Training America's Finest
Wildfowl and Upland Retrievers

What you'll find on this page...

Hunting Retriever Training Programs

• Introduction
• A Look at "Dog Games"
• Teach vs. Force
• Step-by-Step Building Blocks
• Training Philosophy
• Training Prices and Important Information

Other Services offered by Northern Flight Retrievers.

How to Contact Northern Flight Retrievers.

Butch Goodwin running handling drills with an exceptional Golden Retriever, MHR Custer's Montana Spirit SH

INTRODUCTION

 At Northern Flight Retrievers, our goal is to provide the most complete hunting retriever training program available; individually designed to advance your retriever and meet your specific needs. We provide solid basics for young dogs with emphasis on style and birdiness. At each level of a retriever's training we provide plenty of work on live birds. All of our dogs are trained on a variety of game birds as the level of training and need arises.

A Look at "Dog Games"

 The knowledge gained from years of practical experience of training retrievers of every breed and background for hunting, hunt tests and field trials has given us a very good insight into the strengths and weaknesses of the AKC "dog games." Although intended to represent true hunting situations, at the present time, these "field events" are at best a poor imitation of a true hunting situation (wording and italics borrowed from REGULATIONS & GUIDELINES FOR AKC HUNTING TESTS FOR RETRIEVERS). Current AKC competitive licensed field trials have totally drifted away from representing true hunting in their testing procedures and the level of sophistication of training for these events has had to follow in order to be competitive.

 When the AKC instituted their retriever hunt test program, they had a tremendous opportunity to avail almost anyone with a retriever the chance to test their dog against a predetermined standard. It allowed the weekend trainer and the guy with a great gun dog the opportunity to evaluate their retrievers' performance. Rather than these proven hunting companions who heretofore had been buried unknown and unheralded, there was now a chance to honor them. Unfortunately, the program as it was originally envisioned by it's founders has changed, and as a result we often have judges who, rather than setting up realistic hunting situations, set up watered-down field trial tests in camouflage clothing, which are solely designed to trick the dogs.

 Over the years we have had the opportunity to learn from some outstanding trainers. Many of these trainers weren't involved with retrievers. They were pointer or spaniel men who were full of good basic hunting dog knowledge. We have also had the opportunity to attend several of the hunt tests held for other hunting breeds and were, for the most part, greatly impressed by their testing and scoring procedure. We believe that current retriever hunt test sanctioning organizations should take a look at some of these other programs and consider adopting their testing ideas, rather than clinging to the archaic.

 We truly believe that strong leadership and modern thinking are needed in hunt test programs to make them a moving force in realistically evaluating a retriever's field performance, but they have a long way to go. With this in mind, Northern Flight Retrievers' primary emphasis will always be the training of hunting retrievers. Our first and foremost consideration will always be the dog and what he has been bred to do; not ribbons and trophies! We can't help but think of the words of one of the great old-time retriever men, Charles Morgan when he said that "his happiest clients were the ones whose dog would get a duck out of the back pond; the unhappiest clients were those whose dog hadn't won the Nationals!" Its a tragedy when keeping score becomes more important than playing the game!

Teaching vs. Forcing

 The training program at Northern Flight Retrievers' kennel is a full-time, modern, complete teaching program designed from the bottom up to teach the skills essential for a multi-purpose hunting retriever. This program extends all the way from solid basics and the fundamentals necessary for the started dog through the refined and polished training which is expected of the finished hunting dog. This program emphasizes dog work with birdiness and style! We deal with special real-life training related problems and situations inherent to waterfowl and upland hunting. Northern Flight Retrievers' training program is NOT based on someone else's watered-down electric collar, total compliance field trial training program being passed off as a hunting dog training program. In our program the dog is controlled without the brutality commonly seen in so many programs today.

 A dog's learning is no different from a young child's. They have to start with kindergarten type lessons (play training) and gradually build on a solid foundation until they reach a satisfactory level. All of the lessons that a finished retriever is expected to perform in the field are started at the trainer's side. If you don't have control of the dog at your side you certainly will never have control at a distance. Similarly, if you don't have a solid foundation of training and "learning to learn" everything which is built on that foundation will eventually crumble. You hear athletic coaches preach "fundamentals" and probably get tired of hearing it but training a dog is no different from coaching an athletic team. At Northern Flight Retrievers we stress a program of solid basics i.e. fundamentals.

