At San Diego Goldens, our mission is to raise healthy, well-socialized puppies and place them with loving, responsible families. If you’ve never worked with a breeder before—or even if you have—you might be wondering what the process looks like from our side. We will walk you through each step of bringing home a puppy from us, from first contact to go-home day and beyond.
For us, it’s not just about selling a puppy—it’s about building lasting relationships based on trust, support, and a shared love for our breed.
📝 Step 1: Learning About the Breed and Finding the Right Breeder
We always recommend that prospective families start by thoroughly researching the breed. If you’re looking at Golden Retrievers, that means understanding their temperament, exercise needs, grooming, and health considerations.
It’s just as important to research breeders. A reputable breeder—like us—will be transparent about health testing, breeding goals, and how the puppies are raised. We follow breed standards, screen for genetic health issues (like hips, elbows, eyes, and heart), and raise our puppies with enrichment programs such as Puppy Culture and Early Neurological Stimulation (ENS).
We want you to be comfortable with who we are and how we raise our puppies. We welcome your inquiry!
📩 Step 2: Application & Building a Relationship
When you reach out, we’ll invite you to complete a puppy application. This helps us get to know you—your experience, lifestyle, goals, and what type of puppy would fit best in your home.
We often follow up with an email, phone call, or video chat. We want to ensure that our puppies are going to the right homes, but we also want you to feel confident and comfortable with us. We’re always happy to answer your questions about our program, puppy care, training, contracts, and more.
💵 Step 3: Waitlist & Deposit
Once your application is approved, we’ll place you on our waitlist. A non-refundable deposit of $500 secures your spot in line for a puppy from an upcoming or planned litter. The timing can vary depending on your preferences (gender, temperament, or performance potential) and what we have planned.
From that point forward, we’ll keep you updated throughout the breeding, pregnancy, and birth.
🐶 Step 4: Matching Puppies With Their Families
Throughout the neonate stages of development, we evaluate each puppy’s temperament and structure. This is where our experience really comes into play. We spend every day observing the puppies and learning their personalities, tendencies, and strengths.
Rather than allowing families to choose based on looks alone, we use our observations and your application to make intentional, thoughtful matches. We believe this approach results in better long-term outcomes for both the puppies and their new families.
Our priority is to place each puppy in the home where they are most likely to thrive—whether that means a future therapy dog, a family companion, or a sporting prospect.
🧾 Step 5: Health, Contracts & Go-Home Day
Before your puppy goes home, we ensure they are:
- Examined by our veterinarian
- Microchipped
- Up-to-date on age-appropriate vaccinations and deworming
- Socialized and confident in various environments
Each family receives:
- A comprehensive puppy packet
- A signed contract (including health guarantees and spay/neuter agreements)
- A lifetime return policy—if you ever cannot care for your dog, they must come back to us
We’ll go over the contract with you and be available for any last questions. Then it’s time to bring your puppy home!
🔁 Step 6: Ongoing Support for Life
When you get a puppy from us, you become part of our extended family. We are here for the lifetime of your dog—for training tips, health concerns, or even just to share cute photos. We love getting updates and watching our puppies grow in their new homes.
And, as we mentioned above, if your circumstances ever change and you cannot care for your dog, we require that they come back to us—never a shelter or rescue.
💬 Final Thoughts
Getting a puppy from a breeder is not a quick transaction—it’s a thoughtful, sometimes months-long journey. But it’s one filled with intention, care, and partnership. We don’t take lightly the responsibility of bringing puppies into the world, and we’re honored when families choose to join our community.
If you think one of our puppies may be right for your family, we’d love to hear from you. Feel free to contact us or fill out our puppy interest form to get started.
We look forward to getting to know you— and helping you welcome a new best friend into your life.