Imperial Retrievers

04/21/2023

Seventeen days old. It's around this time that puppies begin to show their personalities. More fun to come in the weeks ahead.

04/17/2023

Missing this guy today on his birthday. Not the same without you in the blind, Kev.

04/14/2023

Ten days old and growing. These little guys are mobile!

04/10/2023

HRCH UH Petty x HRCH Barbie pups. Six days old and doing great!

03/22/2023

A big "Thank-You" to Ainley Kennels & Fabrication for the wonderful workmanship and customer service. It's been well worth the wait, and we couldn't be happier with the finished product.

03/10/2023

I found out today that there is a Bill going through the senate that could potentially negatively affect our group and others like it. I will paste the description:
Synopsis As Introduced
Creates the Dog Training Licensure Act. Defines terms. Creates the Dog Training Licensure Board. Provides for the authority and duties of the Board. Provides that no person shall practice, attempt to practice, or hold oneself out as being able to practice dog training in this State unless such person is licensed in accordance with the Act, holds a provisional permit in accordance with the Act, or is a licensed professional in a related field who holds and advanced degree or certification deemed by the Board to be equivalent to the certification in dog training issued by approved certification programs. Provides for: licensure requirements; provisional permits; license and permit duration, fees, and means of instruction; practice by out-of-state practitioners; complaints and discipline; restriction on liability, information handling; and penalties for unauthorized practice, fraud, and harm to animals. Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act to make a conforming change. Effective immediately.
This is SB1372 Please look at this and let your Senator know your wishes on this and help spread the word.

I strongly urge you to review the wording of this bill. It will have a serious negative impact on our industry here in the state of Illinois.

01/31/2023

Mia is an intact Black Labrador female that loves to work. She's been through our Started and Seasoned Gundog Training Programs. She's extremely sociable and gets along great with other dogs. I have hunted Mia extensively this past waterfowl season. She is cold-water tolerant, handles cripples, and doesn't mind digging birds out of heavy cover. She is a pleasure to hunt with as well. Mia has been hunted primarily from a dog stand, but has been trained to work out of both blinds and pits. She has also been trained to ride on a kayak. Mia is currently up for adoption to the right home.

12/19/2022

We've had several requests for pictures of the Petty x Carly litter, so here are the four amigos at 12 days of age.

12/10/2022

Whiskey trying her best to blend in with the surroundings, and doing a pretty good job!

10/10/2022

Thank you Tennessee River HRC for another successful hunt test weekend. We'd like to introduce three new titled dogs from the weekend. First, Remi earned her Hunting Retriever title on Saturday. On Sunday, both Buddy and Cooper earned their Hunting Retriever Champion titles. We're very proud of these three dogs, and grateful to their respective owners for trusting us with their companions.

07/30/2022

Celebrating the life of Imperials Josie's on a Vacation of Kopmeier. She was the first UK-bred Lab we'd owned, and she taught us as much as we taught her. She was an exceptional waterfowl retriever, British FT competitor, and member of the family. She will be missed.

07/24/2022

The new website is up and running. Still tweaking a few things, but give me some feedback if you see any issues.

05/17/2022

Introducing HRCH Imperial's Midnight Lucy. "Lulu" went 2 for 2 this past weekend at Gun Creek HRC, achieving her Hunting Retriever Champion title. Well-deserved for a very special girl. Lucy is the FIFTH PUP from a litter of seven to achieve her HRCH. Let that sink in for a moment.

05/16/2022

Another great test weekend for Gun Creek HRC!

04/27/2022

Congratulations to HRCH Imperials Notorious Midnite Man (aka Buddy) on earning his Champion title at Tri-State this past weekend. Thanks to Mike and Carmen Dammerman for your support throughout the process.

03/21/2022

Just wanted to thank H2O Imaging for the fantastic job done on my Affinity. The original Max 5 finish had become worn and shiny in sunlight, and it needed professional attention. I decided on Bottomland camo with a Cerakote finish for the barrel and receiver. I couldn't be happier with the finished product and would recommend this business if you're looking to freshen up your long gun, pistol, bow or just about anything else you can come up with.

03/13/2022

Wishing a happy retirement to our girl HR Midnight Mattye of Cornerstone. Mattye came to us at roughly a year of age, and we immediately recognized her potential contributions to our program. Mattye achieved her Hunting Retriever title in 2016. In January of 2017, she whelped her first of four litters totaling 31 pups. Of those puppies, three from her second litter have achieved Hunting Retriever Champion titles (two others are just a few passes away) with several of the younger pups in advanced training. Her final litter was whelped on January 13th of this year. We look forward to training several of them to upper-level titles in due time. These days, Mattye enjoys time either in front of the fireplace or in the recliner with me. She's a good one, and we're proud to call her an Imperial Retriever. We love you, Mattye!

01/27/2022

Fat and sassy!

01/13/2022

Title plaques from the Gun Creek HRC 2021 Christmas Party.

01/07/2022

HR Imperial's Flirtin' with Disaster (Molly) on point, as usual.

01/01/2022

Here's a great podcast from Delta Waterfowl, discussing cold-weather hunting with your gundog. It's definitely worth a listen.
https://tunein.com/podcasts/Science-Podcasts/Delta-Waterfowl-Podcast-p1313407/?topicId=168741856

Delta Waterfowl Foundation's official podcast. Discussing all things ducks, duck hunters, and conservation.

12/29/2021

HRCH UH Imperials Notorious, in his element.

12/01/2021

Imperials Have a Drink on Me (Whiskey) enjoyed her first hunt this morning, and did so with style. How about a Pintail drake for your first ever retrieve? I would say that is a great way to start her career.

10/19/2021

With our 2021 Fall Hunt Test season behind us, I always enjoy going back and reviewing our numbers. From mid-September through mid-October, we've run 52 tests in all three stakes. Of the 52, we passed 44 tests, for a pass rate of 84%. The majority were Finished tests, and all but one of our Finished dogs had NEVER run a Finished test previously. We closed out with two SHR titles (Started), four HR titles (Seasoned), and five HRCH (Finished) titles. Thank you to our clients for trusting us with their retrievers, and to the judges and clubs for spending their weekends working to make their events a success.