why is my golden so small?

[u/1-800-no-one-asked]

hello everyone! meet cricket. we rescued this guy last january when he was 6 months old. now being a year and a half, my guy weighs just about 40 pounds. i was wondering if anyone knew why he ended up being just a little guy?

his history is a bit of a weird one. i was scrolling through the internet looking at golden puppies, pure bred, with no real intention of adopting one. i ended up messaging a breeder asking about pricing, and when it was more than i could afford at tha moment, i politely declined. she messaged again saying she had a golden who was a bit older than all the others, who they were planning on putting down if no one adopted him. when he was still a puppy, he got trampled by a cow so he has a weird gait and some neurological issues. if no one wanted him, they didn't want him either. if absolutely broke my heart. i call him a rescue for this reason, and i gave her $100 for him. flash forward to today, he still walks funny and isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but he is the biggest sweetheart. the vet says his walk is no cause for concern until he is older. i'm very curious if this is what caused his growth to be stunted. according to the breeder, he is a pure bred, but i'm not sure that is the case. i haven't gotten him DNA tested.

i don't truly care that he's small... he's my best friend!! i wouldn't have him any other way :))

[u/1-800-no-one-asked]

yeah. when i picked him up she was not a kind person. he also looks nothing like the other goldens she had. if i was looking to adopt a pure bred i would have 100% done research on her, but i wanted him out of her hands asap. people can be cruel

[u/OutrageousBrush1210 → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

Well he is a BEAUTIFUL boy - so glad he’s with you now living his best life!! 🩷

[u/SeymoreBhutts → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

Out of curiosity, how much was she asking initially?

[u/1-800-no-one-asked → u/SeymoreBhutts]

i believe 1000 iirc. it was specifically for a golden puppy with bright blue eyes that she had posted on FB

[u/IHateTheLetter-C- → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

Small amount of Aussie in there possibly? I don't think it's possible for a pb golden, even horribly out of standard, to have blue eyes, but I might be mistaken there, genes are not a strength of mine. Sidenote a golden that dark, with blue eyes, sounds terrifying haha

[u/Canachites → u/IHateTheLetter-C-]

It is absolutely not possible for a purebred golden to have blue eyes (many puppies have greyish eyes that turn brown later, but not blue). This lady is likely breeding mutts that look like goldens for the most part.

[u/HairTmrw → u/Canachites]

I have a purebred Lab that had bright blue eyes at birth and they turned greenish brown.

[u/Canachites → u/HairTmrw]

But that's not blue eyes, like genetically.

[u/HairTmrw → u/Canachites]

It could be. Though I agree that this dog does look like it has aussie in it, a golden CAN be born with blue eyes and be pure.

[u/IHateTheLetter-C- → u/HairTmrw]

Puppies usually have blue eyes, same as human babies, but they lose it later on. Standard says medium brown is fine, and greenish brown is probably just a weird version of brown

[u/SeymoreBhutts → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

That’s a bit low for a legit breeder of pure-bred Goldens… that price and that behavior are giant red flags. Good on you for saving him! He’s perfect!

[u/Mist2393 → u/SeymoreBhutts]

Yeah our last golden from a reputable breeder was like $1500, and that was 5 years ago.

[u/SeymoreBhutts → u/Mist2393]

We got our two from a very successful show breeder in our area. We don’t do anything show related, just wanted good boys. They were not cheap… got the first one after Covid when nothing was available. Everyone was getting dogs and bikes, so we had limited options for available and reputable. Two years later, his mom was having her final litter so we got him his half brother. A small fortune in dogs later, we have two of the bestest boys anyone could ask for.

[u/Smooth_Marsupial_262 → u/Mist2393]

Mine was 2200

[u/hydrissx → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

Blue eyes don't exist in Goldens so thats a red flag too.

[u/Eternalscream0 → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

Then he’s definitely a mix. Goldens don’t have blue eyes!

I did think he was mixed with spaniel from the look of him, but could be Aussie as another person said. We don’t have many of them in the UK so I wouldn’t know.

[u/IHateTheLetter-C- → u/Eternalscream0]

Purebred spaniels don't have blue eyes either, but with all the merle people are breeding into them (linked to blue eyes) it might be a spaniel mixed with a little bit of Aussie or border to make a "purebred" spaniel

[u/AffectionateWeb2389 → u/Eternalscream0]

This dog definitely has brown eyes. Scroll to last pic. He’s a red golden, they’re still golden retrievers. My purebred golden from a crap breeder looks just like him, but is gold.

[u/Budget_Computer_427 → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

Lot of comments here but please run a DNA test that will also tell you about his health. It sounds like he's poorly bred. Knowing what conditions he might be predisposed to later in life will be really helpful.

[u/HandLopsided2503 → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

please report that breeder if you remember anonymously to authorities

[u/Confident-You-9396 → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

I’d do the research anyway, and then post it on whatever breeding site she uses to sell her puppies. Whether it’s Facebook or marketplace ~ I’d post the results and what you just told us.. what an evil bitch she is 😡

[u/Fancy-Reception-4067 → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

My guess is shortened spine; looks like my sprinter spaniel with one

[u/goldcoast_RN → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

Thank you for saving that sweet baby

[u/SitStayShakeGoodGirl → u/1-800-no-one-asked]

You were in the right place at the right time, he was meant for you ❤️ Besides, Goldens comes in so many shapes, colors & sizes, kinda like awesome humans. 😉