GOLDEN, Colo. — In what should be filed under "why has it taken this long to happen?," the City of Golden invited over 1,000 golden retrievers to town at the suggestion of the Golden Retriever Rescue in celebration of International Golden Retriever Day this Sunday.
Organizers told 9NEWS that likely 1,500 goldens managed to brave the gorgeous Golden weather to visit and basically take over the main street in the city. Humans and their beloved (and well-behaved) golden retrievers were invited to first gather at the Golden Visitors Center at noon for a free photo and some treats.
The plan - then - was to walk through Golden down Washington Street to pause for a group photo near the "Welcome to Golden" arch and then again at the Golden History Park before ending at Parfet Park. While many goldens surely made it out to Parfet Park, 9NEWS reporter Noel Brennan says many just flooded downtown. He described the experience as "best day ever."
Per organizers, the number of goldens in Golden likely means it's a world record.
Fans of goldens, dogs and things that generally bring joy will remember the "mass gathering" of golden retrievers in Scotland last July. It was the 150th anniversary of the founding of the golden retriever and the celebration was at its ancestral home in the Highlands, per the BBC. Numbers on the gathering weren't quite clear - though the photos were certainly memorable. The total was "hundreds." Golden is sure their number of goldens hit at least a "thousand."
So we'll have to see if Colorado becomes the new golden capital of the world.
If you missed this gathering of the goldens, don't panic! This was the first go-round for this event and if all goes well after Sunday, we may see this becoming a "thing" in town for some time.
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