# If your Golden has caught a living animal/bird/reptile



## cgriffin (Nov 30, 2011)

All three of the goldens I had so far released any animal they had without any harm done. They were extremely gentle, could not hurt a fly 
I think the 'catching' part at times was unintentional  Most often they would just find something and gently touch it with their nose or gently with a paw to see what it was. 
The expression on the faces was always "Mom, what is it?"


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Jacks has caught one of my birds (a finch, so very small) in his mouth before.... I told him to drop it and he did. The bird was just a little wet. 

Jacks has also picked up bunnies - without harming them.

And years ago when he had a lot of baby squirrels and chipmunks - my dogs (Charmy and Sammy) would pick them up in their mouths and bring them to the house. No harm done to the babies.

The only bad experience we've had in the past would be Charmy retrieving a rabbit who may have had a heart attack or had an internal injury from him pouncing on it. I'm not really sure. It was alive when he brought it back and no sign of blood or trauma then or later. It just didn't survive.  

Keep in mind with all our dogs - they are trained to spit or give things on command. I would assume even the softest mouthed golden will shake or shred a bird or animal given the opportunity. They are dogs, dogs are animals.... 

Sammy used to eat frogs. He loved the taste of them and would hunt them when we went for walks. I believe he had the same opinion of salamanders - which he would also eat if given the chance (he ate one of them).


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## Hombrespop (Sep 3, 2012)

My old female was a killer , whenever she could catch a rabbit or a bird in the yard they were toast.


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## goldlover68 (Jun 17, 2013)

My Golden's catch ducks, pheasants, Quail, Dove, etc. after I shoot them. They do not eat them or damage them in any way. They deliver to hand, cause that is what they do! None of your options fit field dogs!


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## GoldenCamper (Dec 21, 2009)

I have to pick both when it comes to Fiona. She caught an injured catbird once and gave it to me but it passed away in my hand. It's little heart was going a mile a minute. Same happened with Tucker and his bluebird. Baby rabbits survive although they scream bloody murder, my goodness. 

Fiona has never presented a meadow vole unto me while still alive. My kids have loved to carry around turtles but they have that hard shell. How many licks to get to their juicy center like a tootsie pop remains unknown..


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## GoldenCamper (Dec 21, 2009)

goldlover68 said:


> My Golden's catch ducks, pheasants, Quail, Dove, etc. after I shoot them. They do not eat them or damage them in any way. They deliver to hand, cause that is what they do! None of your options fit field dogs!


 I forgot to put the "living" part in the poll like I did in the title of the thread, sorry.


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## lgnutah (Feb 26, 2007)

Brooks would like to catch a squirrel (he is on a mission to catch one, but so far he hasn't even come close). He once caught a bird that flew up out of the tall grass right in front of him, but dropped it when I told him to.
The most surprising thing that he once did was once he brought me a tiny bunny, it couldn't have been more than possibly a week old. He gave it to me then ran off and got another which he also gave to me. I followed him and he led me to a nest the mother had made in the ground under a board. I put them back and took Brooks in the house. The next day when I went to look in the nest, all the baby bunnies were gone. I assumed the mother moved them to a safer location.


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

GoldenCamper said:


> I forgot to put the "living" part in the poll like I did in the title of the thread, sorry.


I just added it for you.


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

Released unharmed...birds and bunnies.

I watched her 'play' with a mouse on the snow...batting it around. It didn't survive but she didn't eat and I don't think she meant to kill it.


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## Jige (Mar 17, 2011)

We were upland training when Jige was 10mos old the gunner merely winged the chucker jige brought me the chucker unharmed. He carried the bird with a very soft mouth once he got it in the right position at first he carried it by the tip of its wing..lol.


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

Birds, bunnies, kittens are retrieved unharmed.

Varmaints (mice, moles, voles etc) die a quick death though. I think Faelan would love to dispatch a possum or two as well.


