The Golden Cocker Retriever dog, also known as the Golden Retriever Cocker Spaniel Mix dog, is a fairly large mixed breed dog that results from cross breeding one Golden Retriever parent and one Cocker Spaniel parent.
This dog is officially recognized as being a designer dog breed by the following organizations listed below.
- American Canine Hybrid Club (ACHC)
- Dog Registry of America (DRA)
The Golden Cocker Retriever dog isn’t recognized as its own pure breed because of the fact that there are some differences between the physical and characteristic traits among Golden Cocker Retriever dogs, which makes it virtually impossible for this dog to have certain breed standards according to which it would be classified as a pure breed.
With that being said, there are some very common physical and characteristic traits among all Golden Cocker Retriever dogs which we will be covering in this article.
Golden Cocker Retriever Appearance
Size, Height & Weight
The Golden Cocker Retriever is a larger than average sized dog that will usually weigh between 35 to 65 lbs, and will usually stand at an impressive 24 inches in height.
This large spectrum, especially when it comes to the weight of this dog, is due to the fact that its two parents vary a whole lot in size and weight, which can in turn affect the size and weight of their offspring.
Obviously, female Golden Cocker Retriever dogs will fall on the lower side of this spectrum, as their male counterparts will almost always be larger in size.
Coat
Generally speaking, the most common colors that the coat of the Golden Cocker Retriever will come in are black, brown, tan, cream, white, yellow and gold.
Out of all the colors, this dog is most known for its cream and gold coat color.
Golden Retriever Cocker Spaniel Mix Temperament
Generally speaking, this dog is one of those hybrid dogs that don’t necessarily always take up more of its personality from one parent than the other.
Just as they could take certain traits from their Golden Retriever parents, some of these dogs may take more of their traits from their Cocker Spaniel parents, while others may take traits from both of their parents in equal percentages.
Exercise
The Golden Cocker Retriever will need to get enough exercise on a daily basis to stay physically and mentally fit and healthy, although not as much as some other dogs may need to get.
Probably the favorite form of exercise anyone can give this dog is a long walk in the park, as well as anything that involves water (hint: swimming!), and not to mention interactive games with the person it loves most (YOU!) such as a fun round of Frisbee.
If you even have an exercise routine you take up on yourself on a daily basis, this dog can be the perfect companion you can take along, as they also love to go on walks, jogs or even runs.
Be careful about not giving this dog the necessary exercise and physical activity outlets it needs every day, as they can easily become hyper because of all the excess energy build up inside of them, as well as develop serious behavioral problems that can eventually become a dangerous threat to your own safety.
One good thing we really like about this cross breed is the fact that unlike other dog breeds, this dog can be taken out for something like a walk in the park without necessarily having to be on the leash.
Other dogs may have a strong sense of smell that urges them to dart off in search for something, or a strong sense of adventure that urges them to wander off into the unknown, but this dog is a very good listener that will stay close to you when outside so you won’t lose track of where they went.
Training
Training the Golden Cocker Retriever dog isn’t the most difficult of jobs in the world, especially for those who don’t have very much experience prior to this when it comes to training dogs.
For first time dog owners, this dog will be a blessing as it’s a very smart dog that loves to follow any commands and orders given to it by its owner, learns these commands in a fairly fast manner and doesn’t take as much time as other dogs to be taught what it needs to learn.
Watchdog
As far as being a watchdog is concerned, there’s good news for you if this is what you’re interested in having in a dog, as the Golden Cocker Retriever is a very good watchdog that will make you aware of anything suspicious happening around your home that you should know of.
However, and while this dog is an excellent watchdog, the same can’t really be said about its ability to be a guard dog.
For a dog to be a competent guard dog, they have to have a very protective nature to them towards the people they love, and they have to have a fearless, courageous personality that’s not intimidated by anything when it comes to fending off any potential danger that looms around themselves, yourself or any of your family members.
This dog is probably one of the last dogs on the list that will ever have these characteristics, which means that it won’t do any good when it comes to forcing any intruder to back off.
The Golden Cocker Retrievers is, just like its Labrador Retriever parent, a very friendly dog to any and all strangers that come by its way, which is obviously not at all a trait you want in a guard that’s supposed to be guarding your home from strangers that are out to harm you.
Cocker Spaniel Golden Retriever Mix Health
Hybrid dogs are known to not suffer as much health problems as their purebred parents, but they can very well inherit some of the health problems that their parents are prone to suffering from in their lifetimes.
The most common of these health problems that a Golden Cocker Retriever may end up suffering from at some stage of their life are:
- Allergies
- Hip Dysplasia
- Elbow Dysplasia
- Metabolism problems
- Eye disease
The life expectancy of this dog is estimated (on average) to be between a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of 15 years, which is average for dogs as large as this one.
Of course, not all Golden Cocker Retriever dogs will live the same lifespan, and not all will necessarily fall within this bracket.
This is just an estimate based on the numbers that are available out there about Golden Cocker Retriever dogs, and how many years your Golden Cocker Retriever will indeed go on to live will depend on a host of factors that nobody can fully control.
Golden Cocker Spaniel Living Conditions
If the main reason you’re looking to get one of these dogs home is because you want them to accompany your kids and be friends with them, then this is a good choice you can go with.
Coming from a Golden Retriever parent, this dog takes much of its fun, sweet and friendly personality from the Retriever, thus making an excellent companion and play buddy for little kids.
As a matter of fact, this dog has so much affection and love built up inside of it that you’ll notice that they tend to form super strong bonds with young children they like and enjoy being around, ones stronger than anything you’ve ever seen with any other dog and human.
All in all, this dog isn’t too large in size for anyone to be afraid of letting them play around with their kids because of possible rough physical contact, and they’re too much of a sweetheart to even think about harming a young child.
If you’re reading this and are still too afraid to take such a step because you consider it to be too much of a risk, feel free to supervise the first few interactions and play sessions this dog has with your children and have a look at how it goes for yourself, first hand.
Of course, all we just talked about only applies to Golden Cocker Retriever dogs that have been socialized beforehand into learning how to play around with little kids the right way.
For Golden Cocker Retriever dogs that haven’t been properly socialized before, we don’t advise you letting them play with your kids unsupervised.
And just like this dog is very friendly with young children, it’s also very friendly with other animals and pets you might already have at home, so you won’t have to worry about them stirring up some problems with other pets (which would usually be the case with other dog breeds).
Also, one of the things we love most about this cross breed dog is the fact that you don’t have to have a large backyard as part of your home in order for them to be comfortable living there.
The majority of large sized dogs find it terribly hard to get accustomed to living in an indoor apartment because of the restriction of adequate space that allows them to freely move around, but this dog can get perfectly accustomed to living anywhere you want it to, be it in an apartment or a home with a large backyard as part of the property.
As long as you spend the necessary amount of time with this dog during the day to keep it company, and as long as you give them the necessary amounts of exercise they need to get day in, day out, having them live in an indoor apartment is just as fine as having live somewhere where they have access to a large backyard.
As for the best weather climate this dog tends to thrive in, the Golden Cocker Retriever will tend to do better in weather climates that lean more towards the cold than warmth.
This is because this dog has a fairly long coat that’s able to protect them from cold temperatures, but one that will just make them feel more hot and sweaty when they’re moving around in relatively high temperatures.
Golden Spaniel Care
The Golden Cocker Retriever isn’t anywhere near some other dogs that require a whole lot of maintenance when it comes to grooming them.
On the contrary, the Golden Cocker Retriever is a fairly low maintenance dog that will make your life as a dog owner fairly easy in that department.
For example, even though the Golden Cocker Retriever has a fairly long coat, it doesn’t shed as much as it really should, meaning you can enjoy the luxury of having a dog with a beautiful long coat without having to suffer from all the shedding consequences that would usually accompany a coat as such.
This means that you won’t have to be brushing this dog’s coat an awful lot of times each week, with just around 2-3 times a week being more than enough to prevent hair tangling and dead hairs falling everywhere around your house.
Be careful though, as this dog’s fur is a little bit sensitive so it requires you to brush it in in a calm and gentle demeanor with a soft brush.
As far as giving this dog a bath is concerned, the Golden Cocker Retriever dog should only be showered when the need arises, such as when they get their fur overly-dirty or when they start to smell a little bit bad.
I have been looking for this mix. Where can I find a breeder.