Sports-bred goldens are much more common than sports-bred labs in the agility scene, I do know that. But the sports-bred lines (in both breeds, I've known some hunting labs personally) are also very intense and might not be the 'easy' introduction you're looking for for your husband, haha. Though even outside sporting lines, labs and goldens are slow maturing dogs, and are often said to be puppies or adolescents until they're three or more, and can be little firecrackers during that time. They're often super solid and lovely dogs as adults, veritable social butterflies with both other dogs and people, but getting them there can be a challenge.
We had a young golden in our last adolescent/young adult class who was a gorgeous dog - I was a little bit in love even though I'm so not a golden person - but he had his owners at the end of their ropes because he struggled so much with arousal and getting amped up over everything in his environment (on top of being, well, a big, strong boy). Much improved by the end of class, but still, no breed guarantees easy to live with.
Have you considered attending shows and sporting events or even 'meet the breed' events (when it's safe to do so, of course!) to let your husband meet different breeds and talk to their owners? I'm also someone who doesn't find labs and goldens to be my 'thing', and the risk of going this route is that you find out that neither you nor your husband really 'click' with the breed you choose, which is sad for everyone involved.
We had a young golden in our last adolescent/young adult class who was a gorgeous dog - I was a little bit in love even though I'm so not a golden person - but he had his owners at the end of their ropes because he struggled so much with arousal and getting amped up over everything in his environment (on top of being, well, a big, strong boy). Much improved by the end of class, but still, no breed guarantees easy to live with.
Have you considered attending shows and sporting events or even 'meet the breed' events (when it's safe to do so, of course!) to let your husband meet different breeds and talk to their owners? I'm also someone who doesn't find labs and goldens to be my 'thing', and the risk of going this route is that you find out that neither you nor your husband really 'click' with the breed you choose, which is sad for everyone involved.
