After many months of research and conversations/visits with multiple breeders, in and out of the state, we were fortunate to meet Kara of VanGoghldens. After a two hour conversation in which Kara’s passion for what she does shone through brightly, it was clear to both of us that this was a match! Kara is amazing! She holds herself and her breeding stock to the very highest standards when it comes to health and temperament. And the added bonus??? They are all gorgeous and conform to the breed standards. We love our pup more than words can say. She is the perfect fit for us. Bella is sweet, happy and very smart. She is loving, gentle and very tolerant of our young grandchildren. I am training her for therapy work. She catches on quickly, passed her Canine Good Citizen at an early age and will test for therapy certification in a couple of months (age 16 months). We feel such gratitude to Kara for all her hard work and dedication. The proof is in the pudding.
Laurie S.
I am the lucky recipient of a VanGoghlden puppy. Maybe I should say I won the lottery. I have owned two other Golden’s in my lifetime, without ever having a breeder take 100% investment in making sure pedigree, health, temperament, personality assessment and the time Kara spent with the babies; from the birth of our girl to our arms was beyond my expectations and it surely gave us 100% confidence in knowing exactly what we were wanting and received. Even as a new puppy parent , Kara reminded us that we are her “VanGoghlden” family for our sweet Winnie’s life. Now, I just need to work on talking my husband in to a sister for our perfect girl.
Kristin N.
Kara, at VanGoghlden Retrievers, gave us our heart back. After learning a hard lesson regarding the importance of finding a reputable breeder, we found Kara. From our first 2 hour conversation regarding the health, lineage, and temperaments of her dogs, to our drive from North Carolina to Michigan 5 months later, we knew that we would have the puppy we were looking for. Kara listened to our needs and desires regarding temperament, size, and “look” and picked the perfect fit for us. We love everything about our Very Sweet and Very Smart Scarlett!
Lynn M.
Almost six months ago I picked up Ollie after a number of discussions with Kara. She spent a lot of time thinking about the right fit for me. I could not be happier. I have owned 12 dogs including other Goldens- and they were all great dogs- but Ollie is pretty remarkable. I can tell he is going to be my best dog ever. The vet remarked on his excellent temperament. He is a very smart dog. He is incredibly mellow and affectionate inside but also energetic and playful outside. No separation anxiety- just bye. Great companion on long car trips. Other dogs love him. He is also a very good-looking dog. Last, Kara sent Ollie home with a great online library of articles. I am an experienced dog owner but I learned quite a few new things from this library. Ollie is an example of a dog that is bred with care. I highly recommend getting a dog from Kara.
Mary C.
Simply put: Frannie is everyone’s favorite dog – us, our families, strangers, new dog friends – everyone loves Fran for her sweet and social disposition. We can only take a mere slice of the credit for her personality, but Kara gets the overwhelming majority for raising and socializing such excellent pups since birth. Everyone comments on how even-tempered and (mostly!) well behaved she is, and I always want to say, “it’s not an accident!” The amount of socialization and work that Kara puts into making sure each and every one of her pups is the perfect dog is unbelievable. And, she’s an incredibly smart pup. Frannie is the light of our lives and we can’t believe we ever lived without her.
Taylor B.
Kara and her dogs are phenomenal. She runs a great breeding program and really takes the time to match the best dog to the family. We got a puppy in August of 2020 and we couldn’t be happier! Our Walter is the happiest and goofiest pup that we have ever had (he’s our 4th Golden). He fits in well with our 11 year Golden (Sam). He loves every living being including frogs (see pic). I would recommend VanGoghlden to anyone looking for their best friend.
Scott R.
We traveled about 4 hours from Ohio to Michigan back in October, 2018 to pick up our VanGoghlden pup Chance from Bernie and Abbey’s litter. Two of the big reasons we decided to bring a VanGoghlden pup into our lives were Kara’s commitment and dedication to the long term health prospects of the pups as well as her genuine care and concern for matching her pups with their forever families. Long term health was so important to us as we had unexpectedly lost our first golden Charlie just about a year earlier as he battled cancer. While no puppy could ever be another Charlie, Kara’s compassion for us and our story helped her recommend Chance as a match for our family. Chance has brought us much joy and healing when we needed it. He’s a mostly laid-back, gentle, caring, sweet boy. He has a goofy, happy-go-lucky personality. He has been a wonderful fit and addition to our family. Thank you so much Kara for bringing Chance to us!
Mike, Debbie and Adam W.
When I first talked to Kara about a puppy, she said that she had the perfect boy for us and she was sure right! We are a retired suburban couple that would appreciate a calm dog. He is so relaxed and good with the grandchildren. He is well loved in the neighborhood and gets along with all neighbor dogs. He goes to all family functions because everyone loves having him around. Kara sure knows her dogs. When he goes for walks, invariably someone will stop their car to comment on how beautiful he is!
Donna W.
We absolutely love our VanGoghlden puppy. Kara took a lot of time to get to know us, and it feels like she bred a puppy just for us. Our puppy has the best personality of any puppy we’ve ever seen. She does a wonderful job matching her dogs to their new owners. I can’t recommend VanGoghldens enough!!
