White golden retrievers in dog shows?

Question

I was watching the 2005 dog show and they had a golden retriever on it that was really white.

I thought white in golden retrievers wasn't the standard for show?

It was the Crufts dog show 2005

Answer 1

That would be "cream" which is an acceptable color in Canada.

AKC Standard:
"Color
Rich, lustrous golden of various shades. Feathering may be lighter than rest of coat. With the exception of graying or whitening of face or body due to age, any white marking, other than a few white hairs on the chest, should be penalized according to its extent. Allowable light shadings are not to be confused with white markings. Predominant body color which is either extremely pale or extremely dark is undesirable. Some latitude should be given to the light puppy whose coloring shows promise of deepening with maturity. Any noticeable area of black or other off-color hair is a serious fault. "

The Canadian Standard is a little more lenient as to color. According to the Golden Retriever Club of Canada's commentary on the illustrated standard:

"The acceptable range of colour in the Golden Retriever is broad. While a medium gold is always correct, coat colour can range from cream to a darker coppery gold. Any dogs within this range of colour should be considered equally, based on their merits, including balance, head type, movement and structure. In Canada, there is a broader range of acceptable colouring than allowed in the AKC standard. Many of the early Goldens were very rich coloured and these rich colours are still present in the breed. Cream was added to the English standard in 1936 due to the growing popularity of the colour and its place within the early development of the breed. This range of colours and shadings is perfectly acceptable and is a pleasant variation within the breed. Generally the feathering, underpants and tail plume are lighter in colour than the body coat. A Golden’s body colour tends to darken over several years to the colour of the ears, so ear colour should be considered in an otherwise very pale puppy. A flat tan or plain brown coloured dog, (i.e. not lustrous or displaying a golden hue) is to be faulted."

EDIT: Personally, I prefer Goldens to be GOLD, not red or cream. But that's just me. I also have color preferences for my own breed, but when selecting for breeding I don't look at color since it's not as important as other factors.

Answer 2

In the UK, where the Crufts show is held, "English White" or "Cream" are acceptable coats for the Golden Retriever.
Here in the US, white, off-white, cream, or very light blonde are all unacceptable coat colors, and thus a disqualification.

If you ask me, white coats on a Golden is a disgusting thing, and should never be bred. What is the point of having a "white" golden? How are they considered "Golden" Retrievers if they have a White coat? This makes no sense to me. Yet so many breeders cliam they have "rare english white" Goldens so they can sell them for thousands more dollars than just "Golden" Retrievers.
I say if they want to make the Golden Retriever a White coated dog, they should change the breed name. Have you ever noticed how similar the Flat Coated Retriever looks to the Golden, except for the waxy black coat?
Interesting, if you ask me.

It is bad enough Goldens are so overbred and inbred, but then supposedly reputable breeders go and change the coat color because oh, it is the cool new trend, and, hmm, maybe we can make more money off of these non-standard coated dogs.

Goldens should not be red. Goldens should not be white. Goldens should not be cream.
Goldens should be Golden. That means Blonde.

There are a lot of things I like that the UK has done for dogs, such as the banning of tail docking and ear cropping, but I cannot stand their LOVE and breeding for the "white" Golden.

Answer 3

Crufts is a British dog show...in Great Britain, they prefer their Goldens to be very light colored...you'll find very few of the light colored Goldens in the US (though they do seem to be more common lately). The UKC allows this coloring, but you are correct in thinking that the AKC does not.

Even in different areas of the US, you'll find the colors of Goldens will vary from region to region. Some areas, higher concentrations of Goldens will be nearly red (west coast), some areas, a medium gold to yellow (midwest)...this is just a generalization, you can find a variety of colors all over, but to many, it's just a matter of preference.

The reason to avoid a "white" Golden bred in the US is that these dogs are intentionally being bred AGAINST AKC standard, nearly always meaning that the breeder really couldn't care less about what kind of dog they are putting out.

Answer 4

Where was this dog show from??? I'll come back and answer it when you can tell me ok.

There are all white Golden's. I have not seen them in any dog shows here in the US but have in Britain and in other European countries.
I am going to guess what you saw were the Golden who are very light and considered cream colored. Although they are very light colored they are not considered white.

Usually their top coat is a very pale cream colored and their under coat is white. They are excepted in Canada, England and in Australia, and other European countries but not in the US yet.

I find these dogs very nice looking and I feel it is only a matter of time before the US will allow them to compete and start to get the recognition they deserve.

Answer 5

What Kennel Club? Read their standard and you will have a description of the ideal animal in much more detail then we can go into here. Note that *WHITE* is not an acceptable color under ANY standard but "any shade of gold or cream" is acceptable under most standards. In the UK it is not unusual to find lovely cream dogs so light as to appear *almost* white.

Answer 6

It was probably a light golden color. Goldens color, like the buff or ASCOB (any solid color other than black) cocker spaniel can range anywhere from a silver to a red. It's just lighter shade of the golden color.

Add: I may be using the wrong words to describe the particular color in the golden retriever...the words I used above are used to describe the variety of shades of buff in the ascob cocker. My purpose was to tell you that there is a range of shades of gold.

Answer 7

Well, this dog was probably not white, but a very light blond. He could of always been a very light blond that was startinbg to turn white from age.

Answer 8

White isn't, but very very light blonde is