Lab or golden?

[mkvh]

It's not the breeder that gets certified, it's the individual dog. In the case of getting a puppy, you will want both parents, and possibly grandparents or even great grandparents to have passed both hip and elbow tests. I personally would ask to see the OFA papers from the breeder before I even looked at their puppies. A reputable breeder has their dogs tested and will have the papers for you to see. The dogs cannot pass OFA testing until they are 2 years of age.

You can also ask about CERF testing as well. It's the Canine Eye Registration Foundation. I'm not sure if labs or golden retrievers have genetic eye issues (cocker spaniels are my breed of choice), but you might want to check on that.

Most professionally bred labs will be hip/elbow, heart, and eye certified IIRC from my research.

[kmmommy]

I have experience with a golden and black labs. DH and I have a golden that we got when our DS was just over 2 and DD1 was 6 months old. She's now 3 years old and great with all 3 kids.

She does shed a lot but we use the Dyson (not the pet model) and it works fine. We also brush her frequently outside which helps. DH walks her 1-2 times per day (at minimum) and often hits tennis balls for her to chase down. Right now, she's stretched out on the floor sleeping peacefully. She's easily excited and doesn't always listen well when we tell her to "sit" or whatever. She's a good guard dog and would protect our family but has never hurt a fly.

As a fellow mom of 3 and after recently seeing some friends adopt a puppy (yellow lab) and turn around and give her away...make sure you have the time needed to train, exercise and love a puppy. It takes more time than you'd think and there were times when our kids were young that I second-guessed getting such a big dog. Now, I wouldn't give her up for anything and wish we had bred her before she was spayed because I can't imagine life without her.

Good luck!!