How Golden Retrievers Influenced My Personality

I recently posted some photos of my dogs on Instagram and wanted to reflect more on how growing up with Golden Retrievers influenced me as a human… so here I am to do just that ◡̈

Let’s go all the way back to infancy… When I was born, my parents had one dog: a Shitzu named Bailey. Yes, the weird dog breed that everyone reads as a curse word. To be honest, I still have no idea how it is really pronounced. Anywhooo, Bailey was my mom’s best friend at the time, and my name would have been Bailey, had the dog not come first… Luckily it did…. Kenedi would be a strange name for a dog. But for this blog’s purpose, we’re going to disregard Bailey, since she was only around for the first five or so years of my life… And mostly because she wasn’t a Golden Retriever. Nonetheless, moment of silence for Bailey because we still love and adore her immensely.

Flash-forward to my elementary school years when we got my first Golden Retriever. I named her Miley… and didn’t really give my parents a say.. They would suggest MANY other names, but my mind was made up so I insisted that none of them suited her as well as Miley. The name was tastefully inspired by Miley Cyrus, who led my favorite TV show at the time, Hannah Montana.

Now, Miley was a badass. Get this, we got her from a close friend of my mom, and she was the only female puppy in the litter to survive this flood. I believe her intelligence is what saved her, as Miley ended up being the most intellectually fascinating dog I have ever had. Not sure if it was the very early childhood trauma that fostered such intelligence, but nonetheless, she was an impressive dog.

Miley has always been the doggo I had the deepest connection to because she helped raise me. You should also know that I am an only child so having dogs meant even more to me because they were always who I would hang out with and talk to when I felt alone. Miley was my buddy, and she always kept me safe. Though I knew when it came to strange noises in the house, she was always more bark than bite, I found comfort in her false courage.

In her lifetime, Miley struggled with a lot of anxiety. As an adult now, I struggle with a lot of anxiety as well. Could this have been influenced by Miley? Potentially, though anxiety is also in my family in general. However, I do see the ways in which Miley anxiously cared about her family that I carry into my own life in the same ways that I care about my family and friends. Golden Retrievers in general seemed to be more attached to their humans than the average dog, and thus, they are more anxious dogs because of that attachment-induced separation anxiety.

Eventually, we decided Miley needed a buddy to keep her company and soothe her anxiety while I was at school. Introducing Carly:

Many people called her Chewy. She LOVED taking shoes. She didn’t always chew them up, but she was obsessed with carrying them around and cleaning up the shoes left around the house. Another Carly quirk was lightly grabbing people’s arms and showing them around the house. When someone would enter through the front door, even if they had seen the place before, she gave everybody the courtesy tour every time.

Carly’s name came from another childhood show, iCarly. We had a theme going there, but it ended it after Carly. Two dogs was perfect for us, and I certainly aged out of the Disney Channel names by the time we got another dog.

Carly and Miley were an unstoppable duo, which we would much later call “Marley.” They had complete opposite personalities, which made everyday with them more exciting. Miley came through with the shy but intelligent demeanor, whereas Carly tied it all together with the outgoing and not smart but FUN opposition. These were the doggos I grew up with for the majority of my life. These two were with me when I started middle school and when I finished high school.

Their bond, alone, taught me so much about what it means to love someone and be loyal to them. As silly as it sounds, these Goldens helped me find my own freedom and strength. Carly and Miley were the devil and angel on my shoulder at times, with Carly encouraging “Why not?” and Miley reasoning, “Make sure it’s the right choice.” I wouldn’t trade my time with them or what I learned from them for the whole world.

Breezing through the causes of death because I don’t want this to be sad: we lost Carly first due to a heart condition, then Miley a few years later due to old age.

In the midst of the pandemic, and when old age was really starting to show on Miley, we got another puppy, as we thought it could bring her some more joy. And long story short, it absolutely did. Getting that puppy gave Miley a whole new burst of energy, and she started acting like a puppy all over again. I am so grateful for the decision to get another dog at that time because doing so we believe extended the time we had with Miley by about two years. IN COMES CHEX:

This is Chex. Chex Waffles Avery Chriske to be exact. She was my pandemic baby. I was in my senior year of high school when everything shut down, and Chex & Miley got me through it. I was the primary person to raise Chex in her first six months so we have a bond like I’ve never had with a dog before. I’m definitely her person, and I am always blessed with the most special greetings from her when I come visit.

Chex is the epidemy of a pandemic dog, as she acquired the separation anxiety and everything that came with having humans always at home with her, until life started going back to normal. One thing that was super interesting was seeing her explore things around a year old that typically we would’ve introduced her to long before. It is truly such a fascinating experience to watch a puppy discover the wonders of the world for the first time. This is also a great way to snap myself into practicing mindfulness.

Once we started returning to work and school, Chex needed a friend to play with and hopefully help reduce some of her stresses surrounding separation. SOOOOOO introducing Biscuit!

Biscuit is our newest little Golden, and she is still a puppy. She is the goofiest dog we have ever had for sure. It’s interesting how each dog has had such a distinctly different personality. Here’s a few things that really set them apart:

Miley: Intelligent, Loved Tennis Balls, Human-Like Behavior, Timid

Carly: Loved to Eat, Funny, Outgoing, Personable

Chex: Cautious, Devoted, Calm, Picky

Biscuit: Troublemaker, Likes to Fight, Loves Dad Most, Jokester

Anyway, all this to say, if I had to choose a dog breed I think I am most like, it would be a Golden Retriever for sure. The strongest trait I have that I share with these dogs is my tendency to get attached to people and love too hard, too quickly. But that’s a story for another day.

That’s all for now, folks! Thanks for reading along!

Kenedi ◡̈