The Golden Retreiver Club of WA (GRCWA) was founded in 1973. The club promotes health and welfare of the breed first and foremost. A voluntary organisation affiliated with Dogswest, it tries to offer a range of services, advice and support on health, breed direction, rescue, buying a puppy and breed care. The GRCWA also holds a Championship Show, an Open Show and Two Retrieving Trials along with fun events designed to strengthne the human/golden bond. The club offers exhibitors the opportunity of showing their dogs under an international breed specialist.

Dogswest hold the WA breed registries, control registrations and pedigrees and maintain a code of ethics, binding on all members. They promote health and welfare, shows, training, judges training, trials and other dog related activities as well as advice about pedigree dogs. The ANKC (Australian National Kennel Council) is the overriding body nationally.

A code of ethics is an agreed upon set of standards which include the breeding, owning and correct husbandry of pedigree dogs which always surrounds the health and welfare of each breed. Every registered breeder who holds an ANKC breeder prefix signs the Code of Ethics and agrees to the content of the Code of Ethics, agreeing to uphold it at all times. This includes abiding by and breeding to the breed standard of any given breed. Breaches can result in suspension or expulsion.

A registered breed is a recognised breed that adheres to an accepted standard, usually from the country of origin. Registered breeds are recognised by canine controlling bodies around the world such as Australian National Kennel Council (ANKC), The Kennel Club (UK), The American Kennel Club, Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI).