Hi,

I have a golden retriever 15month old bitch - she has never had a heavy coat and she had her 1st season December just passed and her coat went even more! Will she ever get a full coat at all? I see other goldies with nice fluffy thick coats and I wonder if mine will ever have one?

Fluffy and thick most likely means the dogs you have seen have been neutered/spayed. It actually turns the coat into a nightmare to manage.

I have two neutered girls, one has a luxuriant, flowing coat and the other has never had much coat, even before she was spayed! My un-neutered girl has always had a lovely thick coat which is coming out by the handful at the moment. She had her season in January and I was told that about halfway between seasons she was likely to drop her coat and then regain it. I suppose it depends on genes passed on by parents and hormones, and the combination thereof. And also temperature!

Is she a working bred golden as they don’t have such fluffy coats as the show bred dogs?

My golden is spayed but doesn’t have a great deal of coat really, not compared to some of the other goldens I’ve had in the past. She’s moulting fairly steadily at the moment, she decided to drop her winter coat on October for some reason.

Hello, my husband and I love our 7 month old female working golden retriever very much. She is gorgeous in every way and has a particularly beautiful glossy, short coppery red coat. We are considering getting her spayed after her first season but want to be aware of all health and coat advantage and disadvantages first. Health reasons we have covered with our vet.
Coat wise - please can anyone with working golden retrievers who have had their girls spayed provide some feedback on if their coats changed after being spayed?
Thank you.

Please do not spray her at such a young age.  Hormones are needed for physical and mental development. Golden Retrievers are not fully mature until they are around 2 years old. Spaying her young will increase the risk of joint and cruciate problems.

Although you have discussed spaying your bitch with your vet, please do some research on it before going ahead.  She may well develop more problems than no longer having seasons + she's far too young to even consider it

Hi
Thanks for your reply. Yes she is too young now however I would like to gather experiences on my specific query so when the time comes some time next year to consider our options, I feel more prepared to make an full and informed decision. Of course we are researching too as well as discussing options with more than just our own vet.

Unfortunately I think coat changes are common and too what amount is rather pot luck. My flat coat who was spayed at 5 years has developed a profuse coat which I manage by trimming and grooming. 
She has always been a foodie and prone to weight gain and this hasn't helped. I do keep her at a good weight but it has to be watched.  Otherwise no noticeable changes to health or disposition.  It was the same with  previous fcr bitch as well. Sil has goldies from show lines and theor coasts have all changed on spaying even though all spayed at older age well past maturity

My golden, now six years old, is spayed. She is dual purpose bred so has a lot of working type dogs in her pedigree in the maternal line. Her coat has changed a bit, slightly thicker, but not unduly so, I’ve had worse. It hasn’t been difficult to keep her weight under control as I regularly check how she feels and looks. It’s always a bit difficult looking at a GR as the coat doesn’t make it easy to see, but I look for a good tuck from the side and a rough waistline from the top, that’s when the coat makes it a bit more difficult. The time I really notice how she is looking is when she emerges from a swim.
I then adjust her food accordingly and ignore those big brown eyes whenever we have food.

My 3 year old GR was spayed at around 18 months . She was bred from dual purpose lines and had /has a lovely glossy golden red( ish) coat. We've had no weight issues with her as she has an active country life and her food intake is strictly monitored. Yep, those big brown eyes can be difficult to ignore !

My working golden bitch was spayed at roughly 2 years old and kept her straight, sleek dark coat. Doesn’t mean that yours will, some do go fluffy. She’s nearly 14 yrs now and still has a great coat.

Can I just say that it's considered ok to spay after the growth plates have closed, which should be before aged 2?  If you allow one season before spaying you should avoid joint etc. problems.   This is what my vet suggested with my Whippet.   Can't help re coat although when we had to castrate a couple of oldies (Bassets) for health reasons, their coats became heavier and softer.

In Golden Retrievers the growth plates do not close until around 18 months. Up to date research shows that spaying/neutering earlier than this can cause long term problems.

If you allow one season before spaying you should avoid joint etc. problems.

Absolutely untrue and not the kind of thing to state on a public forum especially with no evidence. Physical maturity for many breeds comes a long way after their first season. But even if we’re talking about neutering after maturity, you can lessen your chances of joint disease and other thing associated with early neuters, but you can in no way say you ‘should avoid joint etc.’ problems by doing so.

I totally agree. It is not unheard of for a Golden Retriever bitch to have her first season at 6 months old and would not be ok to have her spayed after this.

As already stated my 'evidence' comes from my vet who, when I wanted my Whippet spayed at around 6 months, said he'd prefer me to wait until after her first season.   Perhaps he was aware, as I discovered, that Whippets don't have their first seasons until older than other breeds (???).  I don't know.    I did speak to her breeder re when her mother, and half sisters first started, and it wasn't until around 15 months.  My vet cited bone development problems and the greater risk of spay incontinence as a reason for waiting.

Rest assured I'd not 'state (this) on a public forum without 'evidence'.

https://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/musculoskeletal/what-causes-puppy-stop-growing
Please scroll down to the relevant paragraph.

Absolutely none of that is evidence for saying that you should avoid joint ‘etc.’ problems if you wait for one season.

https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/golden-retriever-study-suggests-neutering-affects-dog-health/

> Absolutely none of that is evidence for saying that you should avoid joint ‘etc.’ problems if you wait for one season.

With respect, I prefer to be advised by a trusted vet rather than a stranger on a website. >   Each to their own and this is only a 'predisposition' (to early spaying affecting the growth plates).