had white markings too.


For $500 you can't expect much from the breeder with respect for responsibility or even much of a refund.

I hope your cutie pie has a long and healthy life.

FeatherRiverSam's Dog Woody is adorable and tons of people have said looks like a Nova Scotia Duck Toller which does have white marking but the DNA came back as a No Toller.


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com...iever-nova-scotia-duck-tolling-retriever.html

http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com...n/111834-would-anyone-like-venture-guess.html

duck tolling retriever puppies - Bing Images


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## Cari (Sep 19, 2012)

I'm with the majority, she is mixed. Maybe with lab but even then labs don't have white markings like that and even when different colored labs are bred (i.e. chocolate and yellow) the puppies do not come out with both colors. It's one or another. Labs can have the white on the chest thing but feet are unusual.

She has the "retriever" look about her, though. Who knows her mix. She could be Border Collie Golden that got the Golden's color or her parents may have appeared full Golden Retriever but perhaps they had some mixture in their line that skipped their generation but showed up in the puppies. 

She sure is cute regardless!


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

If you do the DNA by parentage test, I would want to be present when the breeder does the swabs-just sayin'. It is also possible that the mix came in the parent's generation or grandparents, in which case the DNA parentage test won't really tell you that.

It would be interesting to know what the parents look like.


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## cubbysan (Mar 13, 2007)

Were you able to see the parents? Maybe the breeder, I am assuming this is a BYB, got fooled too and one of the parents is not a full golden.

I remember years ago a friend of mine bred his rottweiler to a male who had no papers, so they "just borrowed" the papers of another rottweiller to register the puppies. I was totally shocked, and they thought nothing of it.


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

Thanks for posting the link to Woody, he is soo cute!!
Also I think I'm going to just try the Wisdom DNA test like they did for Woody. On the breeder's Facebook, I found pics of the parents listed on the papers. I would post the pics but don't think I should since they are off his personal Facebook page.


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## vcm5 (Apr 20, 2011)

Yep, definitely a mix! But she is adorable!


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## Jessie'sGirl (Aug 30, 2010)

She definitely is a sweet-looking pup but she looks more like a golden-mix to my untrained eye. I hope you have many happy years with her, no matter what you find out about her parentage.


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## SheetsSM (Jan 17, 2008)

She's a cute pup, whatever her DNA may contain--would love to see pics of the parents, could you just link the Facebook site vice "taking" the pics?


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## ssacres (Sep 29, 2012)

She is a keeper no matter what she is. And she has you to care for her. Just enjoy your pup. At least she is safe and loved. I have had many mixed breed dogs and they have been the best dogs. She is as cute as can be. She will love you forever as you will her..


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

I will definitely enjoy her! I'm just curious to see what else she has in her 
The only problem putting the link to the FB page is that it will display his name and all his info, so I really don't want to do that. I'd rather just post the pics. The mom looks like a Golden and I'm pretty sure I know which one is the dad. He looks lighter and I'm wondering if he might be mixed. Not sure.


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## maximilian (Dec 10, 2012)

She is GORGEOUS. Be sure to let us know the results.


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## canajo (Nov 25, 2012)

*My Golden Mix has white on him and looks like Woody also!*

Check out my thread below regarding my Golden mix puppy, Toby. There are pictures of him on the thread and he has white on his paws just like your puppy as well as a white blaze on his face and the tip of his tail. His mom appears to be an English Setter and possibly a mix with field line Springer Spaniel. There is a photo of her within the thread. The father is Golden and ????. The rescue group said chow...I guess because of the curved tail. 

Toby looks a lot like Woody and my friend, who loves tollers, thinks Toby has the same look as a toller. If I could find a reliable DNA company then I would get Toby tested. 

Here is the thread on my puppy, Toby.
http://http://www.goldenretrieverfo...-mix-puppy-toby-his-amazing-rescue-story.html

Your puppy is so cute..I love the white on both of our pups! Good Luck!

Nancye


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

canajo said:


> Check out my thread below regarding my Golden mix puppy, Toby. There are pictures of him on the thread and he has white on his paws just like your puppy as well as a white blaze on his face and the tip of his tail. His mom appears to be an English Setter and possibly a mix with field line Springer Spaniel. There is a photo of her within the thread. The father is Golden and ????. The rescue group said chow...I guess because of the curved tail.
> 
> Toby looks a lot like Woody and my friend, who loves tollers, thinks Toby has the same look as a toller. If I could find a reliable DNA company then I would get Toby tested.
> 
> ...


Hmm..for some reason the link is not working. It won't open the page.  I'll try searching for Toby on the site.

I found the page! What a wonderful story and he is soo adorable!!! Our pups do have a lot of similarities, especially the white on his face, chest, and the tip of the tail. The only thing different is Ella only has a spot on her head. 
Yeah, the DNA companies don't seem too reliable but I am very curious.


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## mudEpawz (Jan 20, 2011)

Ella is adorable!! 

I kind of see a bit of collie in her... at least thats what my guess would be. I would be interested in hearing the DNA results


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## Billabong (Jan 1, 2013)

She's not a likely to be a full blooded GR, but she is 100% adorable! Cute pup  - I understand your frustration with the breeder though.


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

Here are pics of the parents. The first pic is the mother. Sorry it's not the best pic. I'm like 99% sure that the second pic is the father. The last pic is a picture of the puppies when they were born. They all have the white markings on them as far as I can tell.


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

Hmm. The pics didn't post. I'll post them again.


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## SheetsSM (Jan 17, 2008)

The last pic is of a puppy--how old was the supposed sire? I definitely think Mom had another gentleman caller.


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## mudEpawz (Jan 20, 2011)

SheetsSM said:


> The last pic is of a puppy--how old was the supposed sire? I definitely think *Mom had another gentleman caller*.


:roflmao:that made me laugh out loud.


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## kjohnstone82 (Sep 24, 2012)

either way she is so adorable


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## Chance & Ella's Sister (Dec 22, 2012)

SheetsSM said:


> The last pic is of a puppy--how old was the supposed sire? I definitely think Mom had another gentleman caller.


I'm pretty sure when I looked on the papers, the birth year was 2009. Their old male dog died in July and under the new dog's pic the breeder said that this was their new stud and that puppies would be available by Christmas. I noticed the new dog looked like a puppy too so the birth year isn't right unless it's a different dad. But there's no way the one that died could be the father since he died in July and he even said the pup was their new stud...something just doesn't add up.


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