The Golden Retriever was created out of the efforts of Sir Dudley Majoribanks from England in the 1860s and 1870s.
He crossed a troupe of Russian Tracking dogs with bloodhounds to create this new variety.
The new variety was highly commended for its smaller size and increased scenting abilities.
Over time, this breed of dog has become very popular with a great track record in field and bench trials.
It is probably the second most popular retriever today.
The Golden Retriever is known for having some characteristics although this may vary depending on the individual dog: 1.
Luxurious golden coat that makes it a popular choice as a family pet.
2.
Strong smelling ability thanks to its bloodhound ancestry.
3.
Friendly, affectionate disposition like other Labrador breeds.
4.
These dogs are also very intelligent and easy to train.
5.
Lacking in the hard-mouth characteristic.
They are much softer to birds and other game when holding them in their mouth.
6.
Amenable to instruction and can handle a decent level of corporeal punishment.
In fact, of all the retriever breeds, the golden retriever is the best as a family pet because of its above characteristics.
This dog does have some downsides.
One is that it performs better on land than the water.
It will tend to be uncomfortable in cold water so is better suited in warmer climates.
Another disadvantage is their heavy coat can become tangled in heavy brush but it does offset this somewhat by its superior nose.
Even with these drawbacks, this dog is a very popular choice for hunters.
It will be best utilized in upland game hunting and should not be used as much in cold water climates for duck and geese.
In the warmer climates, it can still hunt these types of bird well though.