In Search of the CANADIAN TYPE Golden Retriever

   The nation of origin of the Golden Retriever (Great Britain) has its own Breed Standard. It is to be found in the international FCI ideal as well. The Americans have created their own Breed Standard (AKC/GRCA).  And, not to be outdone, the Canadians have developed their own Breed Standard which differs somewhat from the others.
   Thus puppy shoppers have three options, three TYPES from which to choose. Within each of these types, styles may vary depending upon breeders' interpretations of their national standard. Or so I have been told. This troubles me somewhat, since we are told to ALWAYS breed to the standard. How much room is there for individual interpretation? Should there be ANY in a well-written standard? But I digress.
   Breeders identify their Golden lines as EITHER English type OR American type. This is true whether they are located north OR south of the 49th parallel. But I have yet to find a breeder anywhere who advertises his pups as CANADIAN type. Am I missing something?
   I asked a leading member of the GRCC to elaborate, and he said, "the (Canadian) Breed Standard incorporates positive features from all sources (American. British and FCI)." Okay. But how exactly does one recognize the "Canadian type?"  What distinguishes it from the American or English types? (For that matter, if an American breeder chooses to use only British type Goldens in his program, how should these dogs be considered--English type but Made In America?)
   That old bugaboo of terminology once again rears its head. Some use the term color and a shade of color interchangeably; others refer to type as well as style as if they meant the same thing. Opinions vary. But opinions are not facts.
   To confuse matters further, the GRCC provides an Illustrated version of its unique Breed Standard. The problem with this is that all the artwork contained in this document is the work of an individual who is an unabashed advocate and devotee of the American type Golden Retriever. If the Breed Standard of the Golden Retriever Club of Canada truly represents an amalgam of features found in various breed standards, how is this fact incorporated into the Illustrated Breed Standard of the GRCC?
   I'm just askin'.