I no nothing about Bentley's breeder, no idea who it is, but I have not found that to be the case "....typical GR puppy, hard headed, strong willed and hard to teach..." with TYPICAL golden retriever puppies. Generally they are sweet, willing, and very easy to teach.
I can't believe his father is that big! That's, well, shameful.

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Gibson's Golden Girl, CD, CGC, TDI (born 3-20-1997), a.k.a. "Tiny"

CH Rosewood Little Giant, UDX VER RA SH MXP MJP VCX WCX CCA CGC FFX-OG (born 3-10-2007), also UCH HR UUD UJJ URO1 UHIT a.k.a. "Tito" (the Tito Monster)

and my heart dog
Gibson's Golden Guy, CD, CGC, TDI ( 01-31-1998 - 01-02-2012) a.k.a. "Toby", "HRH"

I just looked up the height for a male GR. It says, 22-24" at withers. She said Dakota is 162 lbs and 28". She said they come from "big stock" WTH does that even mean???
Sounds to me like I'm going to have to start piling away even more money than I thought for Bentley's possible health problems

hotel4dogs: He comes from a BYB because I didn't know any better until I found this site. I'm shaking inside now. I have read enough on here to know to expect health issues but now that I see the size discrepancy, I'm down hearted. Poor Bentley.

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You go show Bentley who's boss! I feel bad for Ky


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Even though 28" is really tall, I don't think he should be 162 lbs! He must be VERY overweight.


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When I saw him the day I picked up Bentley he didn't look fat, just huge. And intimidating. My plan was to take pics of both parents for the baby book but he scared me so badly that we just left
(of course I was nervous and he had a big, beautiful, flowing coat so who knows how much fat was under there)

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Ah, don't feel too badly.
My Tiny, who will (God willing) be 16 in March, is from a PET STORE.
I learned my lesson, because her temperament isn't the true "heart of gold", so I said NO MORE PET STORE DOGS.
And got my Toby, my heart dog, from a BYB! His parents were both under 2, neither had any clearances. Found his litter in a newspaper and liked the price, figured it was better than a pet store. WRONG.
His parents were both big, as was he, and he had a lot of health issues, but he lived to a very cheerful almost 14 years old. He had a wonderful temperament and I simply adored him.
So I got Tito from a "real" breeder. Live and learn. We all started somewhere.

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Gibson's Golden Girl, CD, CGC, TDI (born 3-20-1997), a.k.a. "Tiny"

CH Rosewood Little Giant, UDX VER RA SH MXP MJP VCX WCX CCA CGC FFX-OG (born 3-10-2007), also UCH HR UUD UJJ URO1 UHIT a.k.a. "Tito" (the Tito Monster)

and my heart dog
Gibson's Golden Guy, CD, CGC, TDI ( 01-31-1998 - 01-02-2012) a.k.a. "Toby", "HRH"

LOL for some reason, I read that he could have be hiding knives under his coat and that's why you were so scared!!

I just can't believe a GR who is 4 inches taller than standard is over TWICE as heavy!


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Ok I'm almost sick to my stomach over this and you made me laugh. Thank you

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Hey Joyce--My advice: please don't stress. Bentley will be whatever size he will be. And he will get trained and get better as he gets older. He is only 5 months old. Try to be patient.

As far as size goes, as you know, Max is a big boy. His father was tall, probably at least 28 inches and was incredibly sweet. Max's mother was on the small side. He is from a BYB. Like you, I had never heard of clearances or breed standards until I joined the forum.

When we got him, we thought maybe 100 pounds at maturity. Max is around 150 pounds now and 29+ inches tall. That is 25% taller than the AKC standard and twice as heavy. He has been losing weight. But he is "big boned" and has huge muscle mass. We are concerned because generally the "giant" breeds live shorter lives than the smaller breeds. There is nothing that can be done about that now other than control his diet. We do know that he has the bone structure and muscles to support his size.

From reading this forum, I have learned that there are plenty of Goldens smaller than the standard, and also some bigger. They are all Goldens, however, and the most important trait is not size, but temperament. The way you describe "Broadway Bentley" I think you have a puppy with a great, Golden Retriever, personality. Work with him and after maybe a few bumps in the road, you will have a great dog.

As far as health issues in general, our last Golden, Chewy, was a pet store dog. She lived to be 14 1/2 and never had a sick vet visit. Our Golden before Chewy, Golda, also was healthy and lived to be 12+. We adopted her from an acquaintance and never knew her background. Any dog, even one with the finest pedigree, can have health issues.

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Dave

Thanks Dave for talking me off the ledge...again! I shouldn't have called the breeder. I'm happy to hear about Chewy and Golda! That's what I'm going to hang my hat on instead of stats!

It's been a rough 2 days for Bentley but I can see slow progress. Also, I see a difference in Ky. Since I started cracking down on him she has stepped up and doesn't allow him to steal from her.
I guess 2 dogs at once is a bit more complex than I thought. I'm just going to keep doing what I'm doing until he learns manners, even if that's when he's 3

I have been calling him to me when he's behaving and giving him cuddles. I think there's something to this tough love

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