When do Golden Retrievers stop growing?

[pupper-lover]

Just wondering . . .

My golden is 14 months old and way bigger than the standards set forth for his breed. He is currently almost 28" tall, shoulder to floor, standing. He is almost 90 lbs, and is actually on the thin side. Needless to say, he will be even bigger when he fills out.

I know different breeds reach their adult size at differents rate. Generally speaking, the bigger the dog, the longer it takes to reach their full size. How much longer do you think Jake will keep growing? I'll love him no matter how big he gets, but it would be nice to know how much more "growing time" I should expect, just so I can be prepared . Any advice would be appreciated.

[Dixieland Dancer]

Typically a Golden has reached it height by the age of 11 months. However they will still fill out up to the age of 18 months. This applies more so for boys than girls. The girls tend to fill out completely around 14 months.

Maturity wise is a different story! You can expect your boy to be immature until he is around 3. Some get mature emotionally faster but that is the typical norm.

Your Golden is almost as big as my brothers. He is about 110 pounds and not an inch of fat on him. He is just a big boy. The breeder said they bred him to be a big dog. Definitely not the breed standard.

Is he neutered? This will help him in his maturity but will do nothing for his height.

[pupper-lover]

Thanks Dixieland Dancer.

Jake is neutered, by the way. He was about 4-5 months old, when he had his surgury.

I thought he had reached his full height of 27" at 12-13 months, but he surprised me when he shot up another inch (He is now barely smaller than his female Great Dane buddy!!). So you think he will be filled out at about 18 months? He has been gaining weight sooo slowly, only 2 pounds in the last 2 months (food is not restricted).

Maturity, is a whole other issue. Jake, of course, still thinks he's a bitty fuzzball. He gets so excited when we see very young puppies, but his size scares them to death.

[Dixieland Dancer]

Unless he is totally out of the norm, he should not grow any taller. And ideally you do not want him to gain a whole lot more weight. From this point on he is just filling out and should not gain more than a few more pounds. His head should get a little more broader and he should get a little more muscular in the hind quarters. His mane, panty feathers and plum on his tail will be at full maturity about 2 years to 2 1/2 years.

Your pups are beautiful!

[pupper-lover]

Thanks, you've answered all my questions!

Jake and Addie thank you for the compliment.