 After you have been around training dogs for a while you will probably hear the term "force" tossed around quite a bit. "Force fetch" is a common term, as is "the forced retrieve," "force breaking," "forcing into the water," "forcing on back" and so on. All of these say the same thing: that all learning takes force -- its a matter of the degree necessary to get the desired results. Lets go back to the similarity with a child. If a youngster takes a piece of candy, having been told not to, the mother scolds the child and lets it go at that, there is very little or no force involved. Junior may think that he has gotten off relatively easy and may or may not try it again. Several years later when he takes a kid's ball glove he'll get a punch in the nose; its too bad it took him so long to learn about taking things that don't belong to him! There is some degree of force necessary in all constructive learning.

 Retrievers have to be taught in a step-by-step logical procedure which builds one block on top of another but the trainer has to be prepared to step-in and make corrections and use whatever level of force that is necessary to make the lesson understood. In other words, dogs have to be taught before they can be forced or corrected for making a mistake. It was common practice in the mid-70s thru the 80s (and continues today in some kennels) to follow an assembly line-type electric collar training program which forced a dog into submission and broke much of his spirit. As a result, many of the dogs competing in field events were seen to almost walk to the birds, which were thrown for them. These dogs lacked any style, but got the job done -- much of it out of fear!

 At Northern Flight Retrievers we pride ourselves in a great deal of patient teaching and repetition and using as little force as is possible. Sometimes this method takes a bit longer, but we believe it turns out well- trained, stylish retrievers that are not totally dependant upon the handler for directions and capable of thinking for himself when hunting out of the handler's sight. We like retrievers that run hard when sent to retrieve marks (downed birds) and come back quickly. We also pride ourselves on dogs that run hard on blind retrieves and keep their momentum going until stopped by a whistle and cast in another direction. Dogs that are taught to hunt a field for flushing birds should "get in" and dig the birds out of cover but be under control when the bird flushes.

The Step by Step Building Blocks of Training

 The Northern Flight Retrievers training program is really a step-by-step sequence in which your retriever is advanced from obedience through basic lining and casting. The usual length of time required to reach this level is three to five months but this can vary depending on successful previous training and the dog's natural retrieving intensity and desire.

 We think it is important to mention that it is to the client's advantage to do as much early training as is possible before sending the dog for hunting retriever training. To better explain this, we have rewritten below what we printed in a section of another of our Web pages entitled, "Selection of a Puppy - Early Training."

 Early training before being sent to our kennel for hunting retriever training is ESSENTIAL. And, regardless of how well bred the pup is, inadequate early training can override all of his outstanding genetic traits. Unfortunately, we see a great many dogs, which have had little or no previous exposure to training. If only the owners had taken the time to expose their pups to a greater variety of environmental situations, we wouldn't have to take the time that we could be spending training their dog, trying to coax them thru a "puppy problem."

 There are no better books on the market which deal with early training for the retriever pup than, HEY PUP, FETCH IT UP by Bill Tarrant (this is the bible for the early training and socialization of retrievers) and TRAINING THE HUNTING RETRIEVER, THE NEW PROGRAM by Bill Tarrant (not as much depth on early training but a wealth of information about how to develop a well-trained retriever).

 Pre-obedience learning of retrieving games is of utmost importance. Retrieving with a ball is a good way to start, we like to use a racket ball rather than a tennis ball as it is smaller and more difficult to destroy. Later we like to switch to a fuzzy paint roller as it approximates a dog bumper. It is a good idea to start this in a narrow hallway with all the doors to the rooms closed so that the pup is forced to return to you as there is no other way to escape. Use only a carpeted hall if possible as you don't want the pup slipping and sliding and injuring still forming joints. This and all training at this age has to be fun and extremely short in duration. A pups' attention span is extremely short and two or three retrieves may be his limit. When the pup returns down the hall to escape with his "prize" don't grab at the retrieving toy. Scoop the pup up and praise him lavishly for being so wonderful. Eventually he will release the toy and you can get his attention and throw it again.

 As the pup gets older, we like to switch to bird wings (pigeon, duck or pheasant) and then gradually introduce dead birds and then live pigeons. We use pigeons with puppies because they are readily available, cheap and relatively benign. We don't mind using some of the larger game birds for older pups to retrieve but of beware rooster pheasants with inexperienced dogs. Live ducks and pheasants can injure a pup and cause problems, which could last throughout his lifetime.

 Learning to swim and not fear water is essential for a retriever. You laugh at this statement and it may be hard to imagine but, fully one third of the dogs that we get in for training either don't know how to swim or are apprehensive about water. Again, this is something that needs to be addressed in play training and preferably with "Mama" and the pup's littermates. . Competition between siblings works wonders. If you don't have the luxury of littermates and "Mama" you need to don shorts or waders and take the pup into swimming water, support him under his belly and hold him by the tail and allow him to swim to a helper on shore.

 At six to seven weeks of age it is possible to begin teaching basic commands such as "sit" and "here" or "come." This is also the time when pup should be taught his name and begin housebreaking.

 Housebreaking is the first form of real obedience that a pup should receive. We like to use a crate to teach housebreaking. The crate becomes their home and safe place and as they grow they feel comfortable riding and sleeping in their crate. But one note here, don't buy a puppy crate, get one big enough for an adult dog (a #300 or #400 Vari-Kennel is about right) as they outgrow the puppy size before you pay the charge card bill! There are many books out there on how to housebreak, so we won't cover it here.

 Serious obedience training can start as soon as three months of age but we prefer to allow our Chesapeake puppies to be puppies and try to hold off on any training that isn't play related until they are older. There is plenty of time in their life to get serious, let them enjoy their childhood and discover what's out in the big world first. During this time period, however, we put them in our bird pen and take them on walks and expose them to as many birds as is possible.

 We also like to take our pups along hunting as soon as possible, if the weather and their experience with guns and noise will allow. Yes, they can be a pain in the neck sometimes but you will thank yourself for years to come for taking them. They seem to be able to learn a lot from older trained and experienced dogs. Just know the older dogs that are going and leave the aggressive or possessive ones at home, you don't want to see your pup get hurt.

 We like to have a dog at our kennel to start training as close to it's six-month birthday as possible. We also like to make sure that the pup has lost its baby teeth and is well on its way to having its adult teeth. Please don't believe that if you have an older dog in need of training, that you are too late. That simply isn't the case. Older dogs respond quite well to hunting retriever training although sometimes it takes a bit longer to de-program them before you can re-program them. A great deal depends on how well they have "learned to learn" and what lessons they were taught when they were younger.

 Training a retriever is no different from building a house or coaching an athletic team in that it must be done incrementally and in a step by step manner. First the hole must be dug and the foundation poured and then the framing or blocks must be put in place. Likewise, just like coaching any sport beyond the elementary school level, these fundamentals must be taught incrementally. In order build a solid foundation and to guarantee that at some point the "structure" doesn't crumble, we spend all or most of the first month of training on the dog's fundamental obedience. This is obedience that is specifically designed for a gun dog. It is similar to obedience learned for the obedience show ring but each have their own specializations. A dog that has been through an outside obedience training program may be able to get through what is normally required from the first month's training in a much shorter time however, gun dog obedience goes beyond what is learned at the park or in an obedience class.

 The first month teaches, "here" to come when called; "heel" along side of the handler on and off of a lead including left and right turns utilizing the verbal commands, "heel" and here" for left and right turns; "sit" and beginning "sit" on one blast on a whistle ;"sit" in front of the handler and come to the "heel" position; "sit" and remain sitting at any distance from the handler and to watch the handler's movements; beginning to learn to move left and right with handler's movements while remaining at the "sit at heel" position. At this point the dog is taught to "hold" a dog bumper (retrieving dummy) and go thru all of the aforementioned obedience drills while holding a bumper.

 All the while that the dog is being taught the above obedience, he is given hand-thrown puppy marks with bumpers, dead birds and live clip-wing birds and acquainted with gunshots at varying distances. This is also the time that he is taught the release command, "ok." A release command is extremely important, especially for young dogs.

 The second month of training consists of reinforcing the "hold" command and teaching "force fetch." We wish that the term "force fetch" was changed to "conditioned retrieve." The term "force fetch" comes from the pointer trainers who, generally, have to force a dog to fetch bumpers or birds. These breeds are not natural retrievers and, generally, if a hunter wants his pointing dog to hunt for and retrieve his birds after they are shot, the pointer has to be taught to hunt for and forced to retrieve dead birds.

 Retrievers, generally, don't have to be forced to retrieve. They are conditioned to retrieve on command and deliver birds to hand. "Force fetch" is the foundation for all training which comes from this point forward. It is like a "springboard" to the training that follows. It conditions the dog to retrieve any birds or bumpers which are shot or thrown for him, pick them up gently and deliver the birds to the handler. Up until this point in time a dog retrieves because his genes tell him to retrieve for himself, suddenly he is taught that he is retrieving for the human. "Force Fetch" or the "Conditioned Retrieve" turns the "wanna retrieve" into "gotta retrieve."

