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Breed guide · Dogs
She swallowed a sock whole. The laundry basket has a lid now.
Last updated 14 October 2026
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What they brought with them.
Tap a card to see what is going on.
At home
One rustle of a packet and they are at your feet, sure that dinner never happened.
What's going onAbout two in three Flat-Coats carry a gene change that makes them hungrier between meals and burn fewer calories at rest. The begging is real. The answer is kitchen scales, and treats that come out of the daily amount.
At home
Years past their first birthday and still bouncing off the sofa like it is day one.
What's going onFlat-Coats are known for staying puppyish for years. It is a lot of the joy of them. It also means the stealing and bouncing last longer, so keep training short, daily and fun.
At home
Socks, hair ties, a stone from the park: everything ends up in their mouth.
What's going onThey were bred to pick things up and carry them. Swallowing things like socks and stones is on their health record as a puppy. Keep the floor clear and teach them to swap.
At home
Their glossy coat is hot to the touch after a short walk in the sun.
What's going onThat coat was made for cold English marshes, and a dark coat soaks up the sun. In summer, walk them before sunrise and after dark, and end the game before they want to.
At home
Up when you get up, down when you sit, and across the bathroom doorway in between.
What's going onA Flat-Coat was bred to work next to one person all day. A long day alone in a flat is hard on them. A midday walk or a visit breaks it up.
At home
Tail going all day, even on a day they are not quite right.
What's going onCancer is their first health risk from two years old. Run your hands over them every week. A lump that stays should be tested, not watched.
The bit nobody tells you.
Their day
Built for: The day in fields and cold water beside a keeper.
In Dubai: Often the day in a flat.
Their coat
Built for: A dark coat made for English winters.
In Dubai: The same dark coat, in 45°C heat.
Their work
Built for: Carrying birds home in their mouth.
In Dubai: Food arriving without any work attached.
The stealing and the swallowed socks mostly come from that gap.
You cannot give them an English marsh. You can give them a job, and the ten things below are how.
Your plan is built around their breed: the health risks for a Flat-Coated Retriever at every age, and the care that goes with each one.
Join the founding families. AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199.
Ten things that make their life better.
Swallowing things they should not, like socks and stones, is on their health record as a puppy.
Every age, most of all puppies
Why
Swallowing things they should not, like socks and stones, is on their health record as a puppy.
What to do
Practise "leave it" and the swap every day. Keep socks, hair ties and children's toys off the floor. If someone else walks them, give the walker the rules: no picking things up, and no extra treats.
Their dark coat was made for English winters, and they will not stop by themselves.
Every age, most of all puppies and from 7 years
Why
Their dark coat was made for English winters, and they will not stop by themselves.
What to do
From May to September, walk before sunrise and after dark. Put the back of your hand on the pavement for five seconds. If you cannot keep it there, they cannot walk on it. Keep games in the heat short, and take water.
They were bred to work beside a person all day, and they stay young in their head for a long time.
Every age, hardest from 6 months to 2 years
Why
They were bred to work beside a person all day, and they stay young in their head for a long time.
What to do
If you are out for more than a few hours, arrange a midday walk, a visit or daycare. Leave a stuffed chew when you go. If they are distressed when you leave, contact your vet rather than trying to fix it at home.
Flat-Coats stay puppyish for years, so the teenage habits stick around.
From 6 months, often well past 2 years
Why
Flat-Coats stay puppyish for years, so the teenage habits stick around.
What to do
Expect pulling, jumping up and selective hearing well past two. Reward four feet on the floor every time someone says hello. Two short training sessions a day, paid with part of their dinner.
Cancer is their first health risk from two, and a lump found early can be tested early.
Every age, most of all from 2 years
Why
Cancer is their first health risk from two, and a lump found early can be tested early.
What to do
Once a week, run your hands over their whole body, legs and tail included, and note any new lump, however small. While you are there, look at their eyes in good light. Brush their coat several times a week, their teeth every day, and weigh them once a month.
They were bred to carry things, and they will pick their own if you do not.
Every age, most of all 6 months to 2 years
Why
They were bred to carry things, and they will pick their own if you do not.
What to do
Keep a soft toy or a canvas dummy that is theirs, and hand it over when guests arrive or you come home. If they take something, swap it for a treat. Do not chase them, because that makes it a game they win.
They will keep retrieving long after they should stop, on hips and knees that are a risk in their breed.
Every age, gentler from 7 years
Why
They will keep retrieving long after they should stop, on hips and knees that are a risk in their breed.
What to do
Five to ten throws, then stop. Ask for a sit and wait before you send them, and throw along the ground or into water. Skip the ball launcher, and go gently while they are still growing.
