About

Hello, welcome to Mountain Sky Goldens! We are a hobby breeder located in Burley, ID. My husband and I both have a background in therapy work. Jeff is a physical therapist and I went to college for recreational therapy and have been an assistant for physical, occupational, and speech therapists. Together we have raised 4 wonderful children and now have a beautiful daughter-in-law. We have combined therapy work and our love for goldens into one breeding program. This has been our dream from the beginning, to breed and raise Golden Retrievers that have the potential to be therapy or service dogs and the most amazing family companions and several of our puppies have gone on to do just that. Why Goldens? Golden Retrievers are known for being one of the best breeds in the world for temperament, personality, and affection. They are also known to be extremely loyal, intelligent and obedient. They are always willing to please just about anybody. One important point is that those first few weeks of a puppy's life are vital to who they become as adults. By focusing on special socialization techniques in those first few weeks of life, we can set them up for a lifetime of success. All 5 our Mountain Sky Golden Retrievers are nationally registered therapy dogs! We feel it is important that our Parents are already able to do what we expect any one of our Mountain Sky Goldens puppies to be able to do. Our family has personally trained each one. We have learned that Golden Retrievers have a lot of serious health issues that often cut their life short, this is why we are extremely devoted to high breeding standards and are dedicated to the betterment of the breed. That means that each of our breeding dogs have OFA hip, elbow, heart, and eye clearances of good or better and are free from known genetic defects common in Goldens. Each puppy begins socialization and training almost from birth. Early socialization is essential to having a puppy that is able to accept new and challenging situations, something that is a must for a therapy or service dogs. Our dogs live in our home and are part of our family. We are committed to doing things the right way!

Breeding is a huge responsibility. We hold ourselves to high breeding standards. Our dogs are carefully selected and we choose mates that have all of their orthopedic and health testing done with OFA heart, eye, hip and elbow tests of normal/good or better. Our dogs have extensive genetic testing to screen for issues that are common in Golden Retrievers. We are careful not to breed any conditions that can be avoided, like Ichthyosis, known as the itching disease that plagues many Goldens. Inbred dogs are much more likely to have disease and or serious genetic disorders. All of our breeding dogs have a coefficient of inbreeding (COI) percentage that is below the breed average. Careful attention to health, genetics, temperament and pedigree are vital to ensuring a quality program. This often means more expense, dedication and sacrifice. For us, there is no other way. We are committed to breeding happy, healthy dogs that are raised with the highest standards!

Our dogs are a part of our family and live in our home with us. They hike with us, visit locations all around our community and are brought into public stores and events to ensure they are good canine citizens. We understand this is a commitment for the life of the dog. Likewise, their puppies are born and raised in our home with our family. They experience all of the sounds and situations that are common in family life. Puppies are held, loved, and socialized right up until they go to their new family. Our program includes Early Neurological Stimulation (ENS) and we utilize the Puppy Culture Program by Jane Killion. We also have a large yard along with a dedicated puppy play area complete with an obstacle course built to further challenge and develop our puppies in a safe environment. Beginning with the basis of our very high breeding standards, we do all of this because we are dedicated to a quality puppy that will be the best family companion possible.

Early Neurological Stimulation (ENS) is a program that is designed to improve a puppies response to stress later in life. ENS was born from training methodologies developed by the U.S. Military. Their studies showed that there are specific times of rapid neurological growth in the early days of a puppies life. Whereas high intensity stressors are often detrimental, gentle stressors that are provided during this critical time have been shown to improve cardiovascular performance, produce stronger heart beats, stronger adrenal glands, more tolerance to stress and greater resistance to diseases. In addition the pups were more active and more exploratory than non-stimulated pups. We believe the ENS program helps produce puppies that are less likely to be disturbed or upset by conditions that would normally be stressful. Early Scent Introduction is a concept developed by Dr Gayle Watkins, a Golden Retriever breeder scientist, researcher and competitor in a range of dog sports. For practical purposes, these ESI results mean the potential for even better companion, serve, and therapy dogs. Service dogs can use sent to alert you of a gas leak, identify the early stages of diabetic reaction or a seizure. Scent abilities are important as a companion to a child who has autism, his main function is likely to be a guardian of sorts, since children with autism can have a tendency to wonder off. If the dog is able to easily follow the child's scent and locate him or her, that could actually be a life-saving asset.

The first 12 weeks of a puppy’s life are incredibly important. It is an almost magical time when a breeder has the power to change the outcome of a puppy’s life by what we choose to teach him. By doing just the right things at just the right time, we can give your puppy the best start possible. This is why we have decided to utilize a comprehensive, organized program known as Puppy Culture. This program was developed by professional dog trainer and breeder Jane Killion. We have adopted this practice to ensure consistency in puppy growth. Here at Mountain Sky Goldens we recognize the importance of these first few weeks of life for your puppy and are committed to doing our best to ensure that your new puppy will have the best start possible as he/she transitions to their new home. We include information as part of our puppy starter pack for you to continue the Puppy Culture program.

In 2019 we decided to build an outdoor obstacle course to expose our puppies to important experiences in a safe and positive environment. We have been amazed and so happy with the result this has had on our puppies. This area has not only helped each puppy physically, but also socially. They learn to navigate bridges, stairs, a wobble board, inclines and all sorts of surfaces. It has also helped the puppies as a whole to be much more confident and they have developed problem solving skills as they navigate in this safe area.