[Johnny Rivera]

My family has always had Golden Retrievers, my mom adopted one a few years back and it turned out to be an Anatolian shepherd mix, so he turned out to be quite large. (Has his own sofa large).

I am living in the City and have been looking for a small to medium sized Golden that would be comfortable living in an apartment. I have done so much research and searching and have not been able to find one in the PA, NJ, CT, NYC area. I definitely don't want to buy a "comfort retriever" and ship him, those places look sketchy to me.

Please help me internet and fellow doggo owners!

 

[Sweet Girl]

Honestly, don't worry about getting a smaller Golden if it's just because you are in an apartment. Whether your dog is 45 pounds or 65 pounds, as long as he/she gets lots of exercise and time outdoors, he/she will simply hang around with you, wherever you are. They don't run around the house, or need big rooms to play in. Most are happy sitting on the couch with you. :smile2:

PS Glad you are not considering a Comfort Retriever!!

 

[ArchersMom]

You won't find a responsible breeder who's intentionally breeding dogs under standard. However, a lot of people think that goldens are supposed to be 80-100 lbs and that just isn't so. The standard calls for females to be 55-65 lbs and males from 65-75. You might find some lighter boned dogs, especially in performance venues, but don't expect too much variation. If size is an issue, I'd choose a female from a smaller sized dam. If you must have a dog under 50 lbs, I would not choose a golden retriever.

 

[Megora]

You might want to look into other breeds.

Many of the spaniels are spot on what you might be looking for.

Clumbers... are actually "big" dogs. Heavier than goldens, but come in a small package. Is a nice, easy-going, type of dog...

Sussex Spaniels... you get a easy-going, low exercise need dog of 35-40 pounds, but with many of the same temperament qualities that you want in a golden retriever.

My feeling is if you are looking into a golden retriever - you want everything in the breed standard. Which is an athletic, moderate energy dog, that is 65-75 pounds for a male dog. With the males not shorter than 23". And the females not shorter than 21".

When you get into breeders deliberately breeding smaller dogs despite what the breed standard actually says the dogs should be size wise - it basically is going in the same direction as the people who are deliberately breeding mixed breeds. There's the same disregard for breed standards.

 

[cubbysan]

You might be pleasantly surprised how small a female golden is on the lower end of the standard. They are not large dogs, but a size I would consider medium at 21 1/2 inches and 55 lbs.

Goldens do fine in apartments. We lived in one for 3 months with my male, and all that mattered to him was he was with his people.

 

[Sweet Girl]

For the record, my girl from a reputable and careful breeder, whose breeding dogs all meet standard, is just 20.5 inches tall and 46 pounds. Small. She meets standard, as there is a 1-inch allowance on either end, and she has her CCA. But just to say, you CAN wind up with a smaller dog from a good breeder. I didn't expect her to be small, but I am thrilled. I don't consider my dog a large dog - she is a medium sized dog. She's also quite perfect, if I may say. :smile2:

My last girl, also from a good breeder, was also a small female. I never had her measured, but she was probably no more than 21 inches and she never weighed more than 55 pounds. Sh was usually about 52 pounds.

 

[Megora]

For the record, my girl from a reputable and careful breeder, whose breeding dogs all meet standard, is just 20.5 inches tall and 46 pounds. Small. She meets standard, as there is a 1-inch allowance on either end, and she has her CCA. But just to say, you CAN wind up with a smaller dog from a good breeder. I didn't expect her to be small, but I am thrilled. I don't consider my dog a large dog - she is a medium sized dog. She's also quite perfect, if I may say. :smile2:

My last girl, also from a good breeder, was also a small female. I never had her measured, but she was probably no more than 21 inches and she never weighed more than 55 pounds. Sh was usually about 52 pounds.

But based on her parents (her dad being a CH) - you can definitely say the breeders were not deliberately trying to produce smaller dogs.

There are breeders out there that do that though...

 

[Abeille]

My girl is 21" as measured by a conformation judge. Her normal weight is around 50 pounds. She's a beautiful girl from a reputeble breeder. I think well bred goldens tend to be smaller than the average person's idea of the size of a golden.

 

[nolefan]

I second the vote for Clumber Spaniels, super cool dogs

 

[Sweet Girl]

But based on her parents (her dad being a CH) - you can definitely say the breeders were not deliberately trying to produce smaller dogs.

There are breeders out there that do that though...

Noooo. No, not at all. They were most definitely not trying to produce small dogs. I was just making the point that you don't actually have to go the Comfort Retriever route to get a smaller dog. I fully expected that my Tito x Abby puppy would be a standard 55-60 pound female. I feel like I got lucky! :smile2: I utterly love my little petite girl. And small as she is, she still meets breed standard and has her CCA.