Oak ridge kennel
- Thread starter mnydir
- Start date
westksbowhunter
Well-known member
How old is the puppy and what is the goal she is wanting to achieve with the dog through training?
westksbowhunter
Well-known member
Well I would wait til the dog was 6-7 months old then get her into a quality trainer for a 3-4 month long program. She will want a dog that is CC, OB, FF, and introduced to hunting situations. The two I would recommend are below.
Holzinger Kennels - home
Former Cashzinger Kennels Stud Dogs Minnesota Horse & Hunt Club British Labradors Puppies Pointing Gun Dogs Minnesota Retrievers Labs Pointing Labradors Hunting Dogs AKC Waterfowl Dogs Upland Dogs APLA Stud Dogs APLA Puppies APLA Labradors Tournament Hunting Tournament Training Waterfowl Hunting...
www.holzingerkennels.com
Munster927
Well-known member
I sent my Small Munsterlander there for their Bird and Gun intro and thought it was a worthy investment for the price. I didn't do any additional training with them as I did everything else in my own. I mostly sent mine there because it was in the winter and getting birds for training was difficult compounded with the fact I live in the burbs, I didn't want to wait another 4 months for spring to get her around birds.
The bird and gun intro is pretty basic, but again, for a young dog, it's all they need at the time. Bird contact and gun intro. She came home and was retrieving (not finished of course) and had more contact with birds in that 2 weeks than I would have been able to provide the entire winter.
Mines a pointer, but the basics they were doing with her that they showed me was having a bird in a launcher or wings clipped, wait until she pointed it, launched the bird, shot a blank, and let her go retrieve it.
The point wasn't to finish anything, so very minimal in the way of commands, but good exposure nonetheless and I'll likely do it for my next pup.
The bird and gun intro is pretty basic, but again, for a young dog, it's all they need at the time. Bird contact and gun intro. She came home and was retrieving (not finished of course) and had more contact with birds in that 2 weeks than I would have been able to provide the entire winter.
Mines a pointer, but the basics they were doing with her that they showed me was having a bird in a launcher or wings clipped, wait until she pointed it, launched the bird, shot a blank, and let her go retrieve it.
The point wasn't to finish anything, so very minimal in the way of commands, but good exposure nonetheless and I'll likely do it for my next pup.
gimruis
Well-known member
I did the same with my dog about almost 11 years ago now. I used Cannon River Kennels in Randolph. Basic obedience, gun training, and bird training for 2 weeks. It was a worthy investment for me. I too live in a suburb so firing off a firearm within city limits would bring in the police. There's only so much I can in my own yard. Beyond that, she caught on pretty quick to what we were doing out there. I sent her there in September and she was born in February, so about 6 months old.
Is that not Tom Dokkens place?
Hunt1GSP
Active member
I am hoping to get a pup this year,
What’s the going rate for the two weeks, if I may ask?
Gatzby
Well-known member
They don't have a bad reputation, but also aren't known for being that good either. Tom was an ok trainer but is a marketing guy.... Your pup will be trained by an employee with the best dogs going to the most senior trainer not necessarily the best trainer. Usually the good trainers move on and hang their own shingle.
X 10…Dokken is a marketing expert..proving P.T. Barnum correct..with his dummies ect.
Never Was a top level trainer..ie.. Rorem Farmer Stawski ect.
goldenboy
Well-known member
My recommendation is Dynamic Retrievers with Tim and Lauren Springer. They do the training and they teach you how to handle and work with your dog. Very hands on, very good with each individual temperment of each dog. I raise Goldens and have them train my personal dogs. They have done really well with many of my clients dogs.
Gatzby
Well-known member
This is good advice!!
agraham20
Active member
I will throw out a few names as well.
Adam Bally with Ballys Gun dogs, and
Rob Ramer with Whitewater Retrievers. Both are excellent and include the owner in the training process as well.
Based on this being a pheasant hunting forum, make sure whatever trainer you sign on with does some upland training if your main interest is pheasant hunting. Some of the prior names on the list specialize in hunt test and field trial training, and may not include basic upland training such as quartering, flushing, and range.
Is the golden coming from field lines or show lines?
Adam Bally with Ballys Gun dogs, and
Rob Ramer with Whitewater Retrievers. Both are excellent and include the owner in the training process as well.
Based on this being a pheasant hunting forum, make sure whatever trainer you sign on with does some upland training if your main interest is pheasant hunting. Some of the prior names on the list specialize in hunt test and field trial training, and may not include basic upland training such as quartering, flushing, and range.
Is the golden coming from field lines or show lines?
westksbowhunter
Well-known member
I would agree with Rob Ramer and the comments on upland training. His dogs come from Holzingers breeding.
agraham20
Active member
Rob is a close friend of mine and lives just a few mins away from me. He trains a wide variety of breeds and is soft enough to handle a softer golden. Everyone I have sent his way has been very pleased with the results. Another good trainer closer to the cities if that is where the poster is from would be Mike Peterson with Chasing the Gold Kennels.
I think that’s are a lot of good options out there!
Bob Peters
Well-known member
Story time,
Two years ago at game fair (a large outdoor hunting "show" concerning all things duck and upland hunting in Anoka, MN) Tom Dokken was giving a seminar that me and some buddies attended. He had given his young black lab the sit command on a place board and was talking to the audience with the dog behind him. A short time passed and he turned around and the dog was gone
. Tom asked, "where'd he go?" to all of us. We really thought it was a joke or all part of the act. Then as he kept looking around it dawned on me that he really lost his dog
. He called out for him and then proceeded to shock him a few times, when we all heard a loud yelp 80 yards away in some cattails near the pond.
Once I got invited to a hunt, err uhh, "preserve shoot" by a rich guy(through marriage). His lab trained at Oak Ridge never flushed or retrieved a bird(now I don't blame her, she was a sweet dog). He never hit anything, and he got his jacked up truck stuck at field entrance on a game farm
.
I don't know Tom and I'm sure he's done a lot of good things for our sport and knows more about dogs than I do. I just wanted to share a few tales after seeing this thread.
Two years ago at game fair (a large outdoor hunting "show" concerning all things duck and upland hunting in Anoka, MN) Tom Dokken was giving a seminar that me and some buddies attended. He had given his young black lab the sit command on a place board and was talking to the audience with the dog behind him. A short time passed and he turned around and the dog was gone
. Tom asked, "where'd he go?" to all of us. We really thought it was a joke or all part of the act. Then as he kept looking around it dawned on me that he really lost his dog. He called out for him and then proceeded to shock him a few times, when we all heard a loud yelp 80 yards away in some cattails near the pond.Once I got invited to a hunt, err uhh, "preserve shoot" by a rich guy(through marriage). His lab trained at Oak Ridge never flushed or retrieved a bird(now I don't blame her, she was a sweet dog). He never hit anything, and he got his jacked up truck stuck at field entrance on a game farm
.I don't know Tom and I'm sure he's done a lot of good things for our sport and knows more about dogs than I do. I just wanted to share a few tales after seeing this thread.