The answer to this question is fairly straightforward.
The AKC Golden retriever is the American kennel club Golden retriever.
What it means is that there is a specific specification of a purebred golden retriever that your dog needs to meet in order to be registered.
It doesn't necessarily mean that it's a smarter golden retriever or a faster golden retriever or a friendlier golden retriever, it simply means that your dog is a purebred and falls into or matches the specifications that are laid out.
Why is this important? Well at some pointif you wish to exhibit the dog or have the dog participate in AKC events.
Typically a dog enthusiast or a serious hobby breeder is going to try to match his or her dogs as closely as possible to the AKC specification.
This means the that the dog should hopefully do well in competitions.
It's interesting to note however that there are actually some differences between the American definition of a golden retriever and the European definition.
There is actually also a Canadian definition which follows more closely to the British one.
As an example color is a main feature of the Golden.
TheAKC will accept colors that are close to red and mahogany.
However, a lighter creamier color is generally frowned upon.
Conversely if we look at the European specification we find that the lighter creamier coloris acceptable, whereas they read in mahogany tones of gold simply are not.
It's also worth noting that you can actually register your Golden with either kennel club and they will be accepted.
They just may not do as well as the shows.
And that is the point that I'm trying to make.
By and large the AKC Golden retriever is merely a specification.
If you're looking for a purebred for these purposes then it will be important to you otherwise it may not.
For example, if you are attempting to find a dog for your home and family then this is not necessarily something that should be of concern to you.
Rather you should focus on the aspects of the dog that will properly and correctly match your lifestyle.
This increases the chances that he will stay with you for long term.
So its importantto note the general characteristics of a golden regardless of whether or not you wish to register him.
In that vein, let's talk a little bit about what a golden requires to be happy.
Golden's need a lot of exercise.
Goldens need a lot of mental stimulation they need toys and games and things of this nature.
They also have a tendency to chew, which means you need to have lots of chew toys to make sure that they don't go after your furniture or your shoes.
They aren't innately intelligent dog.
Which means that they need to have some mental challenge but it also means that they are relatively easy to train.
So if training a dog is something that you like to do or perhaps you envision your dog doing all manner of tricks than this is a good choice.
It's also worth noting that golden retrievers make excellent service dogs.
Again this is not necessarily a dog that would need to be registered in order to perform this function.
The dog to just needs to be smart friendly and have a strong work ethic.
The selection criteria does not necessarily include whether or not the dogs are purebred or whether not the dog can be registered.
However should you decide that you want to breed your dog or that perhaps one day you may want your dog to have puppies then AKC registration would be a smart thing to do if you want to track the lineage.
It's also worth noting though that your dog will need to have been a purebred in the first place.
Also you will have to have had registration from the time he was a puppy his litter would have to be registered and his parents would have to be registered.
You would also have to have proof of this.
So if this is something that you're thinking about doing make sure that you address it up front with your breeder.
Golden retrievers are not watchdogs.
So if you need a watchdog and look elsewhere.
However, if you're looking for a very friendly fun-loving energetic dog and you have plenty of time to exercise him or her then this is the dog for you.