# Breeder recommendations in Michigan



## lovepuppies (Mar 19, 2017)

Hi, my husband and I are planning on getting our first puppy. We've been waiting for a long time for this. would like to know if anyone has any recommendations on a good breeder or around Michigan. 

Thank you!


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## Otter (Feb 23, 2011)

If you are interested in travelling to Ohio, I would recommend contacting the person in the following link.
Puppy Referral ? The Cuyahoga Valley Golden Retriever Club


Good luck in your search.


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## GoldenDude (Nov 5, 2016)

I have a Golden from My Buddy Goldens in Michigan. He's an awesome dog.


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

GoldenDude said:


> I have a Golden from My Buddy Goldens in Michigan. He's an awesome dog.


I was just going to suggest Leah!


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## lovepuppies (Mar 19, 2017)

thank you all. 

will look into both of them. 

Do you guys happen to know Composer Golden in Nile, MI? Spoke to the owner who used to be a trainer and she seemed very knowledgable on the phone and her facebook reviews are good, but couldn't find any reviews elsewhere. 

thank again!


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

She told you she has complete minimum clearances on Hips, Heart, Eyes and Elbows for her current litter? Because I found her puppies on AKC market place under the heading of "English Cream" (Here's a tip, NO reputable breeder will ever market their puppies under the term "ENGLISH CREAM" period.) The sire of that litter is only listed on OFA (the online registry) with a heart clearance. No eyes, Hips or Elbows done. The dam has no clearances on OFA that I could find, However, Since she has the Silvermine kennel listed in her pedigree for a grandparents, there is no way I would touch this dog's offspring especially without those clearances Here's why: Orthopedic Foundation for Animals looks at all the hip problems and missing elbows (an indication of a problem typically).

Have you used the search feature at the top right hand corner of this page and looked for threads on breeders in Michigan and surrounding states? You're in a region with lots of great choices for Golden breeders if you're willing to get on a wait list and be patient. You don't want a breeder who cuts corners on clearances, it's truly heartless and unethical to produce puppies without clearances.


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## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

lovepuppies said:


> thank you all.
> 
> will look into both of them.
> 
> ...



They say 'Family Raised Goldens' are their friends--- Orthopedic Foundation for Animals and this is the friend's breeding and belongs to a Robin Thorpe- no clearances except cardiac. I'm wondering if Composer is Robin Thorpe (because someone referred to her by 'robin' on the FB page). 
IF SO: Carli has an elbow clearance and I would assume she failed hips. Pedigree: Carli Of The Shenandoah is her pedigree and I added the elbows.
Echo has no clearances at all. Pedigree: Echo of the Shenandoah
Firefly has no clearances save elbows. I would assume failed hips. Her sire appears to have failed elbows and her dam had no clearanceshttp://www.offa.org/display.html?appnum=1716446#animal
River has no clearances Pedigree: River Of The Shenandoah
and Ginger also is lacking clearances. 

SO- if Robin Thorpe is Composer, then I would say no go. And if not, Family Raised Goldens, their friends, are not the best company to keep as far as reputable breeders. Let us know!


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

Or are you looking at the litter with Timber and Chrisy - Chrisy has no heart clearance and her eyes are not listed on OFA (they should be updated yearly). 

I found the website for this breeder - the page advertising Brooke is one that leads me to say no as well: an "International" championship is not an AKC title and is regarded as a practice show by serious hobby breeders. The icing on the cake for me is that she's bragging about Brooke's near perfect "confirmation" . Really? Brooke just had a litter in November. If they kept a puppy from her to show, why are they breeding her again? A back to back litter isn't necessarily a problem depending on the condition of the bitch but it makes you wonder why they needed another litter so soon.

But seriously, the big problem here is the lack of proper clearances, and you should be seeing multiple generations of clearances. The number of litters being produced indicates they are using puppy sales as an income stream for their family more than as a hobby. I think you can do better.


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

Prism Goldens said:


> ... I'm wondering if Composer is Robin Thorpe (because someone referred to her by 'robin' on the FB page).
> IF SO: Carli has an elbow clearance and I would assume she failed hips. Pedigree: Carli Of The Shenandoah is her pedigree and I added the elbows.
> Echo has no clearances at all. Pedigree: Echo of the Shenandoah
> Firefly has no clearances save elbows. I would assume failed hips. Her sire appears to have failed elbows and her dam had no clearanceshttp://www.offa.org/display.html?appnum=1716446#animal
> ...


