One of the toughest things about dog ownership happens before you even get the dog: deciding where to get him! There are many places to get a dog: an animal shelter, a rescue group, a breeder, a pet store, an ad in the newspaper. The most common places to get purebred puppies are breeders and pet stores. The following article will tell you how to decide what is a good breeder ("responsible breeder") and what is a bad breeder ("back-yard breeder"). I am not going to go into any length about pet store puppies. You should NEVER buy a dog from a pet store. Pet stores only sell dogs to make money, and care very little about the health or happiness of either the puppies at the store or their parents. All puppies from pet stores, every single one of them, comes from a puppy mill: a place where dogs are forced to breed their intire lives simply to make money, and where the health and happiness of the animals is not a factor. The bottom line is, never buy a dog from a pet store.
Okay, so what is the difference between a Responsible Breeder and a Back-Yard-Breeder? The following lists the differences, and explains why BYB's are not a good idea to go with when buying a puppy.

BYB is a pretty vague term but basically applies to any who breeds their dog(s) for a reason other than to improve the breed. By improve the breed, it means to breed dogs who are superior specimens according to their breed standard, and by breeding them you would produce dogs that are better (conformationally, temperamentally, physically) than the breed as a whole.
BYB's breed for all the wrong reasons. If you are interested in a litter that someone has bred, simply ask the breeder why s/he bred their dog. If they answer with any of the following, RUN AWAY and DON'T buy a dog there!
1) Sire/Dam are "nice dogs" and we thought they would make cute puppies.
2) I wanted (or my neighbor or grandpa or friends, whoever) a dog just like my "Fluffy."
3) All female dogs should have at least one litter.
4) It was an accident.
5) We wanted the kids to see the miracle of birth.
6) The kids wanted to raise puppies.
7) We wanted the experience of raising puppies.
8) Person we got our dog from wanted us to breed her.
9) Her father's cousin's half-brother was a champion.
10) (Insert breed here) are great dogs and everyone deserves one just like mine.
11) I payed good money for the bitch, I'm going to get it out of her. I did it for the profit.
12) She has really unique (read: faulty, incorrect) characteristics and I wanted to pass them on.
13) Female dogs are calmer after they've had a litter.
14) They've got registration papers.
Et cetera, et cetera.
How do you tell if a person is a responsible breeder? Here are some clues:
1) Again, they only breed to produce excellent specimens of the breed according to the recognized breed standard. If they can't recite the breed standard in their sleep, they shouldn't be breeding! This is important...the breed standard is what keeps each breed pure. Without following the breed standard, you start producing dogs who look and act nothing like the breed they are supposed to be.
2) They will not be breeding more than one or two different breeds of dogs.
3) ALL of their breeding stock will be certified free of genetic diseases. In goldens, OFA (hips) and CERF(eyes) documents are the biggies. If the breeder can't show you the certificates on both sire and dam, walk away. Although they may not have a copy of the certificates for more extended family, ALWAYS ask what the dogs grandparents/aunts/uncles/half-siblings, etc have been cleared for. Remember, "healthy" does not mean they took the dog to the vets and the vet deemed them healthy. Regular vets do not approve genetic clearances.
4) Their breeding stock should not be under two years of age or over the age of 8.
5) Their breeding females should not be bred more than once a year.
6) They should not be producing a large number of litters per year. Although things may vary, a good rule of thumb is 1 litter per year per 5 dogs in the household, but less is better (i.e. only 1 litter every 2 or 3 years).
7) Their dogs should be in the house at least part time (unless there is a kennel), but regardless the puppies MUST be raised in the house with people.
8) The area in which the dogs are kept (whelping area, kennel, etc) should be IMMACULATE. The dogs themselves must be IMMACULATE.
9) Responsible breeders are much more interested in you than you are in a puppy! They produced these puppies, they will be incredibly concerned as to where they live. You will be screened and they may ask to call your vet, other references, or visit your home.
10) They will have tested the puppys' temperaments and will select the right puppy for you, not let you point and choose which one you like best.
11) Most responsible breeders show their dogs in one area or more of competition. This is so they can test their dogs against others and see how they measure up. Those who don't show but do breed usually are "kennel blind" and not only do they think their dogs are great, but they don't have any idea how their dogs compare with others.
12) Responsible breeders make you sign a puppy contract! Very important! The main points in the contract will be 1) you must return the puppy if you feel you must give the dog up at any point in the dogs life, whether it be 3 weeks later or 10 years later, 2) if the dog is not going to be shown, it will be sterilized. Use of a limited registration make come into play here.

