Emanuel Homestead Goldens

We got 2 beautiful golden retrievers from Emanuel Homestead Goldens in April 2007. They have been the loves our of life. One of our dogs, Vinny, has always had horrible issues with allergies. He's had hot spots covering his entire body from May- October every year. This January Vinny stopped eating and we met with many specialists and found out he had a liver shunt. These are usually caught in puppies. Since he had no signs or symptoms we had no idea. Within a month he went from not eating, to non stop seizures and we had to let him go. We are devastated. When the necropsy was performed they found he had a congenital liver shunt along with 3 acquired liver shunts. They also found he had hydrocephalus. These are due to poor breeding! He was our perfect boy and such a sweet golden, but due to Chris's poor breeding we tragically lost him too young. And had to spend thousands of dollars to be sure his brother did not have the same issues! more

We visited this place when searching for a breeder for our pup. We asked for a sample contract and noticed a lot of language about heart murmurs. We followed up and looked for online feedback. Thanks to all of the feedback you had provided we were able to avoid a terrible mistake. Her dogs are all outside, she had two consecutive litters going. When we looked at the adult dogs they were not wagging their tales. The signs were disturbing. I would go elsewhere for a puppy. more

I purchased a 1/2 (Nordic) golden almost 4 years ago and the poor dog has had the worst case of skin allergies ever. After several tests and lots of money spent I decided to watch what he eats and go easy on the Frontline.... His skin is black underneath and he spends all day chewing on himself. I feel terrible but naturally after several calls to find out what this might be ?hris has never returned our call. Please be careful if or shall I say when you purchase a very expensive dog from this breeder. It may cost you a bundle! more

We purchased our full Nordic dog from Chris when he was eight weeks old. He was born 11/2006. His parents were Josie and Cooper. We were told he had a slight heart murmur when we got him but that he should outgrow it. At seven months he collapsed, and after expensive tests we found out he had a severe case of Sub-Aortic Stenosis. Chris would not respond to us so we had to send certified letters to her. Our puppy was put on beta blockers but would still have several syncope episodes each month were he would drop down and pass out. Needless to say, at less than 18 months old, he dropped dead. Someone should stop her from breeding dogs with heart problems! We too were heartbroken to watch this happen to our beloved dog!! Pros: cute looking Cons: Some very unhealthy puppies more

The animals at Emanuel Homestead are gorgeous! However, my pup has a heart murmur that was picked up at the first visit to my vet when my boy was only 8 weeks old, so I'm sure that the owner, Chris, had her vet check him out and knew that he had the heart murmur before she sold him to me. She has you sign off on a release about heart murmurs and not knowing any better I signed it. My guy is now six months old, and I was praying that the murmur went away, but he just went for his 6th month visit and my vet recommended that he go for the ultrasound to see how bad the murmur is because it is still there. I plan on having this done in January and will post back then to let you all know how bad it is. Hopefully, it isn't too serious and will disappear as he gets older. I still have hope that my gorgeous golden will live a long and healthy life. Pros: Beautiful animals Cons: heart murmur more

Hi all ... please do not purchase a puppy from Chris. I have done months of research before buying a golden puppy. Of course, it is easy to fall in love with a cute golden puppy, and the pictures on the site are gorgeous - but these dogs are not treated well. After talking to many legit breeders in the state that also serve on boards with the GRCA and AKC, they all note that Chris is a puppy mill. Many of the breeders would refer me to their peers - wanting me to find a healthy happy pup, but begged me to stay away from her. She serves on no boards and is not involved in the golden community. Also after contacting the AKC, there is no such breed as Nordic Goldens. There are English Goldens, but they are NOT nordic dogs. Legit breeders only have one litter at a time, as puppies are a handful to care for properly - and Chris has many litters at once. PLEASE - contact other local breeders in the state. Go to dog shows and find the REAL breeders, do your research so you can have a happy healthy puppy for many years. Cons: unhealthy puppies more

11 years ago, my dog pal was sired by an emmanual homestead golden so when we decided to add to our family I did not hesitate to contact Chris During. Based upon the claims that were made on her website along with her assurances we decided to go up and meet a 16 week old male that she claimed ""hadn't sold because she just didn't have the time"". We did not have any issue with the age of the dog and when we met him, we thought he was awesome. As we were signing papers and writing her a check she mentioned that some of the dogs (not necessarily ours) have innocent heart murmurs and that if that is the case would go away by the time the dog is 6 months old. We didn't give it a second thought until he was seen by our family vet a few days later who was very sad to report that upon listenting to his heart that it did not in any way seem innocent and that the only way to be sure was to have an ultrasound done. The ultrasound revealed a moderate case of Sub Aeortic Stenosis. Chris During has never reaturned any of my calls or those made by my attorney. In addition Tucker came to us with Giardia, double ear infections, double eye infections. We have been diligent about his health care and trying to provide him with an excellent quality of life Unfortunately due to the practices of Chris During and Emmanual Homestead Goldens and the irresponsible breeding it is uncertain that our boy with have a quantity of years in his life. We paid 2,000 dollars for our dog, he is half nordic. His father is Jed and his mother is Josie. A dog can only get this condition if it is passed down by his parents. She is still actively breeding this dogs who are likely creating more puppies with this condition. With so many homeless animals in our country, do we really need to bring more unhealthy animals into the world? Please reconsider before you contact this breeder. If you do, insist on a health guarantee to protect yourself and to force her into responsible breeding. Thank you, Pros: they have beautiful dogs, but very expensive Cons: no health guarantee, no support, no integrity, basically a puppy mill, horrifying conditions more

When we visited an Emanuel Golden?s open house in Sept 2008, it was love at first site. This precious 9 week old little girl picked me out and came running over as soon as the gate was opened. No way could I just leave her there. She was the smallest one of the litter with a big price tag, $2500.00. Pros: Nice selection of Nordic Pups Cons: No way of knowing if pup is healthy until too late and no help after the sale more

We bought our 1/2 Nordic golden for Xmas 06. we had just lost our Beau a golden of 13 years . Pros: large selection Cons: no support from breader after purchase more