About two in three Flat-Coats carry a gene change that makes them hungrier, and bloat is on their record from six months.
Every age, most of all while growing
Why
About two in three Flat-Coats carry a gene change that makes them hungrier, and bloat is on their record from six months.
What to do
Weigh their daily food on kitchen scales and take treats out of that amount. Feed part of each meal from a slow feeder, so eating takes them more than a minute. A Body Condition Score (a check on whether they are the right weight) is in your plan at their puppy visits, and bloat-prevention advice from six months.
Swimming is easy on their joints, and skin and ear trouble are on their record as a juvenile.
Every age
Why
Swimming is easy on their joints, and skin and ear trouble are on their record as a juvenile.
What to do
Use any water they are allowed into. Show them the steps out of the pool every time, and never leave them near one alone. After a swim, rinse and dry their coat and dry inside their ear flaps.
Hip Dysplasia (a poorly fitting hip joint) and Patellar Luxation (PL, a slipping kneecap) are on their record from puppyhood.
Every age, most of all while growing
Why
Hip Dysplasia (a poorly fitting hip joint) and Patellar Luxation (PL, a slipping kneecap) are on their record from puppyhood.
What to do
Put rugs or runners where they turn and run on marble. Lift them in and out of the car, or use a ramp. Keep them lean, and keep exercise moderate while they are growing. A hip, kneecap and gait evaluation (a check of how they walk) is in your plan at their puppy visits.
Four of these are in your plan. The rest you can do at home.
Join the founding families. AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199.
Their health, at every age.
How old are they?
Their age
the first six months
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
6 months to 2 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
2 to 4 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
4 to 7 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
7 to 10 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
10 years and over
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Breed predispositions indicate an increased risk rather than certainty of disease. What is right for them always comes from their own history and an evaluation.
Before they come home.
A gundog, and a rare one
The Flat-Coat is a gundog from the same retriever group as the Golden, bred to fetch from land and water. It nearly disappeared after the First World War, and it is still a rare dog in the UAE.
Colours
Flat-Coats come in glossy black, or liver, a deep chocolate brown that turns warm in the evening light.
The first six months
Their full vaccination course, microchip and Dubai Municipality registration come first. Grow them slowly and lean, and sweep the floor before you go out: socks, stones and hair ties are what puppies like them swallow.
Puppy health, 0 to 6 months
Getting the flat ready
Put rugs or runners where they turn and run, and lift them in and out of the car, or use a ramp. Marble floors are hard on young hips and knees, and anything left on the floor is fair game.
Ten things that make their life better
Before you commit
Ask the breeder about both parents' hip x-ray results and eye evaluations. Hip and kneecap problems and eye disease are on a Flat-Coat's health record from puppyhood.
Before the clinics open
AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199. No payment now.
For a new puppy: First 30 days with a new puppy · Puppy vaccinations in the UAE · Heatstroke in dogs
When it is not behaviour.
They'll keep trying the laundry basket. If they're sick or go off their food after a raid, contact your vet now.
Before they were yours.
The mid 1800s
The first Flat-Coats were English gamekeepers' dogs, called wavy-coated retrievers. They fetched shot birds from fields, marshes and cold water.
What they still carryThe water, the carrying, and a wish to be busy with their person.
1873 to 1914
Sewallis Shirley, who founded The Kennel Club in 1873, shaped the breed. Until the First World War it was the retriever of choice on shooting estates across Britain.
What they still carryThe glossy black look, and a very sociable working dog.
1918 to the 1960s
After the war other retrievers took over, and numbers fell to a handful of kennels. A small group of breeders brought the Flat-Coat back.
What they still carryA breed rebuilt from few dogs, and still a rare one.
2016 onwards
Researchers found a change in an appetite gene, first seen in another retriever, in about two in three Flat-Coats.
What they still carryA dog hungrier than they look, whose lumps matter from two years old.
Today
In the UAE a Flat-Coat is a rare dog, living in a flat or a villa with no birds to fetch.
What they still carryA cold-water gundog in a dark coat, in 45°C heat, with very little water they are allowed into.
The ones you type at midnight.
If the Flat-Coated Retriever suits you, so might these.
Labrador RetrieverThe same kind of dog: a friendly, water-loving retriever, with a short coat that sheds more.
Golden RetrieverAnother gentle retriever, calmer and quieter, in a golden coat.
Portuguese Water DogThe same boundless energy and love of people, in a curly-coated water dog that sheds less but needs regular grooming.
Springer SpanielA similar size and the same easy coat care, in a spaniel with a little less energy to burn.