Here's the information off the AKC Marketplace: 

Composer Goldens Welcome to Composer Goldens, where we strive to breed the best dogs in the world. Come in, look at our dogs, and feel free to leave us a note. We're always happy to talk about our breeding and training. This is our passion. Let us share it with you. Byrel and Stephanie Mitchell
Kennel Name: Composer Goldens
Breeder Name: Stephanie or Robin
Breeding for: 2 years.
Website: COMPOSERGOLDENS.COM
Breeder's Location: Niles, MI 49120
Contact By Phone: 2693628828


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## StephanieCG (Jul 26, 2017)

Hi!
I am Stephanie from Composer Golden's. 

My dog Brooke is an English cream style golden (rather than an American Golden body type). My Mother (who started FRG years ago) has both English cream body types and American body types.

I just want to make clear that we are doing everything we can to quickly put documentation on our website for clearances. I recently took over the website for familyraisedgoldens.com and am working on putting all documentation of clearances online. I apologize for our negligence in making these available to those searching sooner.

Let me assure you that both familyraisedgoldens and compsergoldens use health clearances. The goal is to breed excellent pups. Feel free to call or email with specific questions.

Have a good day everyone!


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Stephanie - you don't need to put documentation of clearances on a website when it comes to hips and elbows. When you do OFA's (hips and elbows) and the dog passes, the dog's clearances are publicly viewable on OFA's database. 

Eyes and heart are clearances which are done outside of OFA... getting those posted on your personal website is nice, but for a small fee you can have them sent in to OFA to be verified and posted so a puppy buyer can view all the clearances in the same place.

That is the issue with any breeder. If they say their dogs have full clearances, a puppy buyer only needs the registered name of the breeding dog and they can look the dog up on OFA. Make stuff easier for the puppy buyer and avoid the very easy criticisms of your program.


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## StephanieCG (Jul 26, 2017)

You're completely right of course.

We're in the process of sending things in to OFA. This wasn't done before I came on board.

I appreciate the direct criticisms.


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## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

Also know that when dogs have elbows listed without hips it typically means that they failed their hips and vice-versa. On OFA that is. There is no opt-out for passing hips and elbows. They are automatically published. And eyes and heart by cardiologist should be sent to OFA for verification- it's $12 the first year and $8 thereafter for eyes. I think the cardio is $12 as well. Verification is important because people falsify exam forms. 
It is hugely important when you are editing a site to always tell the truth- don't say you only breed animals with full clearances if exceptions are made. Don't say you show if you don't. Don't build up the international venue to be more than it is. Don't say you have an amazing obedience champion (this one killed me when I saw it on someone's site, since the dog had never even been entered in a show of any sort) if you don't compete in obedience... you get the idea. Personal ethics are more important than the $$ from a litter and always will be, and your reputation is all you have. I only looked at the litters page on your friend's site- and it says that Echo 'has all clearances'... which she does not, as she does not have an OFA record (assuming her AKC # is correct on k9data). Even if your friend did PH on her, elbows are only done by OFA. And she's just barely two years old- PH done at 4 mo isn't meant to be a final just a look-see. All the references to PH %tiles should go away too- since they no longer assign %tiles because they are not a reflection of the dog's comparative hip value to the population's .

Thanks for dropping in here, if you have any questions about exams that should be done, etc just ask. Someone here will answer you with accurate info. "Conformation" is the correct spelling for the way a dog is put together. Confirmation is something else altogether.
BTW, your friend whose site you are working on- if she only does PH , it still needs to be after the animal is 2 YO- and elbows are not cleared by anyone but OFA. So since a PH eval includes an OFA positioned view as well, it would be a $5 or so increase in fee to OFA to have them do the hips from that once view at the same time as the elbows.


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## Goldenfangirl (Apr 3, 2020)

My husband and I purchased a puppy from Robin of Family Raised Goldens. She was the offspring of Timber and Chrissy. She is simply perfect. Great temperament, health and intelligence. She is so beautiful, we can't make it down the street without people commenting on how gorgeous she is. Robin was great- gave us lots of helpful tips on training her. I highly recommend her.


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## Emmdenn (Jun 5, 2018)

"Family Raised Goldens"

Bach: No OFA eyes, no OFA heart, no OFA hips
Noah: (Not owned by them) no OFA hips
Nola: Has elbow dysplasia (unilateral) but states on their website elbows are normal (deceptive), no OFA anything else
River: No OFA hips, eyes or hearts
Gracie: No clearances??
Glenda: No OFA anything
Poe: No OFA anything

This breeder has spotty clearances at best. There are attached vet records for some dogs from some type of veterinary imaging service on some of the dogs elbows...which does not count as a clearance. The GRCA code of ethics clearly states what is acceptable. Therefore this breeder could not be considered a reputable breeder. The fact that they have OFA clearances on some of their dogs and not others, tells me that they know what they should be doing and are choosing not to on certain dogs. 

For reference:





GRCA Code of Ethics - Golden Retriever Club of America







www.grca.org


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