Most individuals looking to adopt often wonder whether they can keep Golden Retrievers as service dogs.
If you’re wondering the same thing, you’ve come to the right place. However, a short answer to your question is: Golden Retrievers are among the most sought-after and well-known service dog breeds in the world.
Golden Retrievers have been known to assist people with hearing and/or visual impairments as well as effectively pulling off other tasks they are trained for. Of course, if you were trying to find some of the ‘services’ this wonderful dog breed is best-suited for, we recommend you keep scrolling.
Service Dog Breeds and Their Purpose
When you ask a dog expert about the most common service dog breeds in the world, they’re bound to mention two names: Labrador Retrievers and Golden Retrievers. Still, we’re about to briefly discuss what service dogs are best suited for.
Since there is a long list of services that can be entrusted to man’s best friend, the size of a dog breed doesn’t really matter. Service dogs can range from the smallest to the largest dog breeds, depending on the medical condition their pet parents have or what their pet parents’ hobbies/professions are.
The simplest prerequisite for a dog breed to be considered for service is that they should be able to complete a particular task assigned to them with ease and without disrupting the comfort of their pet parent. The latter is especially important when a service dog is appointed for an individual’s disability.
For example, Papillon dogs may not be suitable for assisting their parent who is in a wheelchair, however, they are best suited for people who need emotional support or need assisted hearing. Of course, some pet parents also prefer to rescue pups from shelters for various disabilities. Also, if a particular dog breed is not applicable for a certain job, they are bound to be perfect for another.
Ideal Characteristics for a Service Dog
Regardless of their breed, service dogs are required to have a set of qualities that make them reliable for the job. Match the following requisite characteristics with your pup to determine whether you can trust Golden Retrievers as service dogs:
- An eagerness to please
- Ability to learn quickly and retain commands (or other details)
- Can easily adjust to different places or situations
- Friendly, even with strangers
- Placid butsociable
- Attentive
- Loveto accompany you wherever you go
Can You Consider Golden Retrievers As Service Dogs?
If you’ve been around many different breeds of dogs, you’ll know that most breeds don’t qualify for service dogs. However, our main concern right now is whether Golden retrievers qualify as service dogs.
They most certainly do! The service dog checklist mentioned above is like a basic description of most Golden Retrievers and therefore, this adorable breed has what it takes to be a service dog.
Let’s have a closer look at the characteristics that make Golden Retrievers perfect for the job:
- Golden Retrievers are the 4th most intelligent breed of dog
- Experts suggest that they are very trainable
- They are very reliable
- Devoted to their pet parents because of their ‘people-pleasing’ characteristics
- Minimal training is required for them to successfully pulloff a task
Common Services Golden Retrievers Are Best Suited For
Based on their sensitivity toward people in general, Golden Retrievers are believed to be the best service dogs for mobility service or assistance. Let’s briefly discuss each service to give you an idea of what you can expect:
1. Guide Dogs
Guide dogs are a category of service dogs that support visually impaired or blind individuals. This could range anywhere from guiding them inside their homes or even exploring the outdoors.
2. Mobility Service or Mobility Assistance Service Dogs
Mobility service and mobility assistance is a particularly wide category of dog services. For starters, these dogs can offer great support to individuals with disabilities. For instance, mobility assistance service dogs are trained to help people who may need assistance with their wheelchairs, artificial limbs or perhaps, just need assistance in public.
Service dogs that offer mobility assistance to their pet parents are often dressed in safety gear, not so much because they are at risk of getting harmed, but because they are then, easily recognizable. Of course, these individuals don’t wish to stand out, so most of them opt out of buying uniforms.
Assistance service dogs are also commonly assigned to people who may have a risky mental state or perhaps, even for allergen detection or for signaling out other serious health problems.
3. Mobility Assistance Tasks
Golden Retrievers, as service dogs, also help reduce the difficulties individuals face while independent. For this reason, these majestic creatures can be trained for just about anything that could help mitigate your difficulties.
Mobility assistance dogs can be trained to perform any or all of the following tasks:
- Offering companionship, emotional support or simplerelaxation
- Assistance in getting dressed
- Carrying your belongings in a specially-designed canine bag
- Strapping lightweight equipment to their backpack
- Pushing buttons on elevators or automatic doors
- Shutting cabinets, drawers or doors
- Defending or attacking against threats in the surrounding environment
- Drawing wheelchairs
- Aiding an individual into or out of a wheelchair
- Aiding an individual with their stamina, postureor other coordination concerns
Our Final Thoughts
Golden Retrievers are experts at deciphering, learning and following commands and they have a lot more eagerness to please their pet parents as opposed to other dogs. If you refer to the individual history of this dog breed, you will find out how the American Kennel Club’s first three Obedience Championship Titles (since 1977) were awarded to Golden Retrievers!
The best thing about Golden Retrievers as service dogs is that they are physically alert as opposed to being reactive to their surroundings. This characteristic synergizes with their exceptional friendliness and affection to make them America’s favorite dog.
