Horizon Retrievers

10/30/2024

| Mia |

Companion Obedience Graduate

Oh Miss Mia! This silly girl made for an entertaining few weeks! It’s been fun to see her enjoy her new off-leash freedom and settle into structured that she craved.

10/29/2024

Drake went home today after spending the last 3 weeks with me for the final touches on his formal retrieve! Melissa did a great job with his foundation and just needed some help with access to live game before hunting season. The last three weeks we worked with everything from pigeons to dead ducks and live quail and he did super! He’s a heck of a little pointing dog and with the final pieces of the retrieve, he’s set to gave a bang up hunting season! I just wish we lived close enough to hunt together regularly 😭.
Thanks, , for making the awful drive down from Pennsylvania and trusting me with Drake! Miss you guys already 😭💔.

10/18/2024

Have you heard?? I started a podcast 🎉

Talk Birdie to Me: Bird Dog Banter with Emily

Now available on Apple and Spotify podcasts! Tune in for discussions on hunting, training, dog health and wellness, some controversial conversations, and of course, bird dogs!

10/16/2024

Just one more sleep!

One of my favorite photos from last season.

📸

10/04/2024

When Amy first contacted me she told me she was taking her dog, Jett, to Canada at the end of September and wanted her ready for that. We set up a plan that went like:

4 weeks with me in March for basic obedience, bird and gun introduction, and some marks
April through July: Amy started a formal retrieve program following my Patreon
4 weeks with me in August to wrap up formal retrieve and establish steadiness
Using September to put everything together

They just got back from Canada and absolutely killed it! How amazing to see Jett put in such great work! It’s been SUCH a treat to see Jett progress this year and have such an incredible experience in Canada. I have seen few people be as dedicated to their dog as Amy and I love, love, love seeing that pay off for her in Canada.

Not to mention she ran Jett in their first hunt tests last month and went 4/4 in started in earned their SHR title!

So, so proud of these two and so excited to see what comes next! Excellent work, my friend! .dunn106

09/17/2024

I understand the value of a dog that is just as great in the home as they are in the field. In this 4 week program for dogs 7+ months old, your dog will join my pack in my home for daily basic obedience, as well as field work. This program is designed to give you the companion gundog of your dreams!

This program is open to pointing and flushing dogs for upland or waterfowl. For more information, please visit my website horizonretrievers.com or reach out to me at [email protected]

09/15/2024

| Skipper |

Companion Obedience Program Graduate

I am so incredibly proud of the progress Skipper made over the past three weeks! Skipper made some big, positive changes in his confidence and biddability. I know his family is so excited to get him home with the tools to do so many fun activities with him!

09/07/2024

September makes 5 years of business! Starting a small business on my own right before Covid was intimidating and overwhelming at times, but here we are five years later! Thanks to everyone who has trusted me with their dog, referred me to friends, and to everyone who has supported me along the way. Thanks to family and friends who understand and accept that I will forever be showing up everywhere with a bunch of dogs 😂. This lifestyle isn’t for everyone, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I look forward to all of the families and pups I get the pleasure of working with in the future!

08/28/2024

At Horizon Retrievers, we strive to build the ideal companion dog. There’s nothing more enjoyable than spending your life with your best friend by your side. Whether that’s a relaxed walk in the park, hanging out at your favorite dog-friendly coffee shop, or enjoying a meal together on the patio of a local restaurant, a well-behaved pup makes for the best company. My dogs are an integral part of my family, so my training programs are designed to empower owners to enjoy their dogs to the fullest.

This 3 week program is designed to give you the freedom and enjoyment that comes from a well-trained dog!

This program includes a reliable recall, sit, down, place, duration work (staying in a command for a duration with distractions such as people and dogs) and heel. We will be proofing obedience at home and in a variety of other locations so that you feel confident in handling your dog outside of the home, as well. You can expect a calm, manageable dog in your home and pleasant heel walks with no more pulling!

For more information, please reach out at (336) 223-3647 or [email protected]

Photo featuring Companion Obedience Graduate, Hicket

08/24/2024

| Lanka |

This sweet girl spend the last week with me while was on vacation! Lanka has been a SUPER puppy; a clear reflection of the time and effort put forth by her breeder and owner. She’s been so very easy in her crate, in the Xpen and being back tied. She did really well with potty training and sleeping through the night. She’s confident, bold, friendly, outgoing, environmentally stable and incredibly independent. If you know Terry Ann, you know she has been very patient in hunting for the right breeder/litter/puppy and I am so excited for her that Lanka is such a nice puppy. I have no doubt that they’re going to do big, big things together and look forward to seeing it 🤩.

08/21/2024

08/20/2024

| Jesse |

Companion Obedience Program Graduate

Jesse is SUCH a gem, just the very best boy. It was such a pleasure to spend a few weeks with him! I am so thrilled that he can now be off leash with his family in the mountains and enjoy his life to the fullest; he certainly deserves it! We can’t wait to have this sweet boy back for boarding soon 🤩.

08/17/2024

| Malli |

Early Bird Puppy Program Graduate

As part of Malli’s Early Bird Program, here are some things we’ve covered the past two weeks:

✅ crating overnight and throughout the day, in a variety of locations (including multiple vehicles)
✅ working on potty training
✅ introduced to 15+ dogs
✅ met many new people
✅ visited multiple new locations
✅ observed a variety of people, dogs, strollers, bikes, farm animals, etc.
✅ spent time on and off leash
✅ introduction to a marker system (clicker, yes, and get it)
✅ introduction to luring, reserve luring and shaping concepts
✅ learning her name, sit, place and down
✅ had her nails clipped
✅ spent time in the Xpen and being back tied
✅ experienced a variety of textures, sounds, and novel objects
✅ introduction to live birds (pigeons)

This cutie is one smart cookie and had a busy, fulfilling two weeks!