Okay, that's all I can think of now. Most BYB's are perfectly nice folks who just have the wrong idea and don't realize that by breeding their pets they are contributing to the pet overpopulation crisis. Pets are pets: not breeding stock. Buying from a responsible breeder might mean you have to pay more for the puppy, but it will pay off in vet bills later. To give an example: My golden, Tucker, is from a responsible breeder. His parents have all the clearances and are from some of the top lines in the country. I payed $550 for him at 10 weeks of age. At 6 years of age Tucker has had basically no health problems, is a gorgeous example of a golden retriever, and has a great temperament. On the other hand, I'm fostering a rescue golden right now, an 11 month old female. By 9 months of age she had entropion (a genetic disease where their eyelids roll inwards against the eyeball) and *severe* hip dysplasia. Her vet bills will be close to $4000 by the time she turns a year old, not including the cost to spay her, vaccinations, etc. Although she is cute and has a good temperament, she leaves much to be desired according to the golden retriever standard. She is from a back yard breeder.

Housetraining: The Puppy Pen
All puppies should be crate trained. Period. I'm not going to go into the pro's and con's of crate training but I will say there is no excuse not to crate train a puppy. Now that I've gotten that out of the way, here's a way to help very young puppies make the transition from a whelping box to being crate and potty trained.
Very young puppies, from 7 to 12 weeks, especially those who have never been in a crate, may have a difficult time adjusting to the crate. They don't understand why they are locked up and may panic, and they can't be left in a crate for very long simply because they can't hold it that long. However, by 12 weeks a puppy should be used to a crate and able to hold it for at least 3 hours, and you should be able to wean him off the "puppy pen" and into a real crate, although you may like the setup of the puppy pen enough to leave it up longer.

I'll first explain how to set up a puppy pen. Here's what you'll need:
1) An exercise pen, a metal one made for dogs. If you purchase one, buy it so the sides are tall enough to contain an adult dog of the puppy's breed. If you borrow one, a short one will do…just as long as the puppy can't hop over it! It doesn't matter if it has a door or not. The expen should create an enclosure 4' to 6' square.
2) A small puppy crate. It's best to use a small crate, not a big-dog crate, so the puppy feels more secure. Use a plastic airline crate, or put a sheet over a wire crate, to make it look like a "den."
3) Let's say the expen covers a 4x4 area, so buy two 5' by 5' or 6' by 6' sheets of fake lambskin wool (adjust the size of the lambskin so it sticks out about 1 foot from each edge of the expen). This can be bought by the yard at a fabric store. Buy two so you can wash one while the other is being used. You might want to go ahead and buy some extra to use as crate pads.
4) Depends (brand) Bed Pads. Buy several packages of these 2' by 3', flat pads.
5) Newspapers.
6) Wide masking tape.
7) Plastic zip ties (thick ones…however they don't have to be but 3" or 4" long).
8) Puppy's toys and bowls, blanket for his crate, and one puppy.

