The AKC’s Canine Good Citizen program is the gold standard of behavior for dogs in our communities. Almost one million dogs, both purebred and mixed breed, have participated in the program since it began in 1989. Canine Good Citizen is part of the AKC Family Dog Program and many dog owners choose CGC as their […]

After CGC: What's Next? A well-trained dog is a joy to live with, and the Canine Good Citizen (CGC) Program is a great first step in providing your dog with a solid foundation of basic training skills and intellectual stimulation. When you complete CGC training, you will have a canine companion who responds to core […]

What is a Therapy Dog? Therapy dogs are dogs who go with their owners to volunteer in settings such as schools, hospitals, and nursing homes. From working with a child who is learning to read to visiting a senior in assisted living, therapy dogs and their owners work together as a team to improve the […]

Spaniels are undeniably cute, with a happy and gentle personality. But did you know they are also hardy and skillful hunting companions retrieving water fowl and flushing game birds in all conditions. Spaniels competing in trials will be judged on game-finding ability, steadiness and retrieving. A spaniel’s work in the field is a compilation of […]

Once in a lifetime you may be lucky enough to share your life with a simply amazing dog that nature has smiled on and who excels in every way.  I am incredibly fortunate to share my life with such a dog, CH Rosewood Little Giant UDX VER RA MHU SH MXP MJP T2BP XFP DJ, […]

You might think your sweet and affectionate spaniel was born just to be cuddled and adored by you, but you’d be wrong: Spaniels were actually first bred to be hunting companions! Their role was to hunt, find game, and then drive them out of their hiding places (also called “flushing”). Want to see those natural […]

Fascinating fact: Dogs have a sense of smell that’s between 10,000 and 100,000 times more acute than ours! The sport of Scent Work celebrates the joy of sniffing, and asks a dog to sniff to their heart’s content; turning your dog’s favorite activity into a rewarding game. It is a terrific sport for all kinds […]

What is Scent Work? AKC Scent Work is a sport that mimics the task of working detection dogs to locate a scent and communicate to the handler that the scent has been found. Real-life detection dogs are trained to search for a variety of things--drugs, explosives, human remains, currency, other contraband, living humans (such as […]

With Retrievers being one of the most popular breeds in America, it’s a safe bet that thousands upon thousands of hours are spent playing fetch each year. While you might think it’s just a form of play (and a fun party trick!), it’s actually much more: It’s a Retriever embracing his natural ability to respond […]

You’ve played ball with your Retriever about a million times in your backyard or at the park, but do his fetching abilities automatically mean he’d make a good hunting companion? Not necessarily. The only way to really know is to participate in a Retriever Hunting Test. Ever since the first AKC retriever hunting tests were […]