TRAINING OF SPORTING, ADVENTURE, COMPANION, & WORKING DOGS

When I started my business in 1992, I only trained retrievers. My focus then was on AKC field trial competition and personal gun dogs. Since then, I’ve trained dogs that were successful in both minor and major stakes in AKC field trials, all levels of Hunt Tests, and have trained hundreds of personal gun dogs for both upland, waterfowl, or a combination of both.  

Programs can be a simple as foundation obedience (to give owners the control they need to successfully hunt their dog) or as comprehensive as an advanced retriever capable of retrieving multiple marks and running blind retrieves.  

Foundation Obedience: Average: 4–6 weeks  

Foundation Retriever Program: Average 3 months  

Advanced Retriever Program: Estimate 3 to 4 months beyond foundation program 

I’ve been training pointing breeds since 1995 and countless dogs I’ve worked with have been successful in hunting a wide variety of game birds, from pheasants in the Dakotas, quail from North Carolina to Texas, and of course grouse and woodcock wherever they are found.  

Owners have also had success running dogs I’ve trained in breed specific cover dog trials, AKC Hunt Tests, and horseback field trials.  Programs range from foundation training (to give owners the control they need to safely hunt their dogs) to bird handling (dogs who are both staunch and steady to wing and shot in the training field and ready to transition to wild birds with their owners) as well as advanced bird work (on wild grouse and woodcock, both available on our 112-acre property here in Vermont).  

Pointing Dog Foundation Control Program: Estimate 6 weeks  

Pointing Dog Foundation Control and Bird Handling: 12 – 14 weeks  

Advanced Pointing Dog Work: Ongoing at owner request 

Have an interest to try a K9 team obstacle event or mud run? With 112 acres at my disposal, water crossings, and a variety of obstacles, Snowbound Kennels can give you and your dog a great foundation to enjoy these events.  

2–6 weeks depending on the targeted learning objectives for the dog. 

The companion dog market “discovered” me about 15 years ago with high levels of reliable control off-leash, at a distance, and around unexpected environmental distractions; the foundation of my sporting dog training program. Many companion dog owners now seek me out to get that same level of control with their dogs so they can hike, run, mountain bike, and let their dog safely enjoy a life off-leash (where appropriate).   

In this program, I’ll teach your dog to heel without pulling, sit around distractions and interact with other dogs and people in close proximity, all in a controllable manner. We’ll then work up to off-leash control around both expected and unexpected environmental distractions in the field, and in more urban settings, including training trips into town and businesses which allow dogs.   

Foundation Obedience: 4–8 weeks 

Working successfully with a wide variety of breeds ranging from Jack Russells to Anatolian shepherds, behavioral issues vary so much that a no charge consultation is required before I will give a time estimate helping your dog manage, overcome, or tolerate these different behaviors.

After training professionally for 30 years and having over 800 dogs in long-term training, I have hands-on experience with a variety of behavioral issues including and not limited to:

- Reactivity or aggression toward dogs and people.

- Reactivity to cars, vacuum cleaners, lawnmowers, bicycles, etc.

- Resource guarding of toys, food, and locations.

- Fear of other dogs or people.

- General in-home behavior problems such as counter surfing, destructive behavior, uncontrolled barking, jumping up on people, or other in appropriate greeting behavior.

I do not offer professional training beyond obedience in these disciplines where bite work is involved. Currently owning four Belgian Malinois and a German Shepherd, sport protection training is a great interest of mine and I enjoy meeting and working with others with the same interest at no charge.