How to assemble:
Decide where you want to set up the puppy's pen…near the kitchen or TV room is best, as he'll be able to be in on the action of the family. In this place, put a layer of newspaper that is 6' by 6' on the floor. Use the masking tape to secure the newspaper. Put a single layer of Depends pads over the newspaper, again securing it with masking tape. Lay a lambskin sheet over the pads.
Now take the crate and put it with the door open on one edge of the lambskin. Set the expen up so it holds down the lambskin. Make sure the lambskin lays perfectly flat…if it buckles up the puppy will want to pull it loose! Use the plastic zip-ties to fasten the two ends of the expen to the front corners of the crate. Secure the door of the crate to the expen so it doesn't swing loose. Now you are set to put the puppy in there along with his bowls, toys, blankets, etc.

Now, why it works and how to use it:
The puppy has a very safe enclosure in which all his personal things are…his toys, his bed, his crate, his food & water, and it looks a lot more like a whelping box than a crate. There aren't dangerous things to chew on and you can easily supervise the puppy even if you're busy and can't watch him while he's loose in the house. If the puppy has an accident, the urine will be soaked through the lambskin and absorbed by the Depends pads, which should be thrown away and replaced each time the puppy messes on it, or at least once a day. Remember….this itself is not teaching the dog to go to the bathroom outside…that is your job. The puppy pen only makes things easier in the mean time. The lambskin pad should be washed every day. You will notice that the puppy will discover the quiet security of the crate and use it to take naps in. This is what makes the transition to the crate so easy: the puppy is already voluntarily going in the crate and likes it on his own will. The puppy barks less in the puppy pen than in a crate (at first) because he isn't so confined.

The puppy pen can be used to housebreak small older dogs. I don't suggest it for medium or large adult dogs because they may be able to jump or knock over the expen and injure themselves.

Housetraining: Pick a Spot!

I won't go specifically how to housetrain a dog, but will suggest that you train your dog to eliminate on command. It's really easy and it's really useful.

Here are two scenarios:
1) It's raining and you're running late for work, but you still have to let the dog out to do his business. You open the back door, the dog peers outside, and gives you a look that clearly says, "No way, man! It's raining!" So you grab the dog by the collar and shove him outside, drenching your suit in the process. The dog finally realizes you mean business, so he sets out to do his duty. He meanders around the yard, sniffing here, sniffing there, and 10 minutes later he finally lifts his leg on the potted plant and trots back inside, thoroughly soaked. You're soaked, too, and really late for work!
2) It's raining and you're running late for work, but you still have to let the dog out to do his business. You open the back door, the dog peers outside, and gives you a look that clearly says, "No way, man! It's raining!" In a firm voice you say, "Fido, go PICK A SPOT!" Fido trots out into the yard, hikes his leg on the potted plant, and runs back into the house, still not too soaking. You wipe him down with a towel, give him a cookie and a pat on the head, and leave for work.
So in Case #2, Fido knows that "pick a spot" means do your business, and do it now. No messing around. It makes life easier.

How do you train your dog to do that? It's very easy, and it will make housetraining a bit more clear to the dog. For the first week, don't take your dog outside and play with him a long time, do yardwork, talk to the neighbors, etc. Take him out, have him go to the bathroom, then go directly inside. This is what you are trying to get the dog to realize: "Hanging out" is what you do inside. Potty is what you do outside. Take him out on a leash so you don't end up chasing him around the yard to come back inside: that is a game, you don't play games like that when training.
Now that you've got that squared away, think up a word or phrase you want to be your dog's "elimination command." I use "pick a spot." It's a lot less embarrassing than yelling "Fido, go potty!" in front of the neighbors. Stick with only one command.
Now, when you take your dog outside to go to the bathroom, the second he starts to "go," say, (obviously use his name, not Fido!) "Fido, PICK A SPOT!" The whole entire time he is eliminating, tell him he's a good boy, repeat "pick a spot!" several times. When he's done, tell him he did a wonderful job, give him a cookie if you have one, and walk directly back inside the house. What you are doing now is associating the command with the action.
The next step is for the dog to actually perform the action when he hears the command. After about a week of saying your elimination command and praise while he is going, say the command when you get out in the yard, or before he goes. You'll be surprised that he will immediately connect the command with the action. If he doesn't go to the bathroom after you've said the magic word, go back to the first phase of learning for another week. Remember to always praise during the act and afterwards.

