Do you like to hunt ducks or doves with your dog? There is nothing more satisfying than doing that with a well trained retriever. At Dog Years, we are here to develop your retriever into a steady and dependable hunting dog, one that will sit quietly until released to retrieve, and retrieve your game properly and enthusiastically once released.

As with any dog, the proper foundation for this work is obedience. Your dog will first be trained to be rock solid on Heel, Sit, and Come. After that we will thoroughly instill a trained retrieve through a gentle and consistent method of force fetching. Your dog will be trained on basic marks on land and water, and will be steadied to shot.

Depending on your dog’s level of experience and your specific goals, this training can be expected to take between two and three months. If you desire more advanced work, such as blind retrieves from the water, it may take longer.

Also, this type of retrieving training is applicable to Versatile dogs, Advanced Obedience competitors, and Schutzhund trials.

TESTIMONIAL
I wanted a solid duck dog that did not embarrass me in front of my hunting buddies. This same dog had to be a loving pet for a family with 1 year old twins. Realistically, this is all the majority of Duck Hunters require and Kirk succeeded wonderfully on all counts. Kirk has worked with 2 of my labs; Toby an 11 year old, and Bailey, a new addition who is now 2yrs old. With Toby, I asked Kirk to give him the refresher course before the season. Toby was well trained at one time but his owner neglected to work with him in the off season focusing more on his role as family pet. In a couple of weeks Kirk had brought to the surface all the skills Toby had locked away and we went on to have one of our best seasons.

With Bailey it was completely different. Bailey moved into the family at 6 weeks old and I took him to Kirk at 9 months. Bailey needed soup to nuts. All the discipline that makes a great family pet and I wanted his skill set to be just short of what a full time field trial dog requires. Kirk was amazing. In three months Bailey was a lean mean hunting machine. Kirk was very user friendly during the whole process, as I came out to the Kennel often and Kirk was forever patient. His facilities are top notch. He keeps his Kennel spotless and remained patient with all my questions. Important to me was that Kirk understood what I wanted and what I ultimately wanted the dog to do. He succeeded on every count.

I give Kirk my highest endorsement, whether you need basic obedience for the family pet or have the next Iam’s Field Trial Champion.
- William French