 Please don't be so naive as to believe what has been written in some retriever training books and magazine articles, that "force fetch" is unnecessary and brutal. In some isolated cases it can be unnecessary and, the way some trainers do it, it can be brutal. We would refer you to Bill Tarrant's books, HEY PUP, FETCH IT UP or TRAINING THE HUNTING RETRIEVER, THE NEW PROGRAM for the definitive judgment on whether "force fetch" is necessary or brutal. At Northern Flight Retrievers we teach "force fetch" as described in Mr. Tarrant's books.

 We like to plan that a thorough course of "force fetch" takes at least a minimum of one month to complete. We have "force fetched" dogs in as little as a week. We have worked on some dogs for two months and still wondered if they were finished. Much depends on the dog's intensity, desire to retrieve and carry objects and early training. If you are interested in discussing this, we would suggest that you please don't hesitate to e-mail us. We would be happy to discuss it with you and suggest early training drills which could make "force fetch" much easier for us to teach and your dog to learn when he comes in for training.

"Bomber" was one tough Chesapeake. He was a Canada Goose specialist! Read about "Bomber" in the article "ALL IN A DAY'S WORK"

 Month three is, perhaps, the most important month in a retriever's training. The dog has been through a program of "force fetch" and understands what his "job" is; this is the time to develop the teamwork necessary to make it work. If you have ever watched a football team practice, you see each group practicing at what they will have to do in a game. They do not practice by playing football. Each group works on fundamentals day in and day out. Then when the coach is satisfied with each group's grasp of what has been practiced, they have a scrimmage to put it all together. You can't expect to win on Sunday afternoon if you don't have a grasp of the basics or put all that you've learned together. Month three is the time to begin to put everything "together" for the dog.

 The third month is also the time when we begin to "steady" the dog so that he will sit still while birds are being shot. Many clients ask the question why we wait until the third month to steady a dog. The reasoning is, the dog has been "force fetched" and many dogs get the feeling when being "steadied" that you don't want them to retrieve the thrown or shot birds at all. We have the "fetch" command to fall back on to make them retrieve the birds and they know they must do it! Another reason for waiting is that it is very easy to take the retrieving desire out of a young, untrained dog with too much steadying pressure too soon and it can be difficult or impossible to put back.

 This is also when we begin teaching basic "handling" (taking hand signals or casts). Again, after the dog has been "force fetched," he can be taught, through a sequence of drills, to run for birds that he hasn't seen fall (line running) and take casts to change his direction. Remember in the first month we were teaching "sit" on one blast on a whistle at the trainer's side? This is extended into the field in order to stop the dog and have them sit and look so that he can be cast in a different direction. Just like the football team practice, all of these things are taught in separate incidents and subsequently put together to run a "blind retrieve."

 If an owner is more interested in hunting flushing birds than waterfowl, we address hunting a field and being steady to a flush during this same third month of training.

 At the same time we begin teaching multiple marks (two and later three birds thrown in sequence) and addressing any problems which may have arisen. After a month or so of developing lining and casting and with a good dose of marks, we feel confident at this point that the dog can go back to the owner and be a reliable hunting companion. But wait a minute, what about the owner? Now the dog is smarter than the owner!

 We like to have the owners come and spend at least one day learning to handle their dog and learning what to do to continue developing his training. Spending several partial days is actually better but sometimes that is difficult. We had one owner who drove to Idaho twice in 1994 from Maryland, once to work with his dog and again to work with him and take him home. We also had an owner from Florida who sent his pilot and airplane to pick up his dog after training! We had to spend the time training the pilot in hopes that he would subsequently train the dog's owner! Since many of the dogs that we get to train come from all corners of the United States, we understand that it is expensive and time consuming to come to Idaho to learn to handle your dog but it is a very necessary part of the training process.

From Canada Geese to Quail, a well trained, multi-purpose retriever can handle it all! "Gittum" proudly displays an early season Wood Duck.

Training Philosophy

 We have always approached every dog we've trained with the same philosophy that you would if you were training your own dog: "this is my dog 'for better or worse' and I'm going to do the best I can with what I have to work with." If he doesn't work within the program -- we modify the program, not 'wash' him out.