Mouthing: Stop the Biting!

A very common problem with all puppies, but golden retriever puppies in particular, is mouthing. Many owners think their puppy is being aggressive and that this means they will bite later in life, when in reality the puppy is just considering it's owners as a playtoy and something to be chewed. It just seems like biting because the pup makes a big game of it, and it hurts because of those little needle puppy teeth. It is very common in retrievers especially, because their instincts tell them to develop a "soft mouth" for carrying dead birds (back to the hunter without damaging the bird), and the only way they learn what is a soft mouth and what is a hard mouth (biting or grinding) is to experiment. Unfortunately the owner is usually the experimental subject!
Mouthing is not a sign of aggression. Dominance, yes, true aggression no. However, when it escalates to where the puppy mouths other than just when the two of you are playing together, it does need to be stopped....the puppy needs to learn his limits, and obviously you don't want this to develop into a habit! Most owners notice mouthing at a very early age, and if it is not corrected when the puppy is small, it will continue, except at 8 months, the dog is a 60-pounder with big canines, not a little pup. For this reason it has to be corrected. First off, don't encourage the puppy by playing "hand games" with him...i.e. waving your hands in his face, grabbing his ears to make him snap at you etc. Movements around his face and head should be calm and firm.
When you correct him for mouthing, do not nag him by saying "no, no, no" over and over again without making a correction, expecting him to magically know what the word "no" means without being trained. To a dog, "no" is just a sound you make...it has no meaning unless you teach them that they ARE going to stop whatever they are doing when you say it. All corrections must be quick, firm and to the point. Never drag out a correction...a puppy's attention span is very short and he will forget what the correction is for if it lasts more than a few seconds.
Now is probably a good time for me to announce that (ahem, clearing throat): Puppies ARE NOT delicate creatures that don't need discipline! Raising a puppy right means you have to be firm and stern sometimes, along with the playfulness. Don't tone down corrections just because you're dealing with a puppy. It is much better to do ONE GOOD correction, rather than many nagging corrections. Dogs learn better this way and will respect you more when you clearly communicate with good corrections and praise.
There are several ways to correct mouthing but here is what has worked for me:
When he starts to mouth you, VERY quickly, grab the loose skin on either sides of his face with both hands. Firmly lift his front end of the ground a few inches and force him to look into your face (eye contact), while you are doing this say "NO! Leave it!" in a low voice that means business. This correction should be very quick...all in one swift movement that lasts about 2 seconds. If he ignores you and does not look in your face, give him a little shake to get his attention back onto you (don't throw him around, just get his attention!!!...the point of this correction is to get him to pay attention to you, not to be mean to him). If he tries to keep biting your hands when you grab his loose skin, you aren't grabbing enough skin, and you need to grab the skin closer to his mouth. If you grab in the right spot, he physically won't be able to turn his head and bite at your hands. Once you correct him, put him back on the floor and repeat, "No, leave it." "Leave it" is a general command...it means don't touch it, don't smell it, don't bite it, don't eat it. I feel that there is no need to teach a dog a command such as "no bite." There is never a circumstance where the dog should bite, it is forbidden...why create a separate command for it?
The purpose of this correction is to get him to realize whatever he just did was wrong. It will take several times before he connects the correction with the mouthing. Sometimes a puppy will get very worked up while mouthing and one or two corrections in a row won't make a difference. At this point, pick the puppy up and put him in his crate. That way, he can't bite you, and he can't play anymore, either. This is showing him, if you can't play nice, you can't play at all. Don't worry...he won't think of his crate as discipline...you aren't correcting him for going in the crate! Once he calms down you can let him out of the crate. Have him sit and pet him calmly, telling him "Good puppy, be nice! Good dog."