Tealwin Retrievers - Deb Ulsh (and Pat Williams) Overview

How often do you offer hunt training?  Individual or group? Year round, both individual and group.  

Would you travel to offer seminars? Yes - I have been up to Canada (BC) several times, and quite a few dogs from those seminars went on this summer to their titles - both JH & SH.   

How much experience do you have training golden retrievers? Quite a lot. I have 3 Goldens currently in my care part time, one field golden who started running Master this fall, one show golden who will be running Master this coming spring, and one show golden who will be running JH this coming spring. In addition, I have several individual and group clients who have received their JH, WC, WCX and SH under my tutaledge.   

Do you provide instruction on WC, WCX and JH trial preparation and competition, in addition to training for general hunting skills? Yes - in fact one of my seminars deals specifically with how handlers and their dogs work as a team, and what handlers can do to increase their chances to qualify.   

What do you believe are training issues specific to working with this breed? Temperament! Unfortunately there are a lot of show goldens who either have an aversion to water, not a lot of drive, or are simply exceedingly soft or sensitive. These dogs need to have a lot of encouragement along with a firm hand to show them that water doesn't bite, they do have to do this, but we can have fun while doing it. That takes a sensitive touch in a trainer. It's not something you can just bully the dog through, and it takes patience and time.   

What is your training philosophy? I believe in a lot of praise, combined with a firm hand and correction needed at the level the dog needs at that time. I do not believe in harsh corrections, "frying" the dog, or beating a dog into compliance. I believe that corrections need to be made in a "matter of fact" manner, without anger or frustration. I try to feel what the dog feels, think how he thinks, and try to make learning simple. I realize that this takes longer, which means the client ends up paying more money, but all my dogs work with a happy tail - and that means a lot to me. Many of the dogs I have worked with were "rejects" from other trainers who didn't want to take the time, or whose methods had "ruined" the dog.   

When do you feel training with an e-collar is appropriate? I use the e-collar on all my advanced dogs, and on younger dogs who just don't think "Here" means them! <G> However, before using the collar on any dog, he is taught the command first without it, then slowly conditioned to the collar with that command. Most people think once you follow the Tritronics 3 step conditioning program they can use the collar for any command. I have found that this confuses many dogs, especially the more sensitive dogs. Therefore, I condition the dogs to every command before using the collar as a correction at distance. If the dogs don't understand how to turn off the electricity, they panic and you've not only lost ground in your training, you've lost the trust of the dog. Anyone can come out and observe me training at any time, and you will find my dogs rarely vocalize when corrected on the collar. I don't believe a dog should be screaming when corrected. I rarely use more than a #3 level, and usually work my dogs on the #2. (There are 5 levels on a collar - I have felt them all and never want to use the #5!)   If you like what you've read, please feel free to contact me by phone after pm and before 11pm my time (PST). 360-966-4920.   

Deb Ulsh 
Tealwin Retrievers 
ICQ#40955428

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