 We are in this business because we love dogs and enjoy watching good dogs work. We love to watch all breeds of dogs that hit the ground doing what they were bred to do; loving their work and using their natural instincts, not because they've been brutalized into submission.

Training Prices and Important Information

We request that everyone sending a dog for training be dedicated to allowing us ample opportunity to complete the training which you expect. Just like humans, not all dogs are superstars. We have been forced to send dogs home inadequately trained in the past for any number of reasons ranging from: the owner couldn't afford the training, the kids missed their dog or because the dog's training was only considered important at the last minute just before the hunting season opened. Please afford us the opportunity to at least complete the dog's foundational training and consider that there may be unexpected training problems that may have to be overcome. 

Like building a house, a dog's foundational training has to be in place and solid before the structure can be built. We consider that three months is about a bare minimum for a solid training foundation and we would request that you plan for that length of time before making a reservation for sending your dog for training. We will let you know if problems arise and you are certainly welcome to call and discuss your dog's progress. We ask that you show the same consideration and, if you think that there will likely be problems of any sort, that you not waste your money by only allowing us the time to do a "patchy" job of your dog's training. 

*Should you decide that you want to send your retriever for training - please 
read the following: 

Make sure that your dog has had his complete series of shots at least 14 days prior to his arrival at Northern Flight Retrievers' kennel. These shots should include: distemper, parvo, corona, leptospirosis, parainfluenza, adenovirus type 1 & 2, bordatella and rabies. We like to suggest a heartworm test and prevention medication and will give the medication if it is sent along at the time that the dog is sent. 

It is important that your dog has been exposed to water and knows how to swim. It is valuable to give your dog all of the swimming experience possible before sending him. 

Remember, with the exception of dogs which we have previously trained and are sent to our kennel for a "tune up," we like to take dogs for training for a minimum of three months as described above. We reserve the right to send home any dog after one month's evaluation that we deem unacceptable. There are too many good dogs who want to do the work. We will make an attempt to "fix" almost any training problem but won't waste our time and your money on a dog which has serious temperament problems or really has no retrieving desire or doesn't want to cooperate. 

At this time we charge $600.00 per month for training ($500.00 for dogs from 
our breedings) and require the first month's fee at the time that the RESERVATION is made for the dog's training. This assures you that we will have an open kennel available for your dog. We accept reservations on a "first come - first served" basis. We will only take ten dogs each month for training and our kennel is usually filled to capacity most months from March through November. We will hold the kennel space for a period of two weeks after the date we have agreed upon, after that time we will fill it with the next available dog in line and you will have to make another reservation for a later available date. (BE AWARE of the possibility of the airlines imposing an embargo on flying dogs during hot weather when making your plans to send your dog. Dogs flying-in should be flown to the Boise, Idaho airport) The first month's fee is treated as a deposit to make sure that space is available and will not be refunded but will apply in-full as payment toward the first month of your dog's training when he arrives. Each subsequent month's training fees will be due in forthcoming months on or about the anniversary day of your dog's arrival. 

All pigeons used for training are included in the monthly training fee. Ducks, pheasants and chukars are charged according to the price that we have to pay for them. We will not use these birds for training nor bill for these birds without permission from you for their use and your understanding of their costs ahead of time. In addition, we have a very unique opportunity for training for upland hunting from September through mid-April. Our kennel is located in very close proximity to a fine 1000 acre private hunting club with extremes of varied terrain and cover. Everything from tangled river bottoms to corn rows and alfalfa fields are available for working a dog on pheasants 
and chukars. We pay only $15.00 per pheasant or chukar with a minimum of $75.00 worth of birds per hunt. The manager of the club will allow us to plant the birds ourselves, as we see fit, for the purposes of training our dogs. Please consider this as an outstanding enhancement to your dog's training. A few days spent hunting the club's property on these planted birds can really "turn on" a dog. 

Please email. if you have any questions about sending a dog for training. 

If you would like "how-to" training information or if you are considering a retriever pup of any breed, you need to read Butch Goodwin's book or CD, Retrievers ... From The Inside, Out and his articles from Retriever Journal magazine that are available on this website.

Click here for complete details about 
"Retrievers ... From The Inside, Out"

Other Services at Northern Flight Retrievers:

  Although we train all retriever breeds, on occasion Chesapeake Bay Retriever pups from FC-AFC and Master Hunter lines are available. Our dogs are proven hunting stock. Click here for more information on our breeding program.

You may also write us at:
Northern Flight Retrievers
4965 Freemont Road
New Plymouth, Idaho 83655

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