Aren retrievers excellent family dogs?
Yes and no. Many of NEARR’s retrievers come from families who purchased them as pups to “grow up” with their newborns. Retrievers on the whole are extremely active, high energy dogs that require consistent exercise. They are also approximately 60-80 pounds, and can easily “collide” mistakenly with a toddler or young child during their exuberant displays of happiness. Behavior problems such as barking, chewing, or digging can frequently be the result of not exercising your retriever enough. Families with young children need to be willing to commit to the exercise needs of a young retriever in order to adopt. Labradors are considered puppies until they are between 3 and 4 years of age, while Golden Retrievers usually mature between 2 and 3. Their delayed adolescence period (which is the most common age during which they are surrendered to shelters or rescues) can prove to be problematic if you are not prepared to commit to their needs.
