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Why hire a pro?

23K views 94 replies 58 participants last post by  Dustin D 
#1 ·
I see many folks stating that their dogs are "with the pro" or "just back from the pro" and I just don't get it. If you are doing this for the love of dogs and what they can accomplish, then why would you not want to train your own dog. Many would say knowledge and to that I respond; there are plenty of resources and mentors to help with that. Moreover, I know I'm not as good of a trainer as most pros but I can always take pride in saying that with my dogs fails and successes that it was my time and effort that is to blame. What is the point of running a dog that you didn't train yourself. Others might lament the time that it takes and they are busy. Well, I have a job and a bunch of kids too. You train when you can and sometimes not as much as you would like too. Not judging anyone, just a thought.
 
#2 ·
For not judging anyone you sure are.

We all have our challenges and priorities. You are lucky to have a situation that allows you to work with your own dog at a pace that pleases you. I have used pros over the years when I had a dog I knew needed to advance but I didn't have the time, places to train or a training group to do it myself. Others will relay similar situations.

Enjoy your dog and the time you have to spend with it.

Meredith
 
#3 ·
There lots of reasons for hiring a pro. All you say about the satisfaction of doing it yourself is true, but you asked the question, so here are some answers in no particular order:

1) Despite all the resources available today, many people just aren't confident in their ability to properly train a dog, especially in the important early young dog stage.
2) You have a job and kids and are able to do it, but many can't. It's a good feeling knowing your dog is getting steady day to day training every day regardless of all the other hassles going on in your life.
3) Longer road trips where a pro might run your dog in multiple events that you couldn't get to due to work.
4) extending your training and trialing season by either going South during winter if you live in the snowy north, or north in the summer if you live in the hot south.
5) Pro help with a specific issue you can't figure out.
6) Better training grounds and daily pro set ups that you don't have at home.

Like you said, we shouldn't judge, I'm sure everyone has a good reason to do it yourself, get occasional help from a pro, or send their dog to a pro long term.
 
#4 ·
I personally have seen both sides. I have used pro's and have done it myself. The satisfaction is no doubt greater if you do the work yourself. But, as John stated it is very difficult to find the time and the resources to properly train! I have several young dogs at the moment and I am attempting to do it myself. It is difficult to operate a business and take care of and train these pups to the level that I think they are capable of. I also was blessed with my first grandchild 7 weeks ago and I can tell you if the financial resources were there I would place my dogs with a pro and enjoy my new grandson. I enjoy great dog work as much as anyone but the time is not always there.
 
#5 ·
Um, got a dog, then got a "promotion" in my work... more money and way less time. Should I put the dog in cold storage? Forget about running her when my intentions had been to "get in the game"? Said dog is now 6 years old, a MH, been to the MN once (briefly...;) ) and will be running advanced stakes with me. I got a newpup about 10 months before retirement. Sent her off for thorough basics (that I did not have the time or expertise to give her) and now I expect to be running in both upper and lower stakes and who knows after that.

Without a pro, I'd be 65 years old and starting from absolute scratch. Now I have a new life and a running start at what I love.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Ryan, don't take this harshly, but...

I think your inquiry stems from your lack of knowing what actually goes into training a Top Flight Retriever.

Yellow


Have you ever trained a Finished Dog? Not a Meat Dog, I'm talking about a Field Champion, Grand HRCH, Master Hunter etc etc ..,....?

Sounds like you haven't. Sounds like you may not have ever even seen one of these types of Champions.

It's HARD. Very hard and even if you know what you're doing it's hard, even if you have help it can be hard.

Most everyone here is Training their guts out, even if they're paying for a Pro to get the Fundamentals/Advanced Handling Done.

It doesn't stop there. The dog will have to practice for years to be his very best.

So, I say again, sounds like you may not understand,
b/c you simply don't know all that is required.

Otherwise, how could you even ask the question? No one here would dare ask that question
b/c we all know why.

Text Yellow Purple Font Line


By the way, I have never hired a Pro. But that doesn't mean I don't know why they exist.
I've been in the game long enough to know that MUCH is required to get a dog to Champion Status.

WAY MORE than the average person is even close to giving.

These folks aren't training a dog to pick up some ducks within 100 yards in the marsh.
 
#9 ·
Ok...I guess I will respond to some of this.

Dustin: I will be running a finished and a new started this weekend.

I understand the issues with property needs and issues finding anything. I currently live in the city with a postage stamp yard but I'm never afraid to knock on doors and ask to use land for training. That's the only training grounds I have. I've been kicked out of city parks. So I get it.

I also understand work and other priorities. I'm lucky enough to not be required to travel as much as I have in the past for work.

I simply think that it is more rewarding to train(and sometimes screw up) your own dog.
 
#12 ·
Ok...I guess I will respond to some of this.

Dustin: I will be running a finished and a new started this weekend.

I understand the issues with property needs and issues finding anything. I currently live in the city with a postage stamp yard but I'm never afraid to knock on doors and ask to use land for training. That's the only training grounds I have. I've been kicked out of city parks. So I get it.

I also understand work and other priorities. I'm lucky enough to not be required to travel as much as I have in the past for work.

I simply think that it is more rewarding to train(and sometimes screw up) your own dog.
For you that may be true, except the screw it up part, but like Dustin said going for an FC-AFC is way-way hard. I don't know what Finished is, I assume it's similar to Master in AKC. I trained my first dog to MH mostly by myself and a training buddy. Going for an FC or AFC is way harder. That said it is possible for really good amateurs to do it all themselves.
 
#10 ·
I use a pro because I can. I coach my kids sports, work full time, and have more money than time but I still want to compete. Yes I have trained my own dogs to HT titles but to compete in field trials my dogs need to be trained more consistently and on better grounds than I can get to while coaching and working.
 
