“English Cream Golden Retrievers are [insert myth here]”. I bet you’ve heard many claims about so called English Cream Golden Retrievers. That they are white, that they get less cancer, that they are calmer or have better temperaments than other shades of gold. Maybe you want one yourself and a quick search led you here.
But if you’ve read my post on ethical breeders, you know that use of the term “English Cream” is a red flag. Today, you’ll learn why it’s a red flag. This article focuses on Golden Retrievers, but color breeding in ANY breed is a red flag.
All Golden Retrievers are special, but that’s because they are Goldens, not because of their color.
First, responsible breeders don’t breed for color – even if they have a personal preference. It’s human and ok to have a color preference, but color should be on the bottom of the priority list below health, temperament, and structure. There are responsible breeders out there that happen to have light dogs, but don’t use the term “English Cream” or “Crème” or any other term that really means very light gold. Health, temperament and structure still prevail with these responsible breeders.
So… Why is “English Cream” bad?
What is “English Cream”?
If I had a dollar for every time I saw someone ask about an “English Cream/Crème” breeder, I would be able to pay for the entire year’s dog show entries. Seriously. I’m not joking about that. The “Cream Craze” is here to stay, apparently. But here’s the thing: English Cream is a food, not a dog breed. If you google “English Cream”, you’ll get a bunch of results about Golden Retrievers and you’ll also get this:
Breeders using the term English Cream (or Crème), Platinum Golden, White Golden, etc. are just trying to take your money. They don’t have your – or their puppies’ – best interests in mind. What is on their mind is money.
For some reason, unethical breeders seem to think that if you slap the word “English” on it, it becomes fancy. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t.
Another Stop at Misinformation Station
Mostly, breeders that use “English Cream” to describe their dogs are unethical because they tell a lot of lies. Nearly all of them lie about health testing, but they also lie about many other things. If you haven’t read my article on health testing, check it out here.
If you get a responsibly bred Golden Retriever, you will fall in love, regardless of its color.
Let’s debunk some myths on color breeding in Golden Retrievers.
Myth #1: English Creams and American Reds are separate breeds.
There are no such breeds as English Creams or American Reds. All of these dogs are just Golden Retrievers. If they are AKC registered, their paperwork says “Golden Retriever”. There are only three choices for color when registering with the AKC: light golden, golden, and dark golden. Every AKC Golden Retriever is registered as one of these three choices. They are NEVER registered as Cream or Red in the United States. They can be registered as cream in some countries, but red cannot.
The photo above shows the range of colors in Golden Retrievers. The three on the left are light golden, the three in the middle are golden, and the three on the right are dark golden.
Myth #2: English Cream Golden Retrievers come from England.
With the name “English Cream” you’d think the dogs come from England. They don’t. American breeders with dogs imported from England don’t call them English Creams, because again, they are still just Golden Retrievers. Actual Goldens bred in England come in the full range of colors, just like those in the photo above. Most of the dogs advertised as English Cream are from high volume breeders (HVBs) in Eastern Europe and Russia.
Why does the country of origin matter? Well, here’s the thing: the HVBs sending dogs over here to feed the Cream Craze aren’t sending their best animals. Not by a long shot. The health testing standards in that part of the world are nowhere near as stringent as in the US and Canada, so orthopedic issues and ichthyosis are rampant. Most of the dogs have structural flaws that will almost definitely cause them pain when they get older. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule, but in general the animals exported to the US are not the best specimens. They keep the best for themselves.
And anyway, Goldens as a breed originated in Scotland, not England. I have a feeling the Scots don’t appreciate their breed being attributed to the English.
Myth #3: English Cream Golden Retrievers are rare.
The scummy BYBs and puppy mills that use “English Cream/Crème”, ”White Goldens”, ”Platinum Goldens”, etc. to describe their Golden Retrievers are just playing on your vanity. They use these terms to make you think that their puppies are special, rare, or worth more when compared to “regular” or “American” Goldens.
Y’all, they are not rare, and your dog is not special because of its color or country of origin. It’s special because it’s a Golden Retriever. Lighter shades of gold may have been less common in the US 15 or 20 years ago, but not now. I see just as many, if not more light Goldens around town than any other shade. “American Reds” are not rare or special either.
Please don’t get a specific color because some scummy breeder said it was rare. These dogs are also NOT worth more than other Goldens. Don’t fall for that and for the love of dog, don’t spend more than $4,000 on a Golden (as of 2022). If you see a breeder advertising “Rare White Goldens” for $7,000, make like Simba and run away as fast as you can.
General Note on Color Breeding
Since I started this website as a general Dog World blog, I need to add that breeders using color terms to sell puppies of ANY breed are not good breeders. Silver Labs are not special. In fact, they are mix between a Lab and a Weimaraner. Anyone breeding for merle patterns on purpose is not ethical. Breeders focusing on “blue” anything (German Shepherds, Frenchies, Dobermans, etc.) are not ethical. For your sake and your future puppy’s sake, don’t buy from a color breeder.