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## Deber (Aug 23, 2011)

Mine have done both. When both were in teen times they caught a squirrel and in play pulled the poor thing apart. Worst is that they then proudly brought their "piece" to me in the kitchen where a quick Drop-it had two pieces on my floor - Uck! Since then they have brought a couple of field mice in unharmed, one hit the floor and jumped & ran and we had to get the critter out of the house, and a few birds all unharmed.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

I couldn't vote on this because I have had several baby birds and even a baby rabbit in my backyard with my dogs and all they do, if anything, is sniff them. None of them has tried to grab them or pick them up.

My favorite was the baby bunny. Two of my dogs were on the deck watching Danny down in the yard with it. He was just loping along behind it, trying to get a sniff. As soon as I told him to leave it, he came back up on the deck with me and the bunny went running under the deck.


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## Bob-N-Tash (Feb 24, 2008)

Tasha, the huntress, has hunted, caught, and killed a number of mice and a rat or two. Turtles she sniffs and frogs she ignores. She caught and ate one gecko and then promptly vomited that back up which seemed to end her interest in reptiles. 

It think it is the speed of the chase that excites Tasha. She was out on a lure course 2-3 times and every time she managed to capture the lure.

Bob brought home a bunny once, but truthfully he's not that fast... and what I think happened is that Tasha made the kill and Bob discovered the trophy. I successfully traded a few slices of roast beef for the bunny.


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## Willow52 (Aug 14, 2009)

I'd have to say Hank would do neither. Every frog, snake, turtle & bird I've seen him come up on, he's backed away from and barked.


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## gretzky (Dec 1, 2012)

Sadly Gretzky has killed two baby bunnies this week.  no soft mouth here. 


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## MercyMom (Dec 19, 2011)

Not my Golden, but my last dog Coal went after possums a lot. He then mauled my friend's ferret.:uhoh::yuck: My friend was watching him for me after I got married, and needless to say he got the boot. I had to scramble to find someone else to keep him since my husband and I had not yet settled.


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## Swampcollie (Sep 6, 2007)

You missed one option. catch it, kill it and bring it to you.

Retrievers including Goldens will do what they have to in order to subdue an animal so they can bring it to you. If the animal stuggles the dog may kill it so it can deliver it to you.


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## Thalie (Jan 20, 2008)

Swampcollie said:


> You missed one option. catch it, kill it and bring it to you.
> 
> Retrievers including Goldens will do what they have to in order to subdue an animal so they can bring it to you. If the animal stuggles the dog may kill it so it can deliver it to you.


Yup, that's how I got a rat on my lap a few years ago and another one at my feet a couple of months back. Flem is our huntress for furries (not interested in birds) and she is raising Col to be just like her.

Reptiles are not retrieved; they are killed (geckos and anoles) and abandoned when dead or pawed (toads and frogs) until I intervene.


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## TheZ's (Jun 13, 2011)

We were on the deck once when Zeke spotted a squirrel on the grass not too far away. He gave chase and actually caught it. We yelled drop it which he did but the squirrel was stunned and just lay there and Zeke grabbed it again. He dropped it on command a second time and the squirrel took off as fast as a squirrel can.

Another time he came to the kitchen door with two baby bunnies laying side by side in his mouth. They looked like they were asleep, no sign of blood or trauma. He must have taken them from their nest, He looked so proud of himself for bringing them to us and just couldn't understand why we wouldn't let him back in. I'm not good with dead animals, so my daughter dealt with it. She thought maybe they'd been scared to death.

Zoe's curious about other animals but has never grabbed one that I know of.


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## Pudden (Dec 28, 2008)

The Pudden once killed a baby ground squirrel. She would have eaten it, but Mama took it away because of parasites. Both Pudden and crewman Hiccup have caught and eaten lemmings or voles. Crewman Hiccup has caught a Canada goose duckling on a kayak outing when she was hardly any bigger than said gosling. The Pudden has pulled Salmon from the river, but Mama always throws them back in.

Mama isn't fond of her doggies eating the local wildlife, but it just happens sometimes. Lots of critters here on the tundra...


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## GinnyinPA (Oct 31, 2010)

Ben has caught bunnies, mice and birds. Most of the time we have been able to pry open his mouth and get the animals out before he killed them. He has never managed to actually eat anything he caught. But they don't always make it out alive.


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