#11 ·
Some will use a pro to get through a certain point in training that they either don't want to do or don't feel confident doing. Force fetch is a good example of that. I do an awful lot of that for owners who will do the other training themselves. There's nothing wrong with that...it ends up being easier on the dog to have me FF it as opposed to an owner who will FF one dog every ten years or so and isn't confident in doing it.
 
#13 ·
to be competitive in the white coat game ,you have to have sufficient time on your hands to not only train , but run events . It is the pro's job . A HARD JOB..As I approach retirement from my current job , I had decisions to make .Have a co owner on a dog for the first time since I started this game 25 years ago , who has been with a pro for a winter trip .My new pup is out of my lines ,and spent the summer/fall with a pro . So 2 dogs on a pro truck recently . Glad I did it .Next dog might start out there too , depending on pups development/age and actual retirement date . I think the underlying theme to all the responses is the owners doing what they feel is in the dog's best interest . I know it's not in my checkbooks best interest to use a pro regards...........:)
 
#14 ·
In my case I decided that I was not a dog trainer so instead of wasting my time on a pretend trainer. I chose to have a pro do the job. There is a big difference on having a trained pup even if it's just the basics. If I mess up I have no fall back. Sometimes you can't just read knowledge. Or I can't everyone's skills are different. Me I am a Sheetmetal Pro.�� that's where my pro skills start and end.
 
#16 ·
Have you ever had a fire breathing hard charger? Some dogs require the services of a Pro. Better for the dog and better for you.

I like Sharon's approach. I leave FF to a pro. I suck at it. Always have...
 
#17 ·
I think there are very few dog owners who aren't also dog-lovers, especially their dog. If they could take the dog to the level they need (whether hunting, HT's or FT's) they would. Fundamentally, they cannot. So they make a huge sacrifice. I do and always will miss the fact that there were large chunks of my 6 y.o. BLF's life of which I was not a part. I certainly miss the $$ that could have otherwise be earning compound interest in some account. But there is no way I could have had an advanced dog and a well started Newpup at my age if I'd not done it.

So for me it was a binary choice. Use a pro and have working dogs. Don't use a pro and forget about owning a lab all together. (I could always get a pocket dog at the humane shelter and that would be that.)

(And before anyone says the obvious... we also own a rescued lab who manages the household when the other labs are on the road.)
 
#18 ·
I don't know how to build a Ferrari, but if I had that kind of coin laying around I wouldn't mind owning and driving one.

With that being said I do enjoy training my own dogs and take pride in my work, but it is quite an undertaking to make a top quality retriever. I've got to respect the work, no matter who has done it.
 
#19 ·
It's kind of like having a son or daughter who are very intelligent. Maybe you taught them as much as you could about life. They could stay at home, work in the family business and you could continue their education yourself or they could take advantage of going off to a university for opportunities and further education that you simply couldn't provide. Neither approach is wrong, but not many who stay at home will have the same doors open for them later in life. It's all about what each individual feels is best for them in their situation, what they can afford, and how far they want their prodigies to go.
 
#20 ·
If I get any more of a thrill after getting a FT ribbon than I do now (or heck, just making it out of the first series) the club would have to have someone standing by to do CPR. So for me, it's a safety issue to use a pro, so I don't feel quite so accomplished or satisfied, when I run my dogs. ;)
 
#23 ·
Do you do your own cut and tap on your electrical service?

For me, how many hunting dogs am I going to own the rest of my life?
2 maybe 3
How good at something you do once every 12 years can you be?
 
#24 ·
Cuz pros need to make a living too.
While hunting on public ground here in UT just about every guy I see with a dog should use a pro and I wish they would cuz pros need to make a living too. Also most guys that I run across have no clue how to train and handle a dog and might as well leave them at home and retrieve their own ducks. Some have no desire to train their own dog but want a reliable obedient dog to hunt with, oh and did I mention cuz pros need to make a living too
 
#25 ·
Ryan, I used a pro for 2 reasons. 1)To train the dogs and 2)To train me. I work about 60 hours a week, run 2 side businesses, maintain deer hunting property year round and train when I can. My 2 Ali pups spent 13 months with a pro to get them to the finished level. In that time I spent about 30 grand on training and equipment. I trained with the pro myself so that I wouldn't screw up what he accomplished with them. The money that I spent on training was money well spent. I knew that I didn't have the time to put in or the knowledge to get them to the finished level. These are high power dogs that will bust your balls if you don't know what you are doing. That's what pros are for. Now I have 2 awesome dogs that know what they need to do and how to do it. A little food for thought. You learn more by listening than making statements about something you obviously know little about.
 
#26 ·
Nether one of my dogs have ever run from anyone else's side but my own whether in training or competition but I have trained with a couple of different pro's and some great amateur trainers. Without their exceptional knowledge and help I would never have achieved what I have to this point. I got my first lab after I retired so I have plenty of time to train by myself or with a group. If that was not the case I would have no doubt sent my dog to a pro until my dog and myself would have been ready to go out on our own. I love training and competing with my dogs but I also love the fact that there is a possibility that me and my dog can kick everyone else's butt on any given weekend.
 
#27 ·
I obviously asked a question and stated that I personally gain and enjoy more from training myself. Generally,when a question is posed, that person is looking for information(listening). Read my original post carefully...food for thought. And yes, I know very little about dropping $30,000 on a hobby. Which might be a reason you see such a lack of new members and participants at hunt test.
 
#28 ·
Because I am a lesser dog man than you are and I am trying to do may part to ruin the sport by having pros show up with 100 dogs on their truck and cause the minor stakes to wait for days for them to get over there.
 
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