Myth #4: Golden Retrievers can be white.
Speaking of white… Purebred Golden Retrievers physically and genetically cannot be solid white. They don’t have the genes. Put any light Golden, even an extremely light Golden in the snow or next to a Samoyed and you’ll see that they aren’t truly white. If they are, then they aren’t purebred. Sometimes unethical breeders mix Goldens and Great Pyrenees because Pyrs are white. Golden Retrievers can have white patches on their chest, but they cannot be solid white.
Here’s a technical fun fact: Most Golden Retrievers are genetically black dogs (with a small percentage being genetically liver). However, all Golden Retrievers are ee at the E color locus, which controls pigment production in the coat. The ee combination cancels out black and liver for the coat only and produces varying shades of gold. This is why most Goldens have a golden coat, but black or brown pigment in their eye rims, nose, and paw pads. The shade of gold is controlled by the intensity (I) locus.
Look how dark Eevee’s nose, lips, and eye rims are compared to her coat. This is the physical expression of her being genetically black – which I know from her DNA testing from Embark (this is an affiliate link) – but ee at the E locus.
Myth #5: English Cream Golden Retrievers get less cancer than American Goldens.
This lie is so damaging and so false that only an unethical breeder would use it. ALL Golden Retrievers are prone to cancer. If a breeder claims that their dogs don’t get cancer, they are telling a bold-faced lie. It’s damaging because people believe it and they buy poorly bred animals because of it. And when people buy poorly bred dogs, unethical breeders are incentivized to keep breeding. Then the quality of breed as a whole goes down…
A Survey Isn’t the Same as Science
The so-called “study” that spawned this lie was actually a survey sent to owners of purebred dogs in the United Kingdom only. The study was literally just data collection. It even says so in the abstract: “Objectives: To collect information on the cause of death and longevity of dogs owned by members of the numerically largest breed clubs of 169 UK Kennel Club-recognised breeds.” You can find reputable information about that study here and here. This is a classic example of the misuse of facts, which is also known as disinformation.
It’s interesting that unethical color breeders cite that UK survey as a reason that their dogs get “less cancer” when their dogs are actually from Eastern Europe and Russia, not the United Kingdom. Additionally, spaying and neutering is much less common in Europe than it is in the US, and this affects the rates of cancer in Goldens as shown by this UC Davis study.
The Real Research
If you’re curious about the actual research for cancer and Goldens in the United States, visit the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study page on the Morris Animal Foundation website, read about the Shine On Project, discover the potential link between tickborne disease Bartonella and hemangiosarcoma (HSA), and check out the Golden Retriever Foundation site.
Myth #6: English Cream Golden Retrievers don’t do well in AKC shows because they are bred to a different standard.
If you compare the AKC breed standard to the CKC (Canadian, NOT Continental) standard, the Kennel Club (UK) standard, and the FCI standard, you won’t find many tangible differences. The main one is that cream is called out as an allowable shade in all but AKC. Other slight differences between the standards are allowable heights and top lines. The AKC standard prefers a slightly sloping croup (the part of the back between the pelvic bones and the tail), whereas others prefer a level top line from shoulders to tail. Basically, a Golden Retriever is a Golden Retriever, no matter its origins. No matter which standard a breeder supposedly uses as a guide.
About those Eastern European Imports…
Remember what I said under Myth #2 about the European HVBs not sending their best dogs to the US? THAT’S why these dogs don’t do well in AKC shows. Structural faults like weak front pasterns, sloping, roachy, or high-in-the-rear top lines, weak rear legs, long hocks, incorrect proportions, etc. are the reasons they don’t do well. These dogs wouldn’t do well in Europe either.
A lot of irresponsible breeders go to IABCA shows and get a National or International Championship on their poor quality imported dogs. I’m not saying that these shows don’t have merit, but a Nat. Ch or Int. Ch is is NOT the same thing as an AKC championship (which you can read about here). They don’t have to beat other dogs to get the title. When breeders tout their “Champion Lines”, make sure it’s an AKC or CKC championship.
Here’s a side note for you: Breeders with AKC and/or CKC champions don’t market their breeding programs as having “Champion Lines”. They don’t need to because the CH is right there as part of the dogs’ official names.
Anyway, there are AKC judges that will award a nicely built light dog. Check out the photo below from an AKC show: half or more of that class would be registered as light Golden. I have personally shown against Goldens of all shades and color very rarely matters.
A Golden is a Golden, No Matter its Shade
When bred responsibly, a Golden Retriever of any shade can do anything you want them to do. Well-bred light Goldens are no different than other shades: they have the drive and trainability of any other shade of gold. All Golden Retrievers are special, but that’s because they are Goldens, not because of their color.
If you decide that you want a lighter shade of gold and you can’t live without it, then find a reputable breeder that just happens to have light dogs. They do exist! There is one more thing you need to know though: If you get a responsibly bred Golden Retriever, you will fall in love, regardless of its color.