Mini Golden Retriever FAQ

A typical Comfort Retriever® weighs between 30-45 pounds. Occasionally, we have some that weigh more than 45 pounds, or even less than 30 pounds.

Our larger Comfort Retrievers® are generally from a Golden Retriever bred to a Comfort Retriever®. They generally have more Golden Retriever in them, so they are a closer carbon copy than the smaller Comforts.  Their parents’ average weight is 45 pounds or larger.

The smaller Comfort Retrievers® are generally from a breeding of two Comfort Retrievers®. They generally have a little more poodle, so they may have more hypoallergenic and reduced shedding traits. Their parents’ average weight is typically below 40 pounds.

Most of our Comfort Retrievers® are light to medium gold, but we have a full range of Golden Retriever colors, from cream to gold to red. Occasionally, we get white spots (abstract) or parti-colors from the Poodle side.

Most of our Comfort Retrievers® are straight or wavy coated.  Sometimes, we produce curly coated Comforts. We classify our coat types based on DNA results, not on visual appearance. 

Both genders make wonderful pets and are considered equally trainable and affectionate. Temperament/personality depends on each individual dog.

Our Comfort Retrievers® typically have reduced shedding compared to Golden Retrievers. Shed levels are individual to the dog, so while we hope that the majority of our dogs are low shedding, there are those who are moderate to heavy shedders.

There are many factors that influence shedding as well. Some of these include season changes, weather, stress, illness, and a puppy transitioning to its adult coat. For these reasons, we can’t guarantee your dog’s shedding won’t change over time.

Smaller dogs live longer than larger dogs. Based off of this, and testimonials we have recieved, we find it reasonable to state that a well cared for Comfort Retriever® can live to be around 15 years old, with many even reporting their Comfort reaching close to 20 years of age! 

We love our dogs and want to give them the best odds of having a long, healthy life. To achieve this, we do extensive health testing on our breeding dogs to produce the healthiest offspring we can.

For Comfort/Golden Retriever parents, we test for: 

• Hip dysplasia (PennHIP)
• Cataracts (CERF or OFA eye exam)
• Elbow dysplasia (OFA Elbows 2 x-rays [right and left])
• Sub Aortic Stenosis (SAS) (OFA SAS) 
• Progressive Retinal Atrophy (Prcd-PRA) (Prcd-PRA DNA) 
• Progressive Retinal Atrophy (GRA-PRA1) (GRA-PRA1 DNA) 
• Progressive Retinal Atrophy (GRA-PRA2) (GRA-PRA2 DNA)
• Improper Coat (Improper Coat IC13 DNA) 
• Curl Gene (Curl Gene DNA)
• Ichthyosis (Ichthyosis [ICT-A] DNA)

For Poodle parents, we test for:

• Hip dysplasia (PennHIP)
• Cataracts (CERF)
• Progressive Retinal Atrophy (Prcd-PRA) (Prcd-PRA DNA)
• Luxating Patella (OFA Patellas Palpation)
• Von Willebrand’s Disease (vWd) (vWd DNA).

We offer a 2 year health warranty for all genetic conditions, that can be expanded to a 10 year warranty if you participate in our Health and Longevity Program by feeding your puppy Life's Abundance and NuVet Supplements! *More info here*

• Puppies have less bleeding, less pain and recover more quickly
• Lower risks of mammary and reproductive disorders and cancers
• Eliminates the risk of accidentally producing puppies
• No behavioral conditions develop as a result of early spay/neuter, and undesirable behaviors such as urine marking, aggression, and roaming are less likely to develop
• Reproductive organs stay smaller and are less noticeable.
• We have done early spays and neuters for over 30 years and have never had a medical problem because of the procedure
• Research indicates the longest living dogs have all been early spay and neuter puppies

We offer multiple options for delivery. We love meeting our new families, so coming to us to get your Pet is always an option. However, we understand life happens so we also have ground transport straight to your door, and hand carry flight escort options. Pricing and transportation options are dependent upon timing, availability, and location, as well as the size of your specific Pet.

• New Comfort Retriever® puppies are $6500.
• Older Comfort Retriever® pups are currently on sale, and priced as marked
• Guardians (our dogs that will be a part of our breeding program) are $500

We have a matchmaking process to help find the best puppy for your family and needs. We believe that choosing your next puppy, a family member, is a very important decision that you should have the opportunity to participate in. Because of this, we take the information you provide us in the matchmaking process and send you our available or upcoming dogs that fit your preferences.  This takes more time than just picking a pup for you, but we think it’s worth the extra effort.

We love to have visitors and to show off our dogs. However, each visitor carries the risk of unknowingly bringing parvo on our property, which is highly lethal to young puppies.  Our compromise is to allow visitors, but we do not allow visitors for pregnant or nursing moms or young pups. Fully vaccinated puppies and adult dogs can be visited, but no outside dogs are allowed on our property without prior approval. All visits are by appointment only, and visitors must provide at least 24-hour notice prior to their visit. We do not have regular office hours on weekends. Appointments are available Monday-Friday.

We are located on the beautiful countryside of Versailles, Kentucky.

For the most complete protection, you need to register your dog’s microchip.  First, go to http://www.petshometoday.com and click for instructions in English.  The implanter ID # is 3361. On the last page of your contract will be a sticker with the microchip and batch number. You can get the ID tag number from the contract or your dog’s tag.

Good nutrition is one foundation on which health is built.

Our first recommendation would be Life’s Abundance . It is one of the best dog foods we have found. Life’s Abundance is made of premium grade ingredients. Life’s Abundance does not contain additives or preservatives and is calorie-dense, so a bag lasts a long time. Life’s Abundance is on the cutting edge of nutrition research. They have high-quality proteins, vitamins and minerals, antioxidants from fruits and vegetables, omega-3 fatty acids, flax meal, brewer’s yeast, and direct-fed microbials (probiotics).

Our second recommendation would be Purina Pro Plan Sport. We currently feed our onsite dogs Purina Pro Plan Sport because it is a good quality food for all life stages. The ingredients are carefully chosen for a specific purpose and optimal protein-to-fat ratio tailored to formula helps pets maintain their ideal body condition. Purina’s nutrition is backed by 400+ Purina scientists including nutritionists, behaviorists, and veterinarians.

• Some breeders began to use our name due to its reputation, but we were concerned that buyers would unknowingly receive dogs that were not produced using our lines. Most Mini Golden breeders use Golden Retrievers and Cocker Spaniels. 
• The difference is, Kathy quickly realized that having Cocker Spaniel in the mix, does not make a good Mini Golden, and she wanted to make the best. Cocker Spaniel lines can add issues with looks, long term health, and poor temperament. Because of this, she switched to only breeding Golden Retrievers and Poodles, and has had great success ever since! 
• Since she created the better overall Mini Golden, she decided to trademark GoldenQuest® and Comfort Retriever® to protect her dogs, and clients, with an extra reassurance of quality, care, and experience.