So you just got a new puppy and wondering whether Golden Retrievers change color as they grow? We all have been there. We all asked ourselves the same question.
I did when I got my first Golden puppy more than 10 years ago. I was curious about the future color. “Will it be Golden as I want?” I had to wait a couple of months to get an answer.
Many other people ask the same question. You love the puppy, but you want to know the future color of the coat.
In this article, I’ll help you answer this confusing question based on my experience, and other Golden Retrieve parents’ experiences.
Yes. Golden Retrievers do change their coat color as they grow.
They usually just get darker. They don’t change the color completely. Don’t expect your puppy to turn black, for example.
Golden Retrievers puppies tend to get darker as they grow. Their coat changes color to fit that of their ears.
Changing the coat color is part of Golden Retrievers, and most dogs, growth, and development stages.
Puppies are usually born with a lighter color than their parents. They get darker as they grow up.
From my own personal experience, the coat color change starts usually at age 8 weeks. Most people won’t notice any difference at this point without extreme attention.
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You can expect to notice the change in coat color after 2 or 3 months.
If you are serious about the color-changing experience, taking weekly photos of your puppy will help you see when exactly things started to change.
You can compare photos and see at what week color started to look different.
However, this could be different in your case. If your baby doesn’t start to change color at 8 weeks, it’s totally okay. Nothing to worry about.
Unfortunately, no one can know for sure. It depends on many variables, among them: what shade your Golden baby currently is.
The Golden Retrievers dog breed comes in 4 different shades: dark golden, cream, light golden, and golden.
Puppies are usually born in lighter coat colors than their adult parents.
Generally speaking, all Retrieves get darker as they grow in age. It doesn’t matter what shade your puppy is, cream, light, or dark, they will get darker as they get older.
They don’t keep the same color as when they are puppies. Changing color is part of their growth.
To get an idea of what your adult dog color will look like, there are two methods to help you:
Most Golden Retriever owners confirm that the easiest way to have an idea about your dog’s future coat color is by looking at your puppy’s ears color.
Theoretically, all Golden Retrievers change color as they grow to match that of their ears.
Since puppies’ ears are almost always darker than their bodies. The adult coat color won’t be much different from the ears color.
Take a look at your puppy’s ear. Are they darker than the rest of the coat? If yes, then the coat most likely gonna be as dark.
Another way to predict your puppy’s future color is to take a look at the parents.
If the parents are both light-colored, the puppy is more likely to develop a light color. And vice versa.
If they are mixed, then this method, unfortunately, not gonna help much.
If you adopted the puppy from a shelter, it’s probably hard to find information about the parents.
On the other hand, in case you got your puppy from a breeder, you can ask for the parents’ color.
The breeder, a good one, will eagerly answer your questions and provide information about the puppy. Most breeders keep track of every dog they owned.
You can as well ask about the parents’ older litters. If their offsprings tend to get darker, then there is a big chance your puppy will be darker as well.
While it’s not always the case, some Golden Retrievers do change their color when they get older.
Some Golden Retriever parents report that their dogs started to changes the coat color after the 2nd birthday. Others later on.
In some cases, the dog’s coat started to get lighter. In others, the dog got even darker.
Unlike puppies, this change is unpredictable and is not part of the dog’s growth.
Again, this is not as common as puppies changing their color. You shouldn’t worry if you notice it. And if you don’t it’s totally okay.
Yes, all Golden Retrievers do change coat color as they grow. No matter what color your puppy is, he’s, or she’s, most likely gonna get darker as they grow up.
The general role, the adult coat color will fit that of the ear. Puppies’ ears are usually darker than their coat. As they grow, the coat changes to match the ears.
You can’t know for sure the exact color or shade, it depends on your puppy, but from a lot of Golden owners, he’s definitely gonna be darker a month or two from now.
Coat color shouldn’t stop you from loving your puppy. It shouldn’t let you discriminate against any dog.
As I always repeat, No matter what color or breed, all dogs deserve your unconditional love and care!
