Goldens gather before the ruins of Guisachan House, where the breed was born.
Photo by Gordon Richardson, via huffingtonpost.com
Last month, in a small town in the Scottish Highlands, some 222 Golden Retrievers and their owners celebrated the second Guisachan Gathering. (The first was held in 2006.) Hosted by the Golden Retriever Club of Scotland, the event was held on the grounds of Guisachan Estate, the birthplace of the Golden Retriever. It was there, in 1868, that Lord Tweedmouth mated a yellow Wavy-Coated Retriever to a Tweed Water-Spaniel. Further breeding with black Retrievers, an Irish Setter and a sandy-coloured Bloodhound produced the progenitors of today’s goldens.
The breed comes home to the birthplace.