Golden retrievers make for great family pets. They are playful, caring and energetic animals. Golden retrievers are also beautiful dogs, with their bright golden hair and friendly faces it is hard not to fall in love with them the moment that you meet.

As with any breed of dog, there are some best practices when it comes to caring for your golden retriever. We’ve put together some tips on how you can make sure that you are the best owner, for your new best friend.

1. Feed them well

When you’re in the store looking at buying your golden retriever dog food, you need to make sure that you are giving them all of the nutrients and vitamins that they need to stay healthy. Just like humans, dogs need to have a balanced diet. You can even look into food that is specific for golden retrievers.

A good rule of thumb is that the food that you buy contains a lot of meat. Dogs are carnivores and need this in their diet in abundance. If you are unsure about which brand of dog food you should but then you should not hesitate to ask your breeder or do extensive research online.

2. Feed often, and regularly

You should plan to feed your golden retriever puppies on a schedule. The amount of food and the frequency that you need to feed your dog will depend greatly on the age of the golden retriever. As the puppy grows you will need to feed him more. You can find some great resources on how often you need to feed your golden retriever online.

3. They need water just like us

Your golden retriever will need access to water at all times and you should change the water at least once per day. The water bowl should be somewhere that is easy to access, many owners will usually choose to place this next to their food bowl. Stainless steel makes for the best dog bowls as they are easy to clean and resistant to bacteria. They will also last a long time as they are very durable.

4. Treats can be healthy too

With a dog as beautiful as a golden retriever, it is hard not to give them treats every moment of every day. You should avoid this as you don’t want to spoil your golden retriever, but there is no harm in giving them healthy snacks and treats when you want to show them how good they are.

5. Watch out for foods that are toxic

There are some foods that you eat without a second thought that can be very harmful and even lethal to dogs. You should make sure that you and everyone else in your household are familiar with what you can and can’t feed to dogs. These include avocados, chocolate grapes, walnuts, almonds, pecans, onions, garlic, and many more foods. Having a list on the fridge door until everyone can recite it from memory is always a good idea.

6. Grooming

You should take the time to run a brush through your golden retriever’s coat on a daily basis. This is something that you can do while watching TV or simply to relax. This will not only help to keep your golden retriever looking great and healthy, it will also limit the amount that they shed on a daily basis.

7. Play with them

Golden retrievers love to play games. They are very active and really enjoy playing with children. If you have children it won’t take much encouragement to get them to play all day with them. This probably what you were hoping for when you first picked up your golden retriever after all.