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Golden Retriever Seasonal Care, Season by Season

Golden retrievers are happy, sturdy, all-weather dogs, but that gorgeous double coat means each season asks something a little different of you. Here is how to keep your golden comfortable and healthy through spring shedding, summer heat, crisp fall, and cold winter.

First, understand the coat

A golden's defining feature is its double coat: a water-repellent outer layer over a soft insulating undercoat. That coat is a year-round climate-control system. It keeps your dog warm in winter and, surprisingly, helps shield against heat in summer. The single most important rule that follows from this: do not shave your golden retriever. The American Kennel Club's golden retriever breed overview describes that dense, water-resistant double coat, and shaving it can disrupt the natural insulation and even interfere with healthy regrowth. Brush, do not buzz.

Spring: shedding season

Spring is when goldens "blow" their winter undercoat, and the fur comes out in clouds. Step up brushing to several times a week, or daily at the peak, with an undercoat rake or slicker brush to clear the loose underlayer before it ends up on every surface you own. Spring is also pollen season, and goldens are prone to environmental allergies, so watch for itchy skin, paw licking, and ear infections, and wipe paws and coat after walks. Our guide to spring allergies in dogs covers the relief steps in detail.

Summer: respect the heat

Goldens love to be active, and they will happily overdo it in the heat because they want to keep playing. That double coat helps, but it is not a free pass: goldens can and do overheat. Walk in the cool morning and evening hours, always carry water, and give your dog plenty of shade and a chance to cool off. Goldens are water dogs, so a kiddie pool or a safe swim is both enrichment and temperature control. The ASPCA's hot weather safety tips apply squarely here. Brushing matters in summer too: a coat free of matted, dead undercoat actually breathes and insulates better against heat.

Fall: the golden season

Cool, crisp fall is a golden retriever's happy place. This is prime time for long hikes, fetch, and the kind of activity this athletic breed craves. Keep up the exercise while the weather is perfect, stay on top of shedding as the coat thickens for winter, and check for ticks after time in tall grass, since tick season often runs late into autumn.

Winter: built for it, within reason

Thanks to that coat, goldens handle cold better than most breeds and many genuinely love the snow. Still, cold has limits. Keep an eye on paws: ice balls can form between the toes, and de-icing salt irritates pads, so wipe feet after winter walks. Dry your dog thoroughly after wet, snowy outings, since a damp undercoat chills. Healthy adult goldens rarely need a coat, but puppies and seniors feel the cold more and may appreciate one on the bitterest days.

Let the forecast guide the season

The thread running through all four seasons is the same: match the day to your dog. A glance at the heat in July or the wind chill in January tells you whether it is a long-adventure day or a keep-it-short one. With WeatherPets, your own golden delivers the day's forecast and a Live Activity that tracks conditions in real time, a fun daily nudge to plan walks, swims, and hikes around the weather your dog is actually facing.