08/11/2024

| Jett |

Today we sent Jetters home after completing her second month of training with me. Jett spent a month with me earlier this year for bird and gun intro plus obedience, then spent the summer working through my Patreon formal retrieve program with her owner, Amy. Amy did an incredible job with her foundation retrieve work, setting us up for success to really cruise through a variety of skills. This past month we made the ground transition, went through everything from walking fetch to pile work, casting and pattern blinds. We also touched on steadiness, honoring, and proofing her hold with a variety of game birds. I am incredibly proud of the progress we’ve made and am so excited for Amy to get her back to continue! It has been such a treat to get to spend so much time with Jett and to get to know and work with Amy. They’ve got a lot of fun adventures planned this season and I am so excited for them both! Thanks to Amy for trusting me with Jett and making the effort to bring her down from Pennsylvania twice!

08/09/2024

Many people are ✨shocked✨ to see that my dogs aren’t super dog-friendly. They’re a dog trainer’s dog, how can they be so mean?

“Mean” because they don’t run up to other dogs, mean because they aren’t dying to meet your dog, mean because they don’t tolerate inappropriate behavior..

To me, they’re an example of dogs with healthy boundaries and relationships to others. It seems to be the “norm” for a lot of dog owners to expect other dogs to tolerate all of their own dog’s behavior. If your child was being harassed by another child, would you tell them to tolerate it? Of course not; we would intervene and the same should be happening for our dogs.

Any inappropriate behavior (posturing, face licking, jumping, excessive sniffing), or really any behavior that makes the receiving dog uncomfortable, should be interrupted or punished.

This can happen in two ways: we intervene which is the preferred method. If your puppy is face-licking your older dog and your older dog isn’t enjoying it/is trying to get away, etc, it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to remove the puppy from the older dog. We should not except any dog to tolerate annoying behavior and we certainly don’t want to raise our puppies to continue this. Or if your male dog is excessively sniffing a female dog to the point she’s uncomfortable, you can interrupt or punish that with a “no,” a nick on the ecollar, separating them, etc. It is your responsibility to manage your own dog and advocate for others.

The other option is to allow the receiving dog to correct the inappropriate dog, but this is rarely efficient and should only happen under very strict circumstances. We never want to allow a dog we don’t know to correct our dog. There’s a good chance they won’t, which will teach tolerance, and there’s an equally good chance they will overcorrect, resulting in injury or fight.

Often a puppy is raised where other dogs are expected to tolerate behavior. One day the puppy runs up to a dog and starts behavior that they’ve rehearsed, the new dog doesn’t tolerate it and corrects the dog/starts a fight...

Read the full article here:

https://www.horizonretrievers.com/post/socialization-1

08/06/2024

We’re both getting really, really excited for bird dog season. At 3 years old, I feel like Ember has really solid experience and training and I hope to make this season super special.

08/05/2024

Welcome to the pack, Malli 🤩

Miss Malli is a 12 week old Boykin Spaniel who will be spending some time with us as a puppy and later as an adult! As part of the Early Bird Puppy Program, we’ll be establishing solid crate and potty training foundations, socialization with people, environments, things, animals, sounds, textures, experiences, etc., and introducing marker training!

Raising a puppy takes a huge amount of dedication, time, energy, consistency, patience, and adherence to rules, boundaries and structure. We are so excited to be a part of Malli’s puppyhood and to watch her grow up 🤩.

If you have any puppy-related questions, I will be posting new puppy content to Patreon and would be happy to help!

07/31/2024

| Miguel |

Companion Obedience Program Graduate

I couldn’t be more proud of this sweet boy! Miguel made so much progress in his time with me. I loved seeing him become more confident, come out of his shell, and become such an easy and enjoyable guy to work with! We will definitely miss having him around!

07/16/2024

| Clover |

Companion Obedience Program Graduate

Another nice EB that I have had the opportunity to work with from ! Clover’s owners have done such a great job with her, seeking guidance from myself and from the time they brought her home and it shows. When pups show up for training that are environmentally stable, able to be crated on and off without stress, have exposure to rules and pressure, then trainers can really hit the ground running and get the most out of our time together! Clover is such a nice pup that is sure to have a heck of a companion bird dog life!

07/09/2024

| Olive |

Companion Obedience Program Graduate

This gorgeous girl made for an entertaining few weeks 😂. She’s been a very good girl while adding a little silliness to all situations. We will certainly miss her but her family is so excited to have her back home!

06/27/2024

You know you’re living life right when every day feels like Friday 🤩

06/13/2024

| Moby |

Companion Obedience Program Graduate

This cute guy has such a great personality! He’s quite the character and made for such a fun few weeks together! He’s a very good kid and I am so proud of him!

06/11/2024

| Bulleit |

Companion Obedience Program Graduate

So proud of this sweet boy and all the progress he made during his training!

06/04/2024

A handsome hunk and a seriously good boy 😍 I sure have enjoyed the last three weeks together. This guy is everything that a good American lab should be and I can’t wait to see him all grown up 🤩