Why Do Golden Retrievers Get Cancer?

The high odds of developing life-threatening tumors keep many people from getting a golden retriever. Fortunately, most canine cancer forms nowadays are curable if detected early.

Causes of canine cancer are numerous, including genetics, environmental factors, lifestyle, and fixing. Researchers still have plenty of work to do until we find the root of the issue.

Most importantly, golden retriever owners should know the symptoms of cancer in dogs to spot the offender and provide their pet with timely help.

Are Golden Retrievers More Prone to Cancer Than Other Breeds?

Cancer is the most common cause of death in golden retrievers. Over 66% of all male goldens and 53% of female goldens develop cancer at some point in their lives.

One study conducted by professors from the College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, studied the causes of death of 72,000 North American dogs between 1984 and 2004.

As a result, researchers ranked golden retrievers second on the list of 82 breeds most likely to die of cancer.

The study’s findings were proven by another research conducted by a professor from the University of Cambridge, focusing on breed predispositions to cancer in purebred dogs.

Interestingly, the study found that cancer accounts for 27% of all canine deaths in the U.K.

The risk of developing cancer is significantly higher for golden retrievers than for most breeds, but they aren’t the only purebred dogs susceptible to the condition.

Labrador retrievers, German shepherds, boxers, beagles, great Danes, poodles, and Bernese Mountain dogs are also prone to cancer.

The Most Common Golden Retriever Cancer Forms

Research suggests that golden retrievers are more likely to suffer from particular cancer forms than from others. The most common golden retriever cancer forms are hemangiosarcoma, osteosarcoma, lymphoma, and mast cell tumors.

Hemangiosarcoma is an aggressive blood vessel cancer. We don’t yet know what causes the disease, but studies suggest that genetics, ultraviolet light exposure, and abnormal blood vessel development can trigger the condition onset.

This cancer form can develop on any body part with blood vessels and is categorized into dermal, subcutaneous, and visceral types. Dermal hemangiosarcoma looks like red or black growth on the skin that can become ulcerated or bleed.

About a third of such tumors spread into internal organs, but early detection ensures high odds of treatment success.

Subcutaneous blood vessel cancer occurs beneath the skin and is harder to detect because it feels like a lump but may be invisible to the naked eye. If hidden under dense fur, it can remain undetected until the lump becomes extremely large.

Visceral hemangiosarcoma affects internal organs, typically the heart and liver, and has the highest mortality rate because it may rupture, causing internal bleeding.

Osteosarcoma is commonly referred to as bone cancer. Despite the name, osteosarcoma tumors may sometimes arise in non-boney tissues like muscle and mammary glands.

Bone cancer is extremely painful, so a dog may be lethargic, unwilling to move, anxious, depressed, and reluctant to eat. If the tumor develops in the limb, the owners may note lameness and swelling.

The prognosis of bone cancer in golden retrievers isn’t uplifting. This cancer form is very aggressive, and by the time it’s diagnosed, cancer cells typically spread into vital organs.

Lymphoma refers to cancer developing from lymphocytes circulating through the dog’s bloodstream and can occur in lymph nodes, chest cavity, intestines, skin, or any other organ.

Unlike bone cancer, lymphoma typically isn’t painful for dogs and, therefore, often remains undetected until it causes severe harm. The symptoms may vary depending on the affected area.

Intestine lymphoma may cause vomiting and weight loss, while chest cavity lymphoma causes cough, exercise intolerance, and constant panting.

Mast cell tumors are skin growths that can spread into lymph nodes, internal organs, and bone tissue and manifest primarily with topical symptoms, including edema, bruising, lesions, ulcers, and lumps.

Spaying, Neutering, & Cancer

Spaying and neutering were proven to drastically increase the risk of cancer in golden retrievers. Although golden retrievers are prone to cancer as a breed, fixing makes a dog three to six times more likely to get the disease.

It’s important to note that the effects of neutering on cancer in golden retrievers are a somewhat controversial topic.

While spaying or neutering increases the risk of osteosarcoma, bladder transitional cell carcinoma, lymphoma, and heart tumors, it decreases the risk of mammal and perianal cancers in female golden retrievers.

