Breed: Golden Retriever
Date of birth: 26/08/2025
Gender: Male
Neck circumference: approx. 50cm
Chest circumference: approx. 76cm
Base of neck to base of tail: approx. 71cm
Height to shoulder: approx. 47cm
Weight: approx. 29kg

General Description

He sits down at the kerb and waits for the word “cross” before he moves. That small piece of everyday manners tells you almost everything worth knowing about Elvis: a big, warm, slightly goofy dog with genuinely lovely instincts underneath all the enthusiasm. His coat runs golden into paler white feathering, he weighs a solid twenty-nine kilograms and he greets the world as though every person in it has arrived specifically to see him. Curious, affectionate and easily delighted, he is equally relaxed with children, adults and other dogs.

The breed’s early history sits in the Scottish Highlands, though its public life began in the show ring rather than the field. The first Guisachan puppies were recorded as Crocus, Cowslip, Primrose and Ada, and when dogs of this type first appeared at Kennel Club shows in 1908 they were exhibited as Yellow Retrievers or Golden Flat-Coats before the name we use now settled. British lines have always tended towards the creamier, paler coat that distinguishes them from their American cousins. Beyond the show bench the breed built its reputation on temperament: goldens remain a mainstay of guide dog and assistance work in this country, chosen precisely for the steadiness and biddability the breed is known for. On screen and in public life they have had no shortage of visibility either, from Liberty, who lived in the White House under President Ford, to Bailey in A Dog’s Purpose, a film built entirely around the breed’s capacity for devotion.

Elvis has a solid foundation of household obedience rather than a trained repertoire. He sits, lies down, holds a stay, comes when called by name and takes food gently on a “gentle” cue. He is happy to be groomed and handled by unfamiliar people, holds steady eye contact, travels well and is unbothered by most household sound. The hoover is not his favourite thing, though it presents no real difficulty. Everything else is very much open to development, and his owner is keen to build on it.

Elvis is best cast as himself: the beloved family dog. Warm domestic drama, feel-good advertising, charity and community storytelling and any script wanting an affectionate, slightly clumsy household companion suit him now, with no specialist behaviours required. He can be positioned and asked to stay while a scene plays around him, he sits and drops on request and he offers either paw plus a high five, which gives directors a handful of usable affectionate beats.

His recall is reliable enough for a called run towards a cast member, always an easy emotional moment, and he generally answers a whistle. Because he is composed around strangers and other dogs, ensemble scenes and busy domestic interiors present no problem. For the moment his strongest suit is presence rather than performance, so shorter scenes and single-day bookings will show him at his best while training progresses.

Golden into white photographs warmly in natural light and against soft interiors, so family lifestyle brands, insurance, supermarkets, garden and outdoor living, pet food and household advertising all have a natural place for him. He sits pretty with paws raised, gives a paw and takes a treat delicately from the hand, which supplies clean, simple frames for treat and nutrition brands without asking anything he has not already mastered.