Rare Golden Retriever Health Issues

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     For the most part, you probably will not experience very many golden retriever health problems. If you keep your dog well exercised, fed properly, and make sure he gets all his shots than he should have a good long and healthy life. However, dogs like people do sometimes experience some health issues.

It's good to understand what can happen so that you can avoid it or at least see it if and when it happens. The other reason to be aware of these things is that some of them can be screened for at breeding time. Which is great, because you can potentially avoid them altogether. Or at very least, minimize the possibility that your dog will have problems. Not everything I talk about here is a disease of course, some of these things are just common sense items that need to be repeated.

A Dog That Sheds

First of all, it's good to know that golden retrievers are dogs that shed. They shed a lot. I often tell people be prepared to groom your dog daily. If you do this, or have one of your kids do it, then you will find very little hair around her house. However the absolute minimum is two times per week. You will have to brush them more often in the springtime in early summer. This is when they shed that beautiful winter coat, and if you don't keep them well groomed, it will be all over your house and your furniture.

Food

This is one of the main things that you can control with respect to your Golden retriever's health. Golden retrievers love to eat. You cannot set their food bowl out and leave it out because it will constantly be empty. Feed them what the bag suggests for their height and weight, and of course ask your vet, but do not overfeed this dog. If you do so they will very quickly become obese. There especially prone to this as they get older, because they don't get as much exercise, and are generally is active.

Physical Activity

Another key ingredient to your golden retrievers health is the amount of exercise that she gets. It's good to understand when you get your dog that they need a lot of exercise. This is not for the sole purpose of keeping their physical body in tune, but also it keeps them mentally balanced. They need this or their behavior will turn bizarre and strange. They will begin to chew things and become unruly and difficult to deal with.

Hip Dysplasia

This is a condition that can be tested for in the breeding stock. So if you're getting a puppy from a breeder, make sure that the breeding stock has been tested for this. All good breeders will provide you proof of this anyway. It's a relatively simple test that a veterinarian can do with an x-ray.

Cataracts

Dogs, and golden retrievers in particular, can actually get cataracts. Fortunately, as in people, they can also get surgery to correct it. And by and large it's fairly successful.

Entropion

Golden retrievers are susceptible to a quirk with their eyes called entropion. This is a condition by which turned back to me the Bible. It's extremely uncomfortable, but can also be corrected with surgery. People, generally the elderly can also get this. The solution is very similar.

None of these things are terribly common, but they are all ailments which when identified can be dealt with before they get too serious.