The more heat cycles a female golden retriever goes through, the more likely it is to develop mammal cancer, so spaying the dog at about one year old reduces the probability.

A 2013 study by the University of California examined 769 golden retrievers’ veterinary records and established a relation between fixing and cancer.

Neutering a dog before 12 months old increased the risk of lymphoma in male golden retrievers more than in females.

In contrast, hemangiosarcoma occurred in late spayed female golden retrievers more often than in early spayed ones. The same research determined that fixing doesn’t affect Labrador retrievers’ odds of developing cancer as much as golden retrievers’.

Another study conducted in 2020 showed that among 35 participating breeds, only a few were at a greater risk of cancer after fixing, including golden retrievers.

We don’t yet know how fixing affects cancer in golden retrievers and why it doesn’t have the same effect on other purebred dogs.

Genetics & Irresponsible Breeding

Purebred dogs are much more likely to have cancer than mixed dogs because of a closed gene pool. Simply put, when the selection of dogs to breed with is limited, inbreeding is inevitable, increasing the odds of health issue development.

Even if breeders don’t inbreed dogs intentionally, the population is isolated, and no new genes enter it unless in extraordinary cases. All purebred dogs are relatives, either immediate or distant ones.

The situation only worsens by the fact that most purebred dogs never mate and live their lives as pets. Consequently, the population of intact dogs actively participating in breeding remains small.

A golden retriever’s odds of getting cancer largely depend on its bloodline and how much inbreeding is present in the pedigree.

Some breeders are responsible and value their dogs’ health over the looks, only inbreeding and linebreeding dogs in rare instances.

However, the high demand for golden retrievers creates a high supply, and not every breeder comes into the industry because they genuinely want to improve the breed.

Some people breed dogs irresponsibly, not considering the consequences of frequent inbreeding and only striving for particular visual characteristics.

So, although purebred dogs are prone to cancer in general, golden retrievers have higher odds of having cancer than most breeds due to their surging popularity.

Only five decades ago, golden retriever life expectancy was 16-17 years, but because of irresponsible breeding, it has decreased to 10-12 years.

Poor Lifestyle

The bloodline plays a role in a dog’s health, but we can’t blame it all on genetics. Numerous studies have proven that dogs with a poor lifestyle are at a higher risk of dying from cancer than dogs with a healthy lifestyle.

We need more research to draw links between specific foods and cancer, but dogs fed a well-balanced, high-quality diet tend to live longer and die of cancer less frequently.

Cancers are often triggered by viruses, so dogs getting timely veterinary help and staying up to date with their shots are less likely to develop tumors.

Environmental Triggers

While we don’t know much about lifestyle triggers of canine cancer, environmental factors increasing cancer risk in dogs are relatively well-researched.

Prolonged exposure to ultraviolet light significantly increases the risk of skin cancer in dogs.

For this reason, one should never shave golden retriever fur – it serves as a natural sunscreen, protecting the dog’s skin from heat and ultraviolet light.

Dogs regularly exposed to pesticides, tobacco smoke, uranium, benzidine, benzene, radon, vinyl chloride, and other harmful substances are also more likely to suffer from the disease.

Since more carcinogens are found in cities than in rural areas, golden retrievers living outside of major metro areas tend to live longer.

Cancer Symptoms

Regardless of what causes cancer in golden retrievers, owners should know the most common canine cancer symptoms to detect the offender early. The success of cancer treatment largely depends on timely veterinary intervention.

Golden retrievers need regular grooming to maintain the beauty and health of their coat. But brushing is also the owner’s chance to check their pet for odd lumps and bumps that may indicate cancer.

An abnormal odor from a particular body area is another alarming sign, although it may also be caused by poor hygiene or infection. Non-healing wounds signal that a dog’s body is combating another health issue, such as cancer.

Dogs with cancer often lose weight, drink and urine frequently, appear lethargic and depressed, and show signs of pain or discomfort. If cancer affects the heart or lungs, a dog may cough and pant excessively.

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