Why We’re Special
Everything that comes with a Studley Hill Golden.
When you choose a Studley Hill Golden, you’re receiving a piece of our hearts — and a program built around health, temperament, and the true heart of the breed.
Our Puppy Care Package
Included with every puppy
The following features are included in our exclusive Puppy Package when you bring home a puppy from us.
- Parent health testing (OFA)
- Parent genetic testing (Embark)
- Exceptional temperament traits
- Early Neurologic Stimulation (ENS)
- Early Scent Introduction (ESI)
- Puppy enrichment curriculum
- Veterinarian clearance
- First vaccinations
- Deworming
- Microchip
- AKC registration papers
- 24-month health guarantee
- Puppy Go-Home Care Package
Features We’re Proud Of
Tested, evaluated, and chosen with intention
Embark Genetics
Our Goldens undergo genetic testing through Embark DNA testing. This helps to screen for congenital diseases and remove problematic traits from our breeding line.
Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA)
Our dogs also undergo additional testing through the OFA, an organization dedicated to researching and preventing orthopedic and hereditary diseases in companion animals. While testing cannot "ensure" a perfectly healthy puppy, it helps us reduce the risk of unwanted traits and dangerous health conditions.
Temperament Testing
Before breeding, we extensively evaluate the temperaments of our breeding dogs — looking for friendliness, workability, gentleness, drive, and resilience, and ensuring they are well-behaved with everyone, particularly children and the elderly.
Puppy Personality Testing
Yes — you read that right.
We perform puppy personality and aptitude testing (PAT) on all our puppies at 7 weeks old. Our unique assessment process enables us to more appropriately match puppies with prospective families. We test for several key attributes including, but not limited to: workability, drive, tenderheartedness, human connection, scenting ability, and reactivity.
Our Mission: To Better the Breed
How? Go back to the basics.
Congratulations on doing your own research and investing in a reputable breeder. As you may know, the Golden Retriever breed is prone to several health issues such as heart problems, eye problems, and hip dysplasia. We believe that years of breeding have, in many cases, deviated from the original design and purpose of the breed.
To address this, we prioritize health, genetic, and temperament testing in our breeding program. Unlike programs that focus solely on health and genetics, we strive to balance these with the quintessential Golden Retriever attributes, drive, and athleticism. Our approach is to blend exceptional specimens from both field and show lines to produce genetically diversified, well-balanced, and temperamentally sound canines, which will benefit future pedigrees for years to come.
We also strive to better the breed through the use of the COI (coefficient of inbreeding), the measure of genetic overlap in the mother’s and father’s lines. At Studley Hill Goldens, we take pride in our dogs’ mental, physical, and emotional health.
Ready to learn more?
If our approach resonates with you, we’d be honored to tell you more about our dogs and our upcoming litters.