It's very common to see a judge touching a dog on show rings. Unhappily it may also not happen but when it's done, it's not just for the pleasure but to have a look at the dog's angulations.
Indeed they are very important in the Golden Retriever's conformation.
Even if this wonderful dog has a great number of qualities, it has been bred to retrieve wounded or dead game on various and uneven grounds. Therefore it must have the necessary physical features to fulfil this activity. It must be able to retrieve birds during an entire day and sometimes jump over ditches.
The following sketch will enable you to recognize the almost perfect conformation of a Golden Retriever and eventually understand when a judge notices straight shoulders or stifles.
Even if the standard is not precise on this topic, the shoulder blade (scapula) must have a 45° angle with the verticality and form a right angle with the humerus. These two bones must be of equal size. Another way to check the forequarters is to virtually draw a line (from the top of the blade and go to the back of the elbow and down to the back of the front feet) that has to be vertical.
To measure the proportions and angles the markers are : the top of the shoulder blade, at the withers (where the spine is hidden) ; the shoulder joint at the front of the breast and the back of the elbow joint.
As for the hindquarters the pelvis must be 30° from the horizontal, the thighbone (femur) being vertical. The femur and the shinbone (tibia) must also form a right angle. Finally these three bones must be of equal size too.
The hocks must be vertical and if a virtual vertical line was drawn in their middle, it would join the back end of the pelvis.
A well built Golden Retriever can naturally stand. That's why judges can ask you not to touch the dog while showing so as to see its balanced statics.
