Updated: October 13th, 2022
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If you are anything like me and countless other golden retriever owners, you’ve probably tried to draw your pooch multiple times to no avail. No matter how much I tried, my golden retriever drawing looked more like a child’s attempt to draw clouds than a sketch by an adult.
After ruining several sheets of paper I was ready to give up on the whole idea, but then it hit me! If I want to learn to draw a golden retriever, there must be other owners who want to learn, too.
If you want to create a sketch of your beloved golden retriever, the good news is that you don’t have to be an artist or a painter to do so. Thanks to some useful tips and tricks, drawing a detailed golden retriever is very easy!
In this article, I’ll show you the easiest way to pencil a golden retriever sketch even if you don’t know how to draw. Keep on reading and follow this simple step-by-step guide.
How To Draw A Golden Retriever Step-By-Step
Although there are three types of golden retrievers, they are all very similar. Thus, you don’t have to worry whether this simple golden retriever drawing will look like your pooch or not.
Friendly, active, loving, and cute, golden retrievers have many distinctive features that should be captured by the drawing. Goldens have broad heads, strong muzzles, medium to large dark eyes, and floppy ears. Although this may seem like a lot of details to draw, getting your dog’s features right is actually the easy part.
Most people think that getting the coat just right is the hardest part of any golden retriever puppy drawing. But, since you aren’t a professional artist, don’t worry about capturing the exact shade and color of your dog’s coat.
Things might still seem complicated at this point, but it doesn’t take a lot of steps to draw a detailed golden retriever. In fact, if you have your paper and pencil close at hand, we can move on to the first step.
Step One
Before you start drawing your golden retriever, get a sketchbook or plain white paper, a pencil, eraser, and a black pen. Once you have everything close at hand, you can start working on your golden retriever sketch.
First, with your pencil you need to draw a nice big circle slightly toward the right-hand side of the paper. The circle doesn’t have to be perfect; these are just guides that you will erase later. Next, you’re going to draw a slightly smaller circle placed toward the left-hand side.
Lastly, draw a third, even smaller circle slightly above the bottom right circle. This circle will eventually become your golden retriever’s head.
Step Two
In the second step of this easy golden retriever drawing, you are going to work on your dog’s face and start outlining features.
Draw your dog’s muzzle onto the smallest circle that should become your golden’s head. Add a line at the top of the muzzle for the nose and just indicate where the eye and the ear are going to be.
There is no need to go into any detail now; these are just for reference and will be useful later when you start sketching the golden retriever’s features in detail.
Step Three
Now, using curved lines, connect the smallest top circle with the biggest circle, connecting your dog’s head and the body and drawing their neck. Once your dog has a neck, draw a straight line from it to the bottom left circle, outlining the back.
At this point, your simple golden retriever drawing should start to take shape and look like an actual dog, not just look like a bunch of random circles and lines!
Step Four
Now draw your golden’s front legs on the bottom right circle. At this point just draw a line coming down from the circle and a little paw for one leg. Then, do the same on the other side, drawing a line that finishes slightly higher and will eventually become your dog’s other front leg.
Now, you’re going to do the hind leg by drawing a line that comes at an angle first and ends in a straight line. Next, pencil a straight line coming down from the circle to serve as the other hind leg. This hind leg will be in shadow, so you don’t have to worry about any details while sketching now or later on.
Once you’re done with the legs, draw a straight line connecting both circles, thus drawing the bottom part of the tummy.
Step Five
In this step, you’re going to need your eraser for rubbing out some of those preliminary lines, but first, you’ll need to add more details to your sketch of a golden retriever. Start by adding the back of the front legs by drawing another straight line from the biggest circle. Do the same thing for the other front leg and don’t forget to draw both paws.
Once the front legs are done, start working on a hind leg by drawing the line for the back of the leg from the circle. Think of the way your dog’s hind legs curve naturally at the joint before becoming straight. Connect the front and the back of the hind leg by drawing a paw.
Now, use long pencil strokes to draw the longer fur on a golden retriever’s tummy and front legs. Once you’ve added fur, sketch the tail and use the same long pencil strokes to add fur to it.
When you’re done with these details, you can use the eraser and start removing some of those preliminary lines. Without all of these lines, your cute golden retriever drawing will start to take shape and look realistic.
Now that all preliminary lines are out of the way, it’s time to pencil the fur on your dog’s chest. The easiest way to draw chest feathering is by sketching lots of wispy lines, pressing on the page, and lifting the pencil.
Step Six
In this step, you’re going to focus on adding details to the golden retriever’s head. Start by correcting the shape of the dog’s head if necessary and erase the muzzle slightly. Use curved lines to sketch the open mouth and the tongue that sticks slightly out.
Draw a small, irregular circle on the top of the muzzle to form a nose. Using curved lines sketch a roughly triangularly shaped eye and use overlapping lines to form a floppy ear.
At this point, take a step back and see if your drawing is in proportion and add more wispy lines on the chest, back, and front legs to show the direction of the fur. Also, pencil the ground and shadow so it doesn’t seem like the dog is floating in the air.
If you are happy with how your drawing looks, it’s time to go over it in a black pen. And that’s it! Your easy golden retriever drawing is finished and ready to be framed and showcased to your family and friends!
Check out this how-to-draw a golden retriever dog video for detailed instructions!
At A Glance: Best Products For Golden Retrievers We Recommend
- FurHaven Ultra Plush Orthopedic Dog Bed – Best Orthopedic Bed For Golden Retrievers
- Kong Classic Dog Toy – Best Toy For Golden Retrievers
- Good ‘n’ Fun Triple Flavor Kabobs – Best Dog Treats For Golden Retrievers
- Zesty Paws Anti-Itch Dog Shampoo – Best Shampoo For Golden Retrievers
FAQ About Golden Retriever Sketch
How Do You Draw An Easy Golden Retriever?
The easiest way to draw a golden retriever is by sketching three circles to serve as guides that you’ll later erase. Using overlapping, curved lines to pencil the muzzle, nose, eye, and ear in the smallest circle that will become the golden retriever’s head. Use long curved lines to connect the two bigger circles into the rounded shape of a dog’s body.
When your sketch starts to come together and has the shape of a dog, you can start erasing the guide lines and adding details. Use long strokes with the pencil to draw a golden retriever’s fur and feathering on the chest and back of the front legs. Once you are pleased with all details and the overall look of your drawing, use a black pen to go over the drawing
Conclusion
As you can see, you don’t have to be Picasso to create a cute golden retriever drawing in a matter of minutes! Thanks to these simple step-by-step instructions, you can finally sketch your pooch and even get creative with your drawing. By adding some color or changing the fullness of the lines, you can express your creative side and make your sketch more unique.
And even if you didn’t manage to pencil a perfect golden retriever on the first try, go ahead and try again! As your drawing skills get better, you can change the structure and attempt to draw a golden retriever in different positions such as